Some key points to try to remember:
- Be aware of the desire of many students to be the same as everyone else – differentiate work with sensitivity
- Encourage the student to offer suggestions in class discussions in which they often shine in relation to their peers. (It can be helpful for a support assistant to have checked that they know the correct answer to prevent further failure)
- Encourage risk taking, ‘What’s your best guess?’ modelling that it is all right to make mistakes
- Ask students to rate out of 10 their confidence in knowing an answer, before they give it
- Never ask a dyslexic student to read aloud in class unless he or she offers, and even then try to ensure that he can read the text easily before al-lowing him to proceed
- Try to find written tasks for which the student can see a purpose – e.g. writing emails, writing to outside organisations, pen pals
- Structure the task so that it is manageable
- Be aware of an over reliance on adult support developing. Fade support out gradually leaving a longer time before offering help
- Check all students understand the task before moving on
- Build in SUCCESS and use PRAISE
Think carefully about classroom organisation:
- Seat student with supportive peers operating at a similar intellectual level, rather than always with other students with literacy difficulties. Placing a student with his intellectual peers means that he can participate in discussions at a suitable level as well as safe-guarding self-esteem
- Use a more competent, supportive peer to compensate for weak literacy levels – by acting as a reader, as a checker for proof reading, as a tester for learning exercises
What alternative means are available for re-cording or presenting information?
- Recording onto tape
- Dictation to an adult or peer
- Diagrams (e.g. timelines, tables, posters, charts)
- Mind maps and supporting software eg. Kidspiration
- Storyboards
- PowerPoint presentations
- Oral presentations
Which mechanisms can support writing tasks?
- Use writing frames, disrupted in-formation and cloze procedure exercises
- Allow students with literacy difficulties to write directly onto work-sheets which may need to be enlarged
- Provide key words for independent writing
- Encourage the use of spellcheckers and word mats
- Avoid copying
- If they must copy, provide a close copy model (not OHP or board)
- Word processing and the use of support packages. e.g.: Clicker, Text Help, Wordbar
Ways to make the text more accessible
- Choose a font that is clear and easy to read (e.g. Comic, Tahoma, Arial, Garamond)
- Use as large a font as possible
- Use text boxes to separate out small blocks of text
- Use pictures and diagrams to break up the text
- Use shorter words and sentences rather than longer
Which mechanisms can support reading tasks?
- Use cream or pastel coloured paper where possible to reduce glare
- Use blue, brown, red, green or purple board markers in preference to black
- Use different colours to separate key information written on the board
- Never ask a dyslexic student to read aloud in class (unless he offers, and even then try to ensure that he can read the text easily before allowing him to proceed)
- Arrange for any lengthy text reading to be supported by a ‘buddy’ or a support assistant, or tape recorded in advance
- Think very carefully about how you present written information
When marking written work:
- Mark positively. Identify one success, provide one tip or maybe suggest one target
- Write comments above, below or beside the body of the text, not all over the student’s own writing
- Focus on strengths rather than weaknesses – e.g. separate composition from transcription in writing
- Be aware of the effort that has been expended to produce 5 lines of writing when most students are producing 30 plus