Reading and spelling with Dyslexia
December 19th, 2006
Most pupils acquire the skills of reading and writing with comparative ease. The dyslexic child, because of his/her learning difficulties, will struggle to make progress when taught these skills by normal established methods. Teachers and parents will find it frustrating to observe how little progress is being made with these children and will be tempted to repeat lessons or go through programs more thoroughly when what is needed is a different approach."
From Dyslexia How to Win by Dawn Matthews
Dyslexics have what is described as "poor short term visual and auditory memories". This means that they cannot recall the look of or the sound of the sequence of letters in words. Therefore, they have to be able to work out how to spell every word as they come to them and be able to decode every word as it is read. They need, therefore, to be taught how to build words and need to know basic phonics and spelling rules. Here is an extract from Dyslexia a Guide for Parents to help you understand this:
"The use of visual and auditory memory is best demonstrated in spelling. In order to fully understand this try asking a number of your colleagues or friends to spell out loud a moderately difficult word, say "efficient". Once they have performed this task ask them "how they did it". Almost all good spellers will describe either:
‘seeing the word’ or
‘hearing the letters’
and some will talk of both. A person who is unable to either "visualize the word" or hear it spelt to them will have great difficulty in this task. He/she will also have great difficulty in many other tasks involving memory and may be dyslexic."
A Guide for Parents, Dawn Matthews
Such people are likely to be dyslexic.
Multi-sensory teaching
The following is a quote from Dyslexia How to Win,
For a dyslexic spelling never comes easily, however skilled or old (s)he is. I still have to sound out all my words and indeed rely heavily upon my computer’s spellchecker for irregularly spelt words. Every time I write or type out a word I still, after writing and typing a number of books, have to work out how to spell that word. Therefore, if I did not understand how words were spelt and know how to sound them out I would be truly stuck for words in this book.
Every time I press a keyboard key or form a letter upon a page I have to know the sound of that letter and the rules needed for the words so that I can work out how to type that word. In order to be able to do this and at the same time concentrate upon the content of what I’m writing, the sounding out of words has to be virtually instinctive.
It has been established that one of the best ways to teach spelling to a dyslexic is by using the multi-sensory approach and I always work this way with a dyslexic of any age.
For multi-sensory teaching to work best it is essential that all the senses be in use at the same time. When learning letters the following sensations must be carried out simultaneously:
- Feeling the shape of the letter
- Seeing the shape of the letter
- Hearing the sound of the letter as they say it
- Feeling themselves saying the sound of the letter
This teaching experience must be continued until all these sensations are automatically or instinctively linked in the pupil’s mind, not merely remembered when quizzed. To check that it is instinctive observe the pupil trying to write an unusual word with regular spelling like "splash" and watch to see whether (s)he mouths out or sounds out the individual letters.
It may be necessary to repeat the multi sensory experience of learning letters this way hundreds of times.
Consideration should be given to reducing boredom in this exercise when a child has to write and sound out the same letter so many times. Children could:
- Use different colors and types of writing implements;
- Vary the size of the letters;
- Vary the type of paper or jotter;
- Build up patterns using different letters;
If multi-sensory teaching of letters is to work quickly, you should organise a timetable for a pupil so that (s)he works a little every day.
Irregular words
Many of the common, little words in English are irregular in their spelling. That is to say they cannot be spelt by using simple phonics and spelling rules. This is a shame because it hinders children’s early acquisition of reading because the first words taught are often the hardest for a dyslexic to learn. These words have to be taught as one off words and often children learn them easiest through games. Here are some examples of common irregular words. The 200 most common can be found in Dyslexia – How to Win.
| 1. I | 2. the | 3. all | 4. be |
| 5. for | 6. her | 7. so | 8.before |
| 9. call | 10. come | 11. do | 12. give |
| 13. some | 14. like | 15. made | 16. me |
| 17. my | 18. now | 19. only | 20. other |
| 21. right | 22. write | 23. then | 24. two |
| 25. to | 26. what | 27. when | 28. where |
| 29. who | 30. which | 31. of | 32. one |
| 33. won | 34. they | 35. you | 36. your |
| 37. came | 38. could | 39. should | 40. would |
Speed of reading
This is taken from Dyslexia: A Guide for Teachers:
Because a dyslexic cannot scan ahead when reading he/she reads very slowly. The silent reading speed of even a well educated, adult dyslexic is frequently very much slower than the reading aloud speed of an ordinary person.
