Congratulations to Grammarly, a free-premium software that adds directly onto the Safari, Chrome, and the Firefox browser and can be downloaded HERE. I've been using it on my Mac and it's already caught a number of errors. If you use Microsoft Word or Outlook on...
Dyslexia-friendly Technology [Premium]
Because technology IS such a game changer for everyone – especially dyslexics of all ages – it’s important to be aware of the pros and cons, possibilities as well as limits, and ways in which apps, assistive technology, and gadgets can make school and workplaces better fits for dyslexics of all ages. USE IT If the biggest hurdle to technology is knowing that it exists, the second biggest has to be customizing the software so that it works well for you, and then allowing enough time for mastery. Access to technology is one of the best ways for dyslexic people to level the playing field at school and in the workplace, and fully express their knowledge and expertise. CAUTIONS The American Academy of Pediatrics has […]
Dyslexic Innovation: GOOGLE (X) CAPTAIN Astro Teller [Premium]
Many of the world’s greatest innovators are dyslexic. These creators with a capital ‘C’, more often than not, arrive at their conclusions through wild leaps of their ideas rather than incremental, step-by-step invention. This pattern, which appears in so many accomplished people in every type of field and discipline, should be telling us what to look for in its raw form in young people, and what the end goal of the educational process should really be. A great case in point in Google’s X Lab Captain of Moonshots, Astro Teller. Astro doesn’t talk a lot about his dyslexia, but he did relate this story about his dyslexia at an educational conference: “As a student in school, I fell into the habit of doing things […]
Top Dyslexia Apps – Microsoft OneNote with Learning Tools
Today Microsoft released a great addition to its free organization - productivity app OneNote - and the two nicest things about it...it's Free and it was created with students and adults with dyslexia in mind. As a result, Dyslexic Advantage is proud to announce that...
How to Read Aloud on Your iPhone
Here are instructions for turning Read Aloud on your iPhone. Settings>General>Accessibility>Speech>Speak Selection (you can adjust speed with the slider at the bottom of this page; turtle for slower and rabbit for faster) Once you have completed the steps...
Let Them Listen – Audiobooks and Dyslexia [Premium]
Let Them Listen! “The objective of the present research study was to understand what benefits the use of audiobooks (both school-books and books of various genres, recorded on digital media) could bring to preadolescents and adolescents with developmental dyslexia. Two groups, each consisting of 20 adolescents, were compared. The experimental group used the audiobooks, while the control group continued to use normal books. After 5 months of experimental training, the experimental group showed a significant improvement in reading accuracy, with reduced unease and emotional–behavioural disorders, as well as an improvement in school performance and a greater motivation and involvement in school activities.” – Milani et al., Dyslexia (journal) It’s surprising how often we continue to hear that dyslexic students are denied the use of audiobooks […]
Surviving Parent Teacher Conferences [Premium]
Parent-Teaching Conferences can be stressful for both parents and teachers. Keep your eye on the big picture, think strategically, and work toward a positive year for your student in the classroom. Often the amount of time you have with the teacher is quite short because of the total number of students involved. As a result, plan on showing up to see how the beginning of the year is progressing and focus on finding solutions if your students is lagging behind or having difficulties. If you’ve purchase Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, or Dyscalculia Teacher cards, now is a good time to use them. Quick Tips for Parent Teacher Conferences If Your Student is Dyslexic: Make a Positive First Impression – This may be the first time your meeting this teacher and she […]
Dyslexic Advantage Premium – Issue 11 Organizing Creativity [Premium]
Premium Issue 11 October 29, 2016 Organizing Creativity, Stealth Dyslexia, Dyslexia and Self Image, Memorizing for School, What Worked for 2E Gifted Dyslexics, Art Therapy for Dysgraphia, Hands-On Math for Fractions, More Interactive Reading Strategies, Mastering Foreign Languages and More This issue has memory strategies that seem to be helpful for a majority of dyslexic folk – whether it’s history facts, science vocabulary, or foreign languages. Subscriptions support Dyslexic Advantage. [/wcm_restrict]
DEAN KAMEN INVENTOR [Premium]
“If you start to do things you’ve never done before, you’re probably going to fail at least some of the time…and I say that’s ok.” – Dean Kamen Dean Kamen is one of the world’s most prolific inventors with over 440 patents to his name – including the Segway, the Luke Arm (robotic prosthesis), a programmable insulin pump and portable water purifier for Third World Countries. He also created the FIRST LEGO league to encourage young people to build and engineer, and he considers that his most important accomplishment. Dean’s father was an illustrator for MAD magazine and Weird Science and his mother was a teacher. Precocious at a young age, he remembers inventing a way to make his bed without having to cross to […]
Question: Does Note-Taking with Spellcheck Help or Hinder Students with Dyslexia ? [Premium]
It’s a question that arises commonly – does spellchecking for students help or hinder when it comes to students and spelling? The concern is that allowing students to use spellcheck on a regular basis in the long run may prevent them learning correct spellings. Should age matter or the presence of dyslexia? What about working memory overload or ADD/ ADHD? The issue is not a trivial one especially because of recent efforts to The issue is not a trivial one especially because of recent efforts to put laptops away in college during lectures based on computer-based vs. traditional note-taking by hand (N.B. this study did not specifically assess dyslexic students – see the NPR story also below). A recent paper by Hiscox and colleagues (see below) […]
Teaching Chemistry to Students with Dyslexia [Premium]
Although High School Chemistry is required for many of the top 4 year liberal arts colleges and college Chemistry is a necessary requirement for many majors and careers that many dyslexic students excel in like engineering or medicine, there is a surprising lack of resources available to students having their first encounter with chemistry – and that may make things tricky, especially if they’re also juggling a full load of classes. For Premium subscribers, here are a few tips and strategies for surviving and even thriving at chemistry. Chemistry can be a field that dyslexics do extremely well at because they can visualize, rotating molecules in space, and picture their interactions and energy transformations. The main challenge is often at the beginning – when all the […]
Q: Can I Be Software Developer with Dyslexia ? A: YES! [Premium]
This question comes up surprisingly often, although dyslexic computer programmers or software developers are probably on every team and startup. Some of the big picture reasons dyslexics made do well in programming: – Strong Problem Solving – Systems Thinking – Big Picture – Flexible Thinking – Analytical and Logical But for the details of why dyslexics do well in software development, lets hear from developers themselves: From Simon, Lead Software Engineer: “You may worry that you have to read and write code all day, but its not the same as documents its simple code. If your dyslexic mind works anything like mine you process words as pictures and patterns. This works great for code you can easily visualise systems and processes. Code is the best grammar and spell checker you […]