National Dyslexia Awareness Month
October 2022
Family Night at Region 18
Family Night with Mary Ann Cochran - Wednesday, October 19th @ 5:30 - 7:00 p.m.
Persist Until Something Happens: PUSH is the key to working with school districts and teachers to ensure success for your student.
During this presentation a movie titled "The Big Picture: Re-Thinking Dyslexia" will be shown. Followed by a Panel of individuals who are dyslexic and have gone through the public schools systems being successful.
Mary Ann Cochran
Mary Ann Cochran is the Executive Director of the James Phillips Williams Memorial Foundation also known as the JPW Learning Center located in San Angelo, Texas. She has worked at the Center since 2003, has seen lots of changes in the field of dyslexia across Texas, has a personal interest in dyslexia because of her own child being diagnosed with dyslexia in the second grade. She learned the struggles parents deal with on a daily basis from her own experiences.
Dyslexia Awareness Month
October is Dyslexia Awareness Month. According to Dyslexia International, it is estimated that it occurs in at least one in ten people. Dyslexia is categorized as a language-based learning disability that includes poor word reading, word decoding, oral reading fluency and spelling. Check out our recommended articles related to dyslexia to learn more about the condition and how to get help.
- Reduce Back to School Stress for Dyslexic Learners
- Dyslexia and Reading Comprehension, Sight Words and Spelling
- Top Teaching Methods for Dyslexic Students
- Visual Processing Explained
- Retained Primitive Reflexes Have A Clear Connection To Dyslexia
- Dyslexia: At Home Activities to Strengthen Reading Skills
- 4 Negative Coping Strategies to Watch for in a Student with Dyslexia
- Reading Red Flags
- Teacher's Top Tips For Encouraging Reluctant Readers to Love Books
- 5 Ways to Encourage Creativity in Kids with Dyslexia
WHAT IS DYSLEXIA?
The International Dyslexia Association defines “dyslexia” in the following way:
Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin. It is characterized by:
- difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition
- poor spelling
- decoding abilities
These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction.
PROFILE OF DYSLEXIA CHARACTERISTICS
Please Note: Student may exhibit some but not all of these characteristics:
1. Average to above average intelligence is evidence by: critical thinking skills, depth of answers in oral discussions, makes connections between previously learned information and new information, relates background information to classroom information.
2. Difficulty learning the names of the letters, reciting and writing the alphabet, and sound/symbol association.
3. Oral performance is better than written performance. Difficulty is apparent when student is asked to read or spell.
4. May know the letter sounds, but is unable to blend sounds together to form a word.
5. Difficulty learning and remembering whole words.
6. Strong listening comprehension and/or analytical thinking skills.
7. May do well with context reading clues, but word analysis skills are weak.
8. May have reversals, transpositions, and inversions of letters. Up until the age of 8, this alone would not indicate dyslexia.
9. Interest and vocabulary are usually higher than reading level.
10. Scientific thinker and is curious about everything.
11. May have trouble remembering how to write a letter shape.
12. Understands math concepts quickly and easily. Math difficulties will be evident in memorizing math facts, remembering a sequence of steps to solve a problem, reading word problems and computation on paper.
13. Excels in some type of 3 dimensional abilities such as: art, design, invention, performing, imaginative ideas, mechanical abilities, or working with the hands.
CHECK OUT THESE GREAT SITES!
Fun and Games for Dyslexic Students--Apps for Dyslexia from U. of Michigan
International Dyslexia Association
List of High Achieving Dyslexic People
IDA Fact Sheets
IDA fact sheets are convenient, professionally reviewed materials designed to improve understanding and support advocacy initiatives. Fact sheets are frequently used to enrich and supplement IEP meetings, school board discussions, and district policy initiatives. Click on topics of interest below to view and download fact sheets.
- AD/HD and Dyslexia (Click here for Spanish)
- Accommodations for Students with Dyslexia
- Adolescents and Adults with Dyslexia (Click here for Spanish)
- Applying for Accommodations on College Entrance Tests
- Applying for Accommodations on Graduate School Entrance Tests
- Assessment of Dyslexia
- At Risk Students English Language Learners (Click here for Spanish)
- Dyslexia and the Brain (Click here for Spanish)
- Dyslexia Basics (Click here for Spanish)
- Dyslexia-Stress-Anxiety Connection (Click here for Spanish)
- Helpful Terminology
- Transitioning from High School to College
- Understanding Dysgraphia (Click here for Spanish)
- Working Memory: The Engine for Learning
Audio Books
Bookshare (Benetech)
Open Culture--1,000 Free Books
Book Riot--11 Free websites for audio books
spotlight on famous people with dyslexia
What is Working Memory?
Have you ever gone to the store without a shopping list and forgot the items you were supposed to get? If so, you know the challenges of working memory. Working memory refers to the ability to hold on to new information long enough to use it or “work with it.” Think of it as a mental sticky note. There are two types of working memory; visual-spatial and auditory. Working memory plays an important role in a student’s ability to concentrate, follow instructions, read, and solve math problems.
As described in the video at the end of this newsletter, students with dyslexia can struggle when it comes to retaining new information that they learn. A student without dyslexia can usually hold up to seven pieces of information at a time. However, a student with dyslexia can struggle to hold up to as little as three pieces of new information.
Low working memory can result in the student seeming to be; off task, lack effort, and lazy. When in reality they have trouble accessing and recalling information in their brain.
Importance of Audio Books
If a student is not reading on grade level, that student is missing out on crucial vocabulary. Students with dyslexia need multiple exposures to the same word before they can begin to recognize it, much less use the word. Audiobooks provide students with the opportunity to hear words read aloud while following along visually. This allows the student to accurately pair the visual representation of a word with the pronunciation of it. This is why audio programs such as Learning Ally and Bookshare are fantastic resources for students.
Remember for students in K-2 audiobooks should be a supplement to regular reading that is on their level. As students grow older, audiobooks become more important to allow students to hear and read along with more complex stories, ideas, and words
Bonnie Villarreal
Academic Language Teacher
Educational Diagnostician
Email: bonnie.villarreal@ectorcountyisd.org
Website: https://www.ectorcountyisd.org/Domain/2592
Phone: (432) 552-2580