Wherever possible, try to allow the dyslexic extra time to read even the simplest of written instructions. Also give extra time for homework reading. Never give out reading books and ask for them to be read by the next week. It still takes me months to read a whole book, partly because of my slow reading speed and partly because of eyestrain that limits the periods of my reading to sometimes only half an hour.
- Find taped books if at all possible.
- Do not expect him/her to have finished when the rest of the class has finished.
- Pairing a dyslexic with a good reader can often help.
Dawn also says:
"Dyslexics usually find reading easier if they are not under a bright light. Often the harsh black print on white paper appears to move about and change in character for the dyslexic. Printing written material on blue or green paper often helps as does placing a transparent plastic overlay on top of the page. Different dyslexics prefer different colored overlays. You can get a rough idea of which is best for your child by placing text under a variety of different colored plastic folders. It you want the exact best color for your child or student then get him/her tested at an Irlen Clinic."
Famous dyslexic authors included Roald Dahl, Dame Agatha Christie, Jamie Oliver, Hans Christian Anderson, Gustave Flaubert, Sir Francis Bacon …
Many more helpful tips and suggestions can be found in all of Dawn’s books.
Entry Filed under: Dyslexia
30 Comments Add your own
1. sam | July 14th, 2007 at 12:35 pm
Hi I’m in the eastern suburbs of perth My daughter is 9 in year 4 and has ADHD – In year one Tylah was assesd for dyslexia Apparently she was on the boarder line?????…I have tried so many diferent avenues to help makes things easier for her she struggles big time.. we are getting there SLOWLY Have you heard of a reading program “READING FOR SURE” I put Tylah into tution where the tutor tuaght the RFS method…
My worry is for when Tylah goes to high school..How do I selected a high school that is right for her?? please if you can assist in any way that would be great
Sam
2. Daphne | July 25th, 2007 at 4:05 pm
Hi SAM, i am 62 years old and suffered from Dyslexia all my life,
try and find what your daughter really loves, i still can’t spell its like a foreign language to me even thou i was born here. i had 3 business and did OK in life, i can understand how these kids feel
didn’t start reading until i was 25
i would love to help these kids i feel i do understand them
regards daphne
3. cellis lias | August 9th, 2007 at 9:26 am
Hello,
I am a Teacher Assistant and I work with Dyslexia students, and they are really smart students.I have name people like Tom Cruise with dyslexia, and how he became very successful and I was hoping that you could e-mail me back were I could show them that an adult made it and had 3 business I think this will be great for the new school year. I will put your letter on our bulltin board.
Thanks,
4. Renee Barnett | March 10th, 2008 at 7:27 pm
Hi my name is Renee and I have recently moved to Sydney NSW from Singapore. My son who’s 8 was diagnosed with moderate dyslexia a year ago and was lucky enough to get great support from both the school he was in and a private tutor who also came into the school and taught him twice a week. The improvement was amazing and his self esteem soared. Now we have moved here and I am finding it so difficult to even find a tutor that specialises in dyslexia. I am so worried that he’s going to now revert backwards and fall behine and more importantly lose his self esteem. He is a bright boy with such an enquiring mind. Can anybody can help point me in the right direction or help me find a good tutor for him. We are living in the eastern suburbs. I have tried to contact SPELD here but to no avail.
5. Tom Wood | May 15th, 2008 at 12:12 am
Hi, My name is Tom and i’ m a dance student. I suffer from dyslexia and struggle to pick up the dance sequences in class. After reading your site, i know now their is still hope for me if i keep working hard. Thankyou. I’ve found that every bit of support helps. For instance, i am really embarrassed when i dont pick up the movement after it’s been shown three times, but a friend in the class is always offering to go over it with me when he has a spare moment.
6. Diane Philipson | July 11th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Renee – I think I can help you! Check out my website and email me if you would your son to have Skype lessons. Or give me a ring on (02) 4967 5458 to have a talk to me.
Diane Philipson
7. Dawn Matthews | July 16th, 2008 at 4:18 pm
We at learningdifficulties.com.au do not necessarily endorse any other program without first seeing it in operation and evaluating its effectiveness.
if anyone out there has been helped by this course could you please get in touch with us.
Also i personally am always skeptical of any method that teaches everyone the same way as the point about dyslexia and dyspraxic etc is that each set learns differently from the norm and from each other and therefore need to be taught differently from each other.
Also the exact nature of the learning difficulty, the extent of any any auditory processing, or eye tracking or laterality problem has an effect on how the individual learns as does his background and experiences. i very rarely ever give 2 kids the same teaching program and my programs vary quite a lot from one dyslexic to another.
