English Language Learners and Dyslexia [Premium]

English Language Learners and Dyslexia [Premium]

Question: An English language learner recently joined my dyslexia classroom. She seems to be having more difficulty progressing on our standard curriculum. Do you have any suggestions or advice? When trying to understand why a new English Language Learner (ELL or English as a Second Language) student in your class isn’t making progress with peers, individual as well as more general second language-related factors can be contributing to the discrepancy. Whenever a particular student seems to be having trouble showing progress with a curriculum, individual factors, such as their vision or hearing (including chronic ear infections, for instance) interfering with their learning should be considered. Beyond this, questions about speed of instruction, working memory, long-term memory, the number of repetitions needed to progress should be […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
Embracing the Spiky* Profile [Premium]

Embracing the Spiky* Profile [Premium]

It can be a challenge reconciling dyslexia stories in a publication such as this because the topics may zoom from the highest highs (innovators, explorers, paradigm-shifters) to what seem to be early school frustrations – like spelling homonyms or forming letters correctly – but such is the life of the spiky profile person. That is also why if you look at what seems to be a well-organized program of remediation, and have your student signed up for it, progress may not be as orderly as hoped. A core part of the trouble trying to communicate what dyslexia may look like to those who are unfamiliar is that many existing definitions fall wide of the mark. Dyslexia is better understood as a broad learning difference – […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
Navigating the Non-Dyslexic World [Premium]

Navigating the Non-Dyslexic World [Premium]

For almost every subject and career, there will be challenges that arise because rules and programs were designed without dyslexic people in mind. The only way things can change for the better is to have more members of the community speak up and advocate for change. Sometimes the process of self-advocacy can be exhausting, but if you stay with it day-in and day-out, educating rather than doing battle, you are usually surprised to see improvement over time. ADVANCED AND SPECIALTY CLASSES OR ACTIVITIES As individuals progress through their education and life, they master the basics of reading and writing, and other problems are encountered in spotty fashion as they enter advanced or specialty activities and classes. For example, I’ve often heard from dyslexic IT specialists […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
Organizing Math [Premium]

Organizing Math [Premium]

Math is a challenge for almost every student as the world recovers from disruptions due to the pandemic. Although almost all community colleges waive some math requirements, only a few colleges completely waive them. One list I found was here, but do check individual college sites for current information. 1. University of Arizona – Substitution allowed 2. University of the Ozarks – Substitution for College Algebra 3. California Polytechnic State University – Substitution for non-math majors 4. Cal State Fullerton – Math substitution 5. Cal State Long Beach – Math substitution 6. Cal State San Bernadino – Math substitution 7. Menlo College – Math substitution 8. Santa Monica College – Math substitution 9. Sierra College – Math waiver 10. UC Berkley – Math waiver 11. […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
Question: How to Help with Reversals [Premium]

Question: How to Help with Reversals [Premium]

Question: My middle grade student still has trouble with reversals. What can I do to help? Answer: Reversals can occur in different contexts, so understanding the different causes can help determine the best solutions. PERSISTENT LETTER REVERSALS Reversals can be a normal developmental finding up until the age of seven years. After that, severe difficulties with letter reversals may require intensive training or even therapy. Letter Recognition Persistent letter recognition problems are usually helped by a variety of multisensory sensory and mnemonic approaches. Programs like Zoophonics combine little memory associations and character drawings to help improve letter recognition. Hand visual mnemonics may help some children to distinguish between the letters b and d, as shown in the bed image: See more: Usually older students develop […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
Visual Learning [Premium]

Visual Learning [Premium]

Two of the strongest differences seen in our survey of 12,291 members of our Dyslexic Advantage community were answers to questions below: LEARNING THROUGH PICTURES, DIAGRAMS, AND IMAGERY “I generally prefer diagrams or pictures to written instructions or explanations.” 70% of definitely dyslexic people strongly agreed with this first statement compared to just 7% of definitely not dyslexic people. And look at the different profiles in response to this question: “When I think of historical facts or events, I see “scenes” or images in my mind, rather than just recalling verbal descriptions. 64% of definitely dyslexic people strongly agreed with this statement, compared to just 8% of definitely not dyslexic people. Think about the implications for schooling, but also workplace communication! No wonder clashes are […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
What’s the Connection between Auditory Processing and Dyslexia? [Premium]

What’s the Connection between Auditory Processing and Dyslexia? [Premium]

It’s not uncommon when we speak to groups about dyslexia that someone asks why we are mentioning auditory processing when they (mistakenly) believe dyslexia is only about reading. In fact, there is substantial research literature about dyslexia and auditory processing difficulties – sometimes the problems can present with difficulty in learning phonemes, but other times it may affect sensitivity to auditory distractions, trouble listening to rapid or foreign speakers, and problems hearing in the presence of background noise. People who are dyslexic themselves or live with people who are dyslexic may know all about this. It’s a good example of how simplistic definitions can confuse rather than help. There’s been extensive work about auditory processing differences found in dyslexic vs. non dyslexic groups. The figure […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
Question: Keeping Up with Wilson at School [Premium]

Question: Keeping Up with Wilson at School [Premium]

Question: I have a third grade student who attends a school that used Wilson Fundations in the earlier grades. The problem is that even though my daughter did some summer work, she’s been having trouble keeping up. She’s dropped down a level from her peers so that she’s just repeating what she had been taught before. There is less stress in the lower group, but would changing her to a different curriculum be a better option? Answer: This is a difficult question to answer specifically. Ideally, someone who really knows your student could give you specific guidance on whether repetition or a new curriculum might be a better move. The Wilson Fundations program is designed for general education classrooms. It (as well as other programs […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more
Dyslexia and Math: Knowing Why [Premium]

Dyslexia and Math: Knowing Why [Premium]

It’s been estimated that almost half of dyslexic individuals will also be dyscalculic (Wilson et al., 2014), but dyscalculia is less likely to be assessed or formally identified in school, leaving students to flounder on their own.   WHY IS DYSLEXIA COMMONLY ASSOCIATED WITH MATH LD? Experts still debate why there is such significant overlap, but at least one recent study found that spatial difficulties were especially associated with students with dyscalculia or those with both dyslexia and dyscalculia. Besides spatial factors, difficulties in sequencing, trouble with symbols, working memory overload, and rote math fact retrieval are all difficulties commonly seen among dyslexic students and those with dyscalculia. What is not particularly common among dyslexic students is difficulty with math reasoning – in fact for […]

To access this post, you must be a Premium supporter.

read more

LEARN MORE AS A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER

Dyslexia and Gifted: Course for Psychologists

Dyslexia for Teachers Course

Categories

SPONSORS

    Discover Your Dyslexic MIND Strengths
                                    Free

 

 

 


Amazon Affiliate Notice

Dyslexic Advantage is an Amazon Affiliate. If you click on a link that takes you to the Amazon store, Dyslexic Advantage may earn money on qualifying purchases. Clicking HERE to enter Amazon and making a purchase may support Dyslexic Advantage. Thank you!

LEARN MORE AS A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER

Dyslexia | Dyslexic Advantage