Effective Dyslexia Reading Programs
Dyslexia reading programs are one of the best ways to help a child overcome the disability of dyslexia. Dyslexia is a very common learning disability in which a person with this condition struggles to interpret letters, numbers, or other symbols, yet it doesn’t affect overall intelligence. It’s estimated that up to 10% of the general population have dyslexia, so dyslexia reading programs and dyslexia testing are now available to help dyslexics learn to read. This disability interferes with a child’s ability to process information correctly. One of the most effective dyslexia reading programs involves teaching the child a series of letters or objects to look at and identify the shape, size, and color of what they are. That way, the child can associate each letter with what he sees. A good program will also teach phonics – the process of matching sound with meaning – and teach visual/spatial awareness along with spoken language. There are many ways to teach dyslexia to children. Many dyslexics are taught visually in a traditional classroom setting. That means a teacher might use words such as “green” to spell out the letter g. Students are then expected to associate those words with an image, shape, or color. These visual/spatial techniques are often used in homeschooling programs as well. Another way to teach dyslexics is through phonics instruction. A well-known and respected program is that of Montessori. The founder of this system of education was William Hopkins. He felt that the way a child learns should begin in the womb. Therefore, he designed a set of guidelines to help dyslexics understand and learn the sounds of the alphabet. An excellent method for Dyslexia Reading Programs is called phonics coloring sheets. The sheets come with phonics letters, pictures, and phrases. Parents can print them out and take the colored sheets home. Then the dyslexic child can study the letters and phrases, making associations to their newly learned vocabulary. Finally, the child can create his picture dictionary by adding pictures to the sheets that help him make his vocabulary. This is an excellent way to get extra help from dyslexic students in homeschooling or an after-school program. Another good way to get extra help with dyslexia is through colored overlays. These are picture book cover sets with specially designed dyslexia pictures. Parents can take this home and put them on the walls of their child’s room. Colored overlays can also have important words printed underneath in large letters. These are particularly useful because they can help people focus and not just have large text scrawls on the page.