Thanks for your email
dawn
8. dot bowness | October 15th, 2008 at 3:29 pm
I am 57 years old . as a child i always new that i was diferent to the rest of the children in my class.I found trying to read the most stressfull so much so that when it came time for me to read out laloud i was alwas sick or had to go to the toilet so i was let out of the class , I was popular with all my school friend right throughout my years at school I was even voted Headgirl in my last year at school.Friend always cam to me for the answers to questions to homework. I couldnt understand why when i was asked a question i could alwasy give the correct answer,yet when it came to putting things down on papper i was so out of my depth that i felt that i was drounding in as sea ofjumbled up letters and numbers, but how could i know the answers to all the questions that the other children couldnt answer? with all my expreances as a child if came as no shock to me that my to sons while both of them are very clever the teaching staff faild them as the did not know how to teach my boys so i had a fight on my hands , Not to be deteared i took the bull by the horns and started my long battle with the great britsh education system ! we had statments done, extra time for exams ect , i am pleased to say that my older son has got his degree at Birmingham Univeristy with honnors. My younger son who i beleve to be extreamly clever he is working within the health system in P.I.C.U. he is constantly being asked to take his nursing degree but because he is so afraid of putting thing down on papper and because of bad experances at school when his teacher ripped his work up in front of the whole class he dosnt wont to feel that way again so he is staying in his comfort zone. why am i telling you all thi ,you might well ask , well my Daughter has come home from school with her daughter and she is most distressed as the teacher has told her that my grand daughter is a verry bright child and she reads very well and when she is telling a story thet she dos this with lots of feeling and emotion BUT her spelling is aufull…. she said that she thinks that my grandaughter has DYSLEXIA. My daughter askd how can she help her and the well meaning teacher has told her that she wont be able to grt any help as my grandaughter is good at reading… can anyone help us .. why more that 50 years down the line we are still met with such lack of understanding from the education system . i would like to hear from others who have or are still having the same problems ,or anyone who knows if Dyslexia is hereditary ? am ashamed to say that i am crying writing this as it has brought to the surface all my fears from my childhood . I dont want my Grandaughter to suffer in the same way as my sons and i have . can anyone help please.
9. Robert | October 18th, 2008 at 1:37 am
Ghotit dyslexia on-line free writing assistance is designed to help to adults and kids with dyslexia to correct their spelling.
Please, read HOW TO USE instructions carefully.
10. Dyslexia | November 14th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Thank godness finally we have Australian Dyslexia Association helping the community,parents and educators about dyslexia.
There is teacher and tutor training available based on the proven Orton Gillingham approach.
The OG approach is structured,multisensory and flexible. Dyslexia occurs on a continuum and no two dyslexics are alike,therefoer no two dyslexics need exactly the same instruction.
The Australian Dyslexia Association does not endorse any one product or program but supports a Multisensory Structured Approach to the language teaching of those with dyslexia.
11. Dawn Matthews | December 18th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Hi Dot
I am very sorry for the delay in responding
thank you for your very detailed email. yes dyslexia is inherited. they have even managed to isolate the gene. on average a dyslexic parent can expect half of his/her children to be dyslexic. i have 3 and they are all dyslexic.
alas your story sounds very like my own. i became a teacher in order to help other kids with dyslexia and i think that the education system, especially here in australia, is getting worse for dyslexics rather than better.
in her autobiography, Susan Hampshire, the actress tells how she would let mice loose in the classroom when it was her turn to read aloud.
however in my book, dyslexia how to win, which you can buy from our parent site, i do explain exactly how to teach your kid to spell as well as read and my phonics book – a complete phonics course – will be published shortly and that should help as well. just remember that, although we fail at school, us dyslexics are actually the brightest set of people.
cheers
dawn
12. Elena | March 25th, 2009 at 11:58 am
Hi! My name is Elena, I have 8 yrs old son, who I suspect is dyslexic. Do you know any organisations in Melbourne, that can properly assess him and help with reading and spelling?
Thank you
13. fiona | May 14th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
Hi I took my severely dyslexic child to a place and he is now believe it or not he is cured. He was struggling to spell his name correctly every time he wrote it. He wrote very little and what he did write you could not read. He hated reading etc. He know writes as good as and adult in terms f neatness, he enjoys reading now and is excited about learning so he can move to the next level.
All after 10 sessions. I am extremely impressed that he no longer has too struggle.
