HOW TEACHERS CAN ACCOMMODATE THE DYLSEXIC STUDENT IN THE CLASSROOM

There are many strategies a teacher can implement in the classroom to help a Dyslexic student do well and understand the different skill sets such as spelling, reading, writing, arithmetic and understanding time. Most of these suggestions are beneficial for any student but especially important for Dyslexics.

* Allow your students to work at a pace that is not stressful. Permit them to do fewer assignments or allow more time to complete them all.

* Test them orally if their hand printing is slow and difficult. The student´s strongest sense may be auditory.

* Permit the use of a computer to do written work if your student can type and are comfortable working on a computer. It offers many advantages to the dyslexic student whereas hand printing or writing creates more problems.

* Always design your questions and assignments around a given conclusion or fact. Dyslexic students think in concrete wholes, that is, they work backwards from a conclusion or fact to fill in all the parts. Do not give them open-ended questions that involve abstract instructions and must be worked out in a logical, step-by-step sequence to arrive at the answer unless you have thoroughly prepared them for this.

* Do not base the student´s marks on spelling, punctuation or grammatical errors. Errors in assignments should be corrected. These are very abstract concepts for them that the right brain does not easily process and cannot visualize as concrete images. These are not their fault, it is the fault of the school system that does not teach them the skills they need to learn these things. If these errors must be corrected before a student hands in an assignment or can be be graded and passed on this work, then permit someone else to edit the mistakes in spelling, grammar and punctuation. Parents are often helpful in this. These are all very abstract concepts that do not make sense to the right brain which sees in whole concrete images.

* Look for ideas, not clerical errors. Getting ideas down on paper is much more important than fretting over spelling, grammar and punctuation. teach these skills, remembering that refusing this accommodation slows the students down, frightens them and take away their freedom to think and fulfill their potential.If they do not achieve what they are capable of accomplishing intellectually they soon become depressed and give up.

* Their ability to use the correct grammar, punctuation and spelling forms may or may not improve with age, depending on the understand and teaching methods the students receive while learning these skills.

* Do not expect these student to be able to use a dictionary to correct spelling errors. This is sequencing at its most difficult and may be nearly impossible for many of these students. It is an exhausting, frustrating waste of time. Remember, the right brain needs a complete image to understand and work with it. To use a dictionary the student must have a full image and understanding of the whole dictionary page on which the word will be found. For some, this extends to a full visual image of the entire dictionary. Then the process of picking out that one small part on the page, the word wanted. The brain must be able to see the sequence of letters in every word on the page, then sequence the words in order to pick out the required word. Unless they have had a full training of building words using prefixes, stems, roots and suffixes, finding words in a dictionary is a great waste of time and stress.

* The solution is to print the words correctly for the students. Then have them copy yours and follow this up with using the thesaurus on the computer to teach them how to look up synonyms or the meaning in a dictionary on the Internet which brings up only one word at a time.

* Answer the student´s questions as often as possible, but keep your answers very short, clear and specific. Be precise. Do not repeat your answers unless the student asks you to do so. Then answer only what the student asks. Long explanations, different approaches, wordy definitions, or abstract thinking are all very tiring and difficult for these students who are looking for a concrete image to decode and define the word.

* Try to complete a lesson at one sitting. An incomplete lesson is entirely lost on them. If this is not possible, then provide a written summary, extra time during the same day to answer the student´s questions or find ways to teach the complete lesson in one sitting, or give them the start and ending first and then fill in the middle.

* Do not criticize your students for not paying attention or being lazy. If they look like they are daydreaming, they may be learning by listening or they can no longer understand the lesson and are trying to cope with the situation. They are actually working hard to understand what you are saying. If you talk too much and do not use any concrete pictures, examples of diagrams, you will destroy their ability to concentrate and make sense out of what you are saying.

* Build their self-esteem. Do not punish them for behaviors and learning styles that are normal for the right-brained student when learning.

* Answer their questions, but do not lecture nor criticize them for not understanding the lesson. The problem maybe in the teaching methods you are using. Find another approach. There are many other methods that work. Let them tell you what works best for them, perhaps it is to discuss the information orally or demonstrate it, rather than read about it.

* Instead of long written assignments, turn these tasks into projects that involve all the senses. These should be done on any large piece of colored paper to which they can add real objects, pictures, drawing, sketches, photos, words of explanation and an oral report. The dyslexic student learns best doing projects that involve seeing, listening, discussing and using their hands. All these ways of learning use the auditory, visual and kinesthetic senses.

* Help right-brain learners (Dyslexics) understand their thinking and learning differences from left brain thinkers (big picture and concrete images versus abstracts such numbers, letters and words). Then they understand they can be taught how to use their processing style to their advantage for a successful experience in school.

