The British Psychological Society says that "Dyslexia is evident when accurate and fluent word reading and/or spelling develops very incompletely or with great difficulty despite provision of appropriate learning opportunities."
This means that dyslexia gets in the way of children learning to read and spell properly. They struggle even though they want to learn and they have been taught well.
We know that the way schools teach and treat children with dyslexia can make a big difference to how well they can overcome the difficulty. Many Leicestershire schools are changing to become more 'dyslexia friendly'.
The Local Authority and central government is supporting schools to make this change. A training package, devised by nationally renown experts, is now available for all Leicestershire schools (Inclusion Development Programme).
For many children learning to read is difficult. This has nothing to do with their intelligence. Leicestershire teachers know a great deal about dyslexia and how to help children learn to read and write well.
Your child's rate of progress in reading will be assessed at regular intervals. If school assessments indicate more help is needed this will be provided. You will be told what the school is doing and how you, as a parent/carer, can help.
The Psychology Service - If you would like to speak to an Educational Psychologist about your child please telephone the duty service on 0116 3055100.
How parents can help
Tips for parents and carers
Dyslexia Awareness Week - 8th October 2012
Learning Support Service Guidance on Dyslexia
Tips for parents and carers
Dyslexia Awareness Week - 8th October 2012
Learning Support Service Guidance on Dyslexia
There is much that parents/carers can do to help with reading and writing. The following five rules provide useful guidelines:
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Try not to put your son or daughter under stress. Reading should always be an enjoyable activity. Let your child re-read favourite stories as often as he or she wishes. | |
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When choosing books with your child, teach the '5 finger test' to see if you have the right book. Ask your son or daughter to read from a page in the chosen book and put a finger on each word he or she has difficulty reading. If there are more than five words on a page which your child cannot read easily then the book is too difficult at present to read for enjoyment. | |
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Read to and with your child every day. It doesn’t matter what you read – comics or magazines are fine. 5 minutes spent reading together for enjoyment every day will be more useful than half an hour once a week. Choose a time when it is fairly quiet, other children are not around and your child is not tired. | |
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Join your local library. Allow your children to choose their own books and change the books regularly. Using CDs is also recommended because listening to favourite stories helps to develop vocabulary knowledge and maintains interest in books and reading generally. | |
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Create a real purpose for writing e.g. thank you letters, invitations, shopping lists, diary notes etc. Handwriting practices can be suggested by your son or daughter's teachers. Learning the skill of writing in a joined style is important since it will help your child memorise spellings. |
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1. Reading to your child - this improves their listening, grows their interest in books and increases the number of words they know. 2. Shared reading - the adult reads and the child joins in. Encourage your child to join in by:
Asking your son or daughter to retell the story in his/her own words 3. Supported reading - this approach encourages the child to read to you. You can then decide whether your child is able to read most or just some of a book. Supported reading means:-
4. Over learning - This may seem tedious to you but it is actually very worthwhile to re read a child's favourite book over and over again. This helps to build familiarity and helps to reinforce his or her understanding of the story. This builds reading confidence 5. Silent Reading - Children need the opportunity to read alone. Young children need time to look through books and more skilful readers need practice to develop fluency. Talk to your child about books (s)he has read, - not only what the story was about, but also whether it was a good read. 6. Enjoyment - Reading should be a pleasure. If you seem to enjoy reading then your child will pick up on this. Top Tips for Family Reading -
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Dyslexia Awareness week this year has the theme of empowering teachers. We know how much young people value the often inspirational support of their teachers and teaching assistants. We hope the information on these pages will give schools and families some ideas on celebrating and continuing to develop this support.
Page Last Updated: 26 November 2012