14. shona gallagher | July 23rd, 2009 at 10:39 pm
hii
im 14 and srtugle too read and write we think its dislexia ive but up with it for many years and dont no were to get help
15. Allison | July 29th, 2009 at 11:22 pm
Need some advice.
My 9yo daughter struggles with spelling and reading. We have done all the possible testing, behavioural optmetrist. IQ,(108) Academic and even the Dyslexia screening test. She is an extremly hard working and is no way disruptive in the class.
The dyslexia test had 2 out of the 11 fields with moderate indicator of dyslexia and the other reports said things like, “her unique set of thinking and reasoning abilities make her overall intellectual functioning difficult to summarise” and ,” her full scale IQ score does not provide an accurate estimation of her overall congitive ability due to the variance between her verbal and non verbal reasoning skills, yet still the proffesionals say nothing is wrong. As a mother you know something is not quite right.
I suppose what I am asking is, should i get my daughter tested again by different people. Has anyone had this same problem.
Any help would be great.
16. admin | August 5th, 2009 at 11:25 am
Hi,
Yes I get parent after parent with this same problem. There seem to be so few people who know how to test out here. Have you tried my tick yet? It may be that i could help you if the IQ test your daughter had was to WISC test. If so you could send me the subtest results and it may be that this indicates something.
Other than that the only thing I can suggest is going to a SPELD Foundation for re testing, but first show them what you have already got. There is a SPELD in melbourne and Queensland and Sydney.
If you live near Perth I can help you and i develop a personal teaching program along with assessment screening.
Cheers
Dawn
17. myrna d. cuntapay | August 31st, 2009 at 10:17 pm
I find the website useful
18. Ralph Bennett | September 9th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
I am 67 years and left school in second year faiiing in
english 10 in chemistry 10 in physics. After working for
11 years I went back to Tec. to do the School Certificate
at 4 nights per week for two years and passed with
Credits in Science but only a pass in English.
I find the best thing for spelling is a book on synamenins
or Thesaurus. You look up a word you think you can
spell and it will telll similar words corectly spelt.
People tell you to look up a word in the Dictionary they
no idea. Thanks for this sight Ralph
19. karen | September 11th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
My 9 year old son reads above grade level and with a high fuency/lexile. He enjoys reading and reads fast. He reads daily. He reads 2 grade levels above with superior comprehension but we were told after testing he has a dyslexic quality underlying this reading. The decoding he uses reflects this. It is hard to understand this but where the trouble is without a doubt is spelling and writing. His spelling is very phonetic. What he hears he spells. He hates writing and though tests gifted he needed my constant backup to do okay or fine in school. He can’t produce. I want him to be able to spell. I am told to just not worry about spelling. I believe he can learn to spell. The funny thing is he can get A’s on the spelling test after he prepares but won’t know it after the test. What is the best way to teach spelling?
20. clinton youngson | September 12th, 2009 at 4:01 pm
Hi I am a 36 year old male ,who alway’s stuggled at school .I want to do a part time TAFE course in horticulture,but feel i may have dyslexia and maybe wasting their time
Is there anyway i may be able to get help online before starting TAFE in Feb 2010
21. Antonia Canaris | September 21st, 2009 at 10:04 pm
Hi Renee
I just saw your post. I hope you are still looking at this fantastic site. Please contact me. I will try to find someone to help you. It can be very frustrating to have to battle through the systems in a new city and country.
I live and work in Sydney so I might be able to help you.
mobile no 0414760663
22. Dawn | September 28th, 2009 at 4:04 pm
Hi Karen,
If your son writes and spells the way words are spoken then he is not able to recall the look of a word, and this is dyslexic in nature.
He needs t be taught phonics and all words that do not obey phonics, like “once”, “who”, “what” etc. need to be drastically over-learnt. I Call these “stupid words” meaning the words are stupid rather than the kid.
I have written a fun phonics course, which can be bought down loadable from this site. This is what i use to teach kids who needs to sound out words. If this is used in combination with the fun dictionary, a freebee and the game for learning to write fun sentences, The kids do improve. There are lots and lots of more advice in my book Dyslexia-how to win. I wrote the book because I just do not have time to tell everything I know to every person one at a time.
His reading sounds good. that is great. Make sure he comprehends well.
He sounds as though he is a very bright boy. Make sure you concentrate on his strengths and do not over focus on what he is poor at.