* If one or both of a child’s parents are Dyslexic the odds are 50% their children will be too. There is a gene that indicates Dyslexia. Check out an article CAUSE OF DYSLEXIA ON CHROMOSOME 18 we quoted on our website from the Indepentent.co.uk

* Help Dyslexic students discover their personal learning style (auditory, visual or kinesthetic) and teach them how to use their strongest sense to process information and perform any new skill with greater understanding.

* Help facilitate a Dyslexic student who has been assessed for their best colour for dealing with reading issues caused by reading black text on white paper. This can be accomplished by using coloured plastic overlays over printed text, a similar colour on their computer background and coloured paper for their worksheets and other school materials. (Refer to information about Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome)

* Teach a Dyslexic student to understand what a question is asking and how to answer it. If questions are general, vague and very abstract they will have difficulty processing and answering them unless they are taught how to analyze them.

* Understand that these students think in wholes: spelling whole words, thinking in whole words, answering in whole sentences, whole paragraphs, whole chapters and stories, whole lessons, whole assignments and whole concepts.Their school work should reflect this focus on wholes so they will be better able to retain and use the information. Skills or information taught with steps over a series of days can be very difficult for Dyslexic students to follow and comprehend. This is an example of how a Dyslexic can be labeled as having “short term memory loss”.

* Encourage these students to expand and use their natural right-brain traits and talents such as: artistic abilities in different mediums, researching topics for projects, some are proficient and exceptional at arithmetic and mathematics (other Dyslexics however can have great difficulty with arithmetic and math), good leadership abilities, big picture thinking and problem solving skills, wonderful imagination and story-telling skills, natural mechanical abilities, talented athletes, photographic memories and logical sensibility. They can be assessed to discover their natural talents, interests and hobbies.

* Understand these students think and reason starting with a fact or conclusion and analyze the parts that prove or disprove the conclusion. They need to see the “forest before the trees” with everything they are learning and processing. As university graduates you are most likely familiar with this approach as many essay you had to write was based on analyzing a stated conclusion.

* Teach the students how to put individual parts in a sequential order. The right-brained student needs to be trained in sequencing skills by using concrete materials and visual procedures such as the order of letters in words. This can be accomplished by using mind maps to show them how to find the parts and their order in the “big picture”.Eg: The seasons of the year could be printed in big simple letters on a large cardboard sheet with pictures of what the weather is like during those seasons, special holidays and day to day life such as school and summer activities. The mind map concept can be taken further and add the months of the year that fall in each season. These type of visuals can help a Dyslexic anchor what “seasons of the year” means, what order they come in and how they are spelled.Many teenage Dyslexic students we assess still don’t know the seasons or months of the year let alone their order.

* Mind maps should be used for all subjects. Dyslexics do well to understand any concept when it is presented in mind maps and diagrams.

* Understand that writing notes from the board can be very difficult so placing a Dyslexic child close to the front of the classroom or giving them notes pre-printed can be very helpful.

* Many Dyslexics need to read the beginning, end and then the middle of chapter stories and best followed up with a movie of the book. Presenting the end of the story after the beginning gives the Dyslexic the “big picture” and their comprehension of the story increases (some Dyslexics do not like this approach and prefer beginning, middle and end).

* Arithmetic, math, the concept of time, clock faces and measurement are very abstract and difficult ideas for Dyslexics but if concrete images are used to explain them they will catch on quickly.

* Studies have shown that Dyslexics tend to be above average to genius level in intelligence. Often this can make it difficult to identify them and they can be regarded as “lazy and not living up to their potential”.

* Dyslexic students can be identified by 6 years of age. Their struggles with schoolwork is noticeable from the rest of the class especially when viewed with their above average intelligence.It is very important to identify them early so that their skills such as spelling, reading and arithmetic can be presented in a way that makes sense to them. If this is delayed and they are being taught with methodologies that work well with left-brain learners they can lose a lot of ground, get behind in class and have difficulty catching up.

* They ask a lot of questions and they need them answered. Without these answers they can be paralyzed in the classroom and can’t proceed with their school work.

* They will always want to know the schedule for the day and will point it out if it changes.

* They can become obsessed about one subject so if this can be used in any school work at all it will help them learn the new skill sets. We had one boy we assessed who loved volcanoes. He could tell you all about them and spell difficult words like; magma, mantle, eruption. But he could not spell; then, would, other, into.

* Try to understand that some Dyslexic children who are displaying ADHD behaviour are possibly suffering from frustration, confusion and fear. They don’t understand what is going on in the class, they want to desperately and they are humiliated by their peers. Their inability to sit still and focus can be due to exasperation. More than one mother has told me her child was suicidal and they have been as young as third grade.(I am not trying to say a child does not have ADHD, I am suggesting medical testing should be done along with examining the school background and emotional state of the child for other factors.)

