Currently, the educational world is being rocked about advances in artificial intelligence technology that are upturning ways students are being assessed and demonstrating their knowledge. The AI Writing programs are dazzling and while there can be upsides to having...
Teen with Newly-Diagnosed Dysgraphia: Will It Get Better ? [Premium]
Dysgraphia (writing disability) is commonly seen with dyslexia. It does improve over time and can be improved by different approaches and training depending on the source. Many aspects of dysgraphia remain lifelong, though, and it’s common for adults with dysgraphia to opt to use computers and assistive technology when they have to write extensively for […]
Beyond Reading Aloud
Question: How can I tell that students are dyslexic if they're not reading aloud? Last week a high school teacher in my course asked how she might be able to tell that a student may be dyslexic if they don't read out loud in her class. Once a student moves into upper...
Pausing while Writing [Premium]
There are many reasons why students may pause while writing, but more if students are also dyslexic. Those who remember their thoughts and experiences as nonverbal sensations will need extra steps to put their knowledge and understanding into words. Dysgraphic students will have difficulty writing and those with small working memories, may overload with […]
Managing Too Much Information in Math with Card Sorts and Categories [Premium]
Too often math classes start off with a lot of math problem-solving that can result in students in getting lost. Sometimes the problem is that math explanations overload working memory; other times, students struggle because they can’t listen for understanding at the same time they are trying to take notes, leaving them to figure out […]
Avoiding the Third Grade Madness
If you're the parent of a third grade child with dyslexia in the public school system, your student may be having an especially difficult time. Some of the struggle might be understandable as classrooms attempt to move past learning to decode to reading to...
Dyslexia and Dysgraphia: What Does Writing Look Like? [Premium]
What does the writing look like in students with dyslexia and dysgraphia? IMPAIRED AUTOMATICITY, CAPITAL LETTER INTRUSIONS, and SPELLING ERRORS Students who struggle with handwriting automaticity show irregular shapes and sizes of letters. For example, look at the letter ‘e’ in the spelling test at right. They are very different from one another, showing […]
White Noise Improves Reading Skills and Memory in Reading Disabilities [Premium]
Some of you may remember research in the past that showed that individuals with dyslexia have more difficulty screening out background noise (discussed in the news HERE). Students or adults with this difficulty can usually request quiet area for work or test-taking under the ADA or Americans for Disabilities Act. Now another research group […]
What Kind of Dysgraphia [Premium]
A recent clinical review of dysgraphia has defined dysgraphia in the following way: “At its broadest definition, dysgraphia is a disorder of writing ability at any stage, including problems with letter formation/legibility, letter spacing, spelling, fine motor coordination, rate of writing, grammar, and composition.” Developmental dysgraphia (i.e. dysgraphia not based on some known injury) […]
Answer Apps and the Benefits of Learning in Reverse [Premium]
Conventional lecture courses for subjects with problem sets can be inefficient. For dyslexic students if the information comes in too quickly, they can’t follow steps as a teacher works through problems in real time. A recurring scenario for many students (and not just the dyslexic ones) is that to truly understand, the students must […]
The Double Whammy: Dyscalculia and Dysgraphia [Premium]
What happens when a student has both dyscalculia and dysgraphia? Be prepared for an educational path that has a timing of its own. Dysgraphia often accompanies dyslexia, but dyscalculia too. If you or your student has two or three out of these 3 “d’s” be prepared for a challenging course and a need for individualization […]
Schooling From Home, Can You Do It?
Like it or not, when Fall rolls around, many of us may need to school from home whether it's our first choice or not. What if your student is dyslexic? Can it possibly work? There are a lot of people who can't see schooling from home working for their student, but...