Good luck
Dawn
23. Jenny | October 31st, 2009 at 2:13 am
I need help! I am a sixth grade teacher who has a dyslexic student, or so the parents have told me. This is my dilema, he reads really well and seems to have great comprehension. His spelling….yikes. I don’t even know where to begin. Even the phonetic awareness is unusual. Any suggestions?
24. michael | November 6th, 2009 at 9:47 am
what would you charge per hour for tutor someone with this problem
25. June | November 16th, 2009 at 8:55 pm
Hi, I am 54 years old, live in the UK and have suffered from dyslexia all my life and has been passed down to my children and grandchildren. When I was young there was no ‘lable’ for people such as myself who struggled daily with reading, writing and arithmetic we were just ‘dumb or stupid’. I can clearly remember homework nights being reduced to floods of tears as my mother screamed in my ear to “read what’s on the page!” And many of my school days were spent not in the classroom but out in the outside toilets – unblocking them and scrubbing the sinks! By age 15 I left school but I had a great desire to become a nurse. However I had no qualifications so went to a pre-nursing college were there was a tutor who had an amazing ability to get me to understand arithmetic and English and I walked out of the college 2 1/2 years later with 6 O Level certificates! I did go into nursing and I passed with flying colours – I was second in my class! I continued to do well in my career and climbed to the position of Matron. As the years went by I volunteered to help children to read and found I could pick out a dyslexic child very easily but what was even better was the fact that I could teach that child without difficulty. From this I went abroad and taught English as a second language and again my own dyslexia helped me help the children with dyslexia.
Now I am back home and I am helping my 8 year old graddaughter who has dyslexia too. She is a very bright very smart child and I know she will do well in life. The saddest part for me is that all these years down the line the education authorities have made poor headway in helping dyslexic children quoting reasons such as lack of funding for their poor assistance. And there are still ‘uneducated’ teachers who refuse to accept there is such a thing as dyslexia. So for a lot of people with learning difficulties, sadly it is still an uphill struggle.
I class my life as successful and I like the way my brain works now that I have sussed out how to get it to work in my favour! So for all sufferers and parents of sufferers – keep working at your own pace – you will get there – you’re not dumb or stupid – quite the opposite in fact – and although you may have to work harder it will all fall into place in the end.
26. natasha | December 17th, 2009 at 1:53 am
I . have a daughter she is 8 going on 9, her problem is that she cannot spell words properly, her father and grandmother had the same problem she’ has as i say spelling and reading problem .It’s hard concentrating sometimes for her ‘sometimes if she is going to say a word instead she say’s something else.For test if her teacher don’t read out the questions for her she’s at lost .Her teacher says she knows her work especially she’s good in maths but reading is her hardest part.When she revise her work she soon forgets easily .Please advice me what i can do.
27. Carmeline | March 18th, 2010 at 12:45 pm
Hello,
My son has just graduated as a Design Communication Specialist, however he is not motivated to go out there and get a job in his field because he has had to deal with his dyslexia and it is a necessary tool to read and write in his job. i am looking for someone who can help him overcome his problem and give him some confidence. He is 30 years old, and I am getting worried that he is overly depressed and might do something to himself. please please help me or email me to cheetah56@bigpond.com if you have any info that can assist me. We live in Quakers Hill, NSW. Thanks.
28. Antonia Canaris | April 22nd, 2010 at 5:18 pm
Hi Carmeline
I would be pleased to help your son. I am a special education teacher with experience helping adults and children with dyslexia. Please ring me on 0414760663 if you need assistance. I am in Sydney working in Bexley Nth near the station.
29. Joanna | June 4th, 2010 at 4:51 pm
Hi, I have a nine year old son who finds reading and writing very difficult. He has struggled to be organised, to be able to find objects, has very slow processing but emotionally he is very intelligent and his general knowledge and intuition is good. We have recently swapped from a school that uses thrass (too hard to rote learn) to the spalding technique. Because he can see the big picture and because spalding uses rules to remember phonograms and spelling its become much easier for him. He has been there for only 6 months and has improved. We are going to try the Allison Lawson Centre for the ten week course. They say they can cure visual dyslexia. I am a bit dubious but willing to try anything. It is like he cant see the words when he is reading and loses concentration very quickly. When he looks out the car window he misses things so perhaps he does have something going on with his vision. We will let you know if your interested
30. Shameem | July 29th, 2010 at 2:10 pm
Hi thanks for al the ppl who has shared experience, I am a special educator, working with children with dyslexia. The comments of parents and teachers boosting me to work better.
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