* And speaking of being wiggly and talking out in class; Dyslexic children tend to be very connected to experiencing the world through their senses and don’t sit well to focus quietly on their schoolwork. They want to feel it, see it, touch it, smell it and hear everything. They experience life in the present - the past and the future belongs to the left brain. If you can integrate movement and other sensory experiences consistently into the classroom they will be avid learners. Sitting, listening and writing for long periods of time can be almost impossible for them. More schools are starting to introduce accommodations in the classroom such as gum, squeeze balls, plastic straws to tap instead of pencils and getting up and moving often.

* If you have a Dyslexic class clown try letting them have 5 minutes of stand-up comedy if they agree not to disturb the class for the rest of the day. This was the answer for my son in grade four who came up with the idea. I ran into his teacher a few years later and she said she still used this with other class clowns.

* Dyslexics need a reason for everything. If you want them to stop a certain behaviour, don’t just say “no” or “stop”. Tell them why it is inappropriate. They respond well to a logical explanation.

* Understand that many Dyslexics have a terrible time with being on time and completion dates. They live in the present and do not comprehend a schedule easily. Team up with their parents to work out a schedule for their schoolwork. They could have a white board at home with homework dates that the parent could help them remember. They respond well to colour. Give them an agenda done in colours. Red could mean hand in tomorrow, blue could be the end of the week. This could done on their white board at home. Everyday the colours would be updated on their calender for due dates.(The other side of the spectrum are Dyslexics who are obsessed about schedules) This is what we have found to be typical, nothing in the middle. Either they can be on time and sometimes obsessively or not at all. We have found working with a Dyslexic student on schedules can help them build a lifelong skill.

* Understand these students are reality based because they think in whole concrete images they can see, hear, touch, smell and taste. Therefore all abstract materials should be related to something they can see, feel, touch, hear or smell. Multi-sensory is often the best approach in the classroom for a Dyslexic. We have parents tell us that the teachers their children had that were focused on multi-sensory teaching methods, lots of movement and projects were usually their Dyslexic child’s most successful years and happy years.

* Understand the difficulty Dyslexics have with letters and phonemes without the presence of the whole image of the word and an image or picture that relates to the word when learning to copy and memorize words. Most Dyslexics have difficulty understanding what letters are individually. C – A – T are three sounds that don’t mean anything when sounded out separately. “CAT” however brings up the image of a cat.

* Help these students to understand how to ask for guidance to verify the direction of instructions. Dyslexics are spacial thinkers and very aware of the concept of three dimensionality. Mentally they can be positionally anywhere in the world in their minds at any time – this creates directionality problems. They have difficulty understanding right and left or tying their shoes for example. A silly illustration would be to ask them to point to the “back of a chair”. They will wonder if you mean the back of the chair where they lean their backs on or the “back” behind the chair. This problem occurs for them with many instructions they receive during the day in a classroom.

* Try to assist them in focusing ideas and organizing a large body of work. Know they need special training in writing procedures and gathering tools such as note-taking, note making, outlining, clustering or mind map information, using pictures, diagrams, drawings and composition procedures.

* Recognize their abilities to think emotionally, intuitively, creatively and “big picture” and incorporate into classwork.

* Be sympathetic with their fears of being ridiculed when reading out loud, oral discussion and being able to follow written directions. One way to help with reading out loud is to give them a passage to practice reading at home and then reading it aloud in the classroom when they are comfortable.

* Recognize they may excel in oral discussions and group projects.

* Recognize they may be a good organizer and excel in leadership skills if they are not suffering from a loss of self-esteem.

* They are very literal and if you are doing an exercise that is similar to one you have already done in the classroom they will ask the same questions. This is not short term memory loss, this is the Dyslexic student being sure it’s the same.

* Dyslexics should be allowed and encouraged to use laptop computers in the classroom. Printing or writing is usually agonizing for a Dyslexic student. They generally have Dysgraphia to some degree so writing can affect their comprehension, their ability to write notes from the board, and complete an exercise or test on time.

* Dyslexic students should be allowed to use assistive techonolgies such as computer programs like Dragon Naturally Speaking, Kurzweil, TextHelp and Inspirations.

* Dyslexics should be given more time to complete classwork and tests or do them orally. The purpose of their completed schoolwork is to be sure they understand it. Written formats can make it impossible for them to print their thoughts and answers adequately when often they are very articulate speaking. Recording machines can also help with getting their ideas and answers saved and then typed or hand written.

* Understand that Dyslexia changes from a Learning Difference to a Learning Disability when a child cannot learn in school due to inappropriate teaching methods and having become frustrated, exhausted, humiliated and despondent. When a child loses their self-esteem and begins to believe they are “stupid” they are filled with “self-limiting beliefs”. They shut down and can no longer learn many new skills in school in a normal and timely manner – if it all.

If you have questions about teaching Dyslexics please email us at: khope@dyslexiavictoria.ca