Instruction for Students with Dyslexia

 

School districts may purchase a reading program or develop their own reading program for students with dyslexia and related disorders as long as the program is characterized by the descriptors found in The Dyslexia Handbook [19 TAC §74.28(c)].

Descriptors related to instructional components:

• Phonemic Awareness – instruction in this area enables students to detect, segment, blend, and manipulate sound in spoken language.
• Phonics – instruction that takes advantage of the letter-sound plan in which words that carry meaning are made of sounds and sounds are written with letters in the right order. Students with this understanding can blend sounds associated with letters into words and can separate words into component sounds for spelling and writing.
• Language Structure
  • Morphology – study of meaningful units of language such as prefixes, suffixes, and roots.
  • Semantics – meaning of language such as vocabulary, analogies, figurative language, multiple meanings, etc.
  • Syntax – set of principles that dictate the sequence and function of words in a sentence in order to convey meaning. This includes grammar, sentence structure and variation, and the mechanics of language.
  • Pragmatics (social use of language) – involves a set of rules that dictate communicative behavior in three main areas: reasons for which we communicate; different codes or styles of communication necessary in a particular context; and conversation or discourse.
• Linguistic - directed toward proficiency and fluency with the patterns of language.
• Process Oriented strategies
  Step-by-step in a precise sequence in order to develop a reliable set of procedures for decoding and encoding that lead to word recognition, fluency and comprehension.

 

Descriptors related to instructional approaches:

Explicit, Direct Instruction:

• Teachers must directly explain and demonstrate all skills and concepts to students with no assumption of prior skills.
• Teachers must present reading and writing skills sequentially and cumulatively. Instruction must follow the logical order of the language, beginning with the easiest and most basic elements and progressing systematically to a more difficult level. Concepts are reviewed and reinforced providing the student with ample and extended practice.

Individualized - instruction with ongoing assessment that meets the specific learning needs of each student.

Intensive, highly concentrated - instruction that maximizes student engagement.

Meaning-based - instruction that is directed toward purposeful reading and writing, with an emphasis on comprehension and composition.

Simultaneous Multisensory – teaching should be simultaneously visual, auditory, kinesthetic/tactile in order to enhance learning and memory.

 

 

Talking about dyslexia...

"For me, dyslexia is not a disability. The unique strengths and characteristics of dyslexia allow me to think 'outside the box'. Until I was taught the Orton Gillingham approach, I did not have the basic reading, writing, and arithmetic skills necessary for success."

Peter W. D. Wright