Visual Learning [Premium]

Visual Learning [Premium]

by | Jan 15, 2023 | , , ,

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 […]

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Math Games for All [Premium]

Math Games for All [Premium]

by | Jan 8, 2023 | , , , , ,

Math games are a great way to build a hands-on sense for number flexibility and quantity. The best situation is if hands-on and visual math activities are started from the beginning, but the good news is that it’s never too late to start. Even students who are taught almost exclusively in rote/symbolic ways can benefit by activities and reinforcements at home or in out-of-class tutoring sessions. SUBITIZING AND NUMBER SENSE Subitizing is a term that refers to a rapid and confident judgment about a small number of items. If you have three coins in your hand or five do you quickly know how many coins there are without having to count? That number sense is important before progressing to higher calculations. Click on the photos […]

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New Ways to Hack Learning [Premium]

New Ways to Hack Learning [Premium]

by | Jan 1, 2023 | , , , , , , , , ,

Almost every structured literacy program uses letter tiles and flashcards. The reason for this is that there are so many word parts and whole words to learn and the use of tiles and cards can give students visual support as they focus on various letters, letter groups, and their sounds while building up reading fluency. Some students may have difficulty learning with tiles and cards if the lessons or demonstrations proceed too quickly, or if working memory is easily overloaded or motor challenges make hands-on activities more difficult than less kinesthetic ones. Activities like word sorts may also provide a little physical activity that help students stay alert and engaged whereas more passive study may have them drifting off. For college kids and adults, flashcards […]

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Question: Keeping Up with Wilson at School [Premium]

Question: Keeping Up with Wilson at School [Premium]

by | Dec 18, 2022 | , , , , , , , , , , ,

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 […]

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Dyslexia and Math: Knowing Why [Premium]

Dyslexia and Math: Knowing Why [Premium]

by | Dec 18, 2022 | , , , , , ,

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 […]

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Language Teaching and Dyslexia: What About Exceptions to the Rules? [Premium]

Language Teaching and Dyslexia: What About Exceptions to the Rules? [Premium]

by | Nov 6, 2022 | , , , , , , , , , , ,

The English language is especially difficult to learn if you are dyslexic – because about half of its words are not predictable by simple rules. So what to do? WORD FAMILIES Learning similar words in similar groups can be motivating for students because they learn many words at one time. Dyslexic students tend to be good at recognizing patterns, so approaches like these are well-suited toward dyslexic students. One site for word family lists can be found here. DON’T OVERSIMPLIFY THE RULES Problems usually arise when students are taught an oversimplified rule like “a silent e makes a vowel say its name”. The rule works for words like bake, bike, nose, and cute, but it doesn’t work for words like have or dance.

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Dyslexic Super Learners [Premium]

Dyslexic Super Learners [Premium]

by | Oct 23, 2022 | , , , , , , , ,

“This isn’t how I think either; this is how I have trained myself to think, because it works.” – Kevin Horsley, World Memory Champion and author of Unlimited Memory   It seems surprisingly common that dyslexics are found among the world’s super-learners. It might be that all share a passion for understanding their memory strengths after suffering what may have been years in the school system, not realizing how to use their gifts. It also might be that dyslexics as a group have strengths in metacognition, especially when studied in selected groups like those found in universities. When Kirby and colleagues studied dyslexic and non dyslexic students in college, his study group of dyslexic students were more likely to use metacognition (i.e. thinking about their thinking), […]

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The Language of Math [Premium]

The Language of Math [Premium]

by | Oct 16, 2022 | , , , ,

“The meanings of words in general usage are often very different from their mathematical meanings.” — Marilyn Burns Educational leaders are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of teaching the language of math in order to raise understanding and performance. There can be extensive reading and writing demands associated with math learning and dyslexic students may be at particular disadvantages learning because they may have trouble reading word problems, dual tasking (listening while taking notes), and confusion with symbols. A paper by Riccomini and colleagues recalled some of the difficulties associated with learning the language of math: – Words that have different meanings in contexts (a foot = 12 inches vs. foot of the bed) – Homonyms (pie vs. pi) – Concepts that may be […]

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New to Dyslexia [Premium]

New to Dyslexia [Premium]

by | Jul 10, 2022 | , , , , , ,

More people are finding out that they’re dyslexic, so it seemed like a good time to write a big picture of dyslexia for new members.   DYSLEXIC STRENGTHS First of all, there seem to be intrinsic strengths associated with dyslexia and not simply weaknesses or impairments. Understanding the strengths and positive differences can help people navigate through the most difficult periods of schooling and life. We discuss dyslexic MIND strengths in more detail in our book, The Dyslexic Advantage, but briefly, these strengths include reasoning through materials and physical experiences, reasoning through the interconnection of ideas and knowledge, storytelling, and reasoning through visualizations and mental simulations. Dyslexic learning may conflict with conventional classroom instruction because traditional teaching may emphasize passive learning and rote memorization over […]

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A Dyslexic’s Guide to Writing [Premium]

A Dyslexic’s Guide to Writing [Premium]

by | Jun 12, 2022 | , , ,

“We have so many tools to take care of the spelling, but not the tools to bring a fresh and new perspective to the world. Focus on your voice and your message, and the rest will follow.” — Tess Gadd Tess Gadd is an interface designer based in Cape Town who also writes a popular blog on Medium. She shared three strategies she uses to overcome challenges with writing. 1. PROOFREADING TOOLS “Enter Grammarly. I have been using the pro version for a year now, and it has made such a difference to my writing. Not only does it pick up mistakes, but it is also improves my ability to edit and proofread my own work.” 2. READING TOP TO BOTTOM AND BOTTOM TOP “When […]

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