DYSLEXIA: MAPPING THE JOURNEY
A Guide for Families
About The Windward Institute
The Windward Institute (WI) is a division of The Windward School and fulfills the School’s mission by sharing Windward’s expertise through world-class, accessible, and affordable resources for educators, parents/guardians, and policymakers with the aim to ultimately improve literacy rates worldwide.
EVIDENCE-BASED INSTRUCTION
The Institute leverages the most current research to translate science into practice in the classroom.
ADVOCACY
The Institute continues to push for educational reform for all children. Every child deserves to be successful in school, regardless of background and circumstance.
COLLABORATION
The Institute partners with leading educational institutions to advance and share research in the field, informed by an advisory board that includes top dyslexia researchers.
Peterson & Pennington, 2012; International Dyslexia Association; National Center for Educational Statistics, 2019; Annie
Some studies show that around 7% of the population has dyslexia, with estimates ranging up to 15-20%
4 x
Reading proficiency by fourth grade is a strong predictor of future academic success.
Data has shown that children who are not proficient readers by fourth grade are 4 times more likely to drop out of high school.
Children who receive professional help by third grade are more likely to catch up to their peers. Recent studies have shown that 79% of struggling readers who fall behind by third grade never catch up.
With intervention supports, 96% of students can reach grade level reading expectations.
E. Casey Foundation, 2022; Torgeson, 2009
Our Reading Brain
The story of the reading brain is based on decades of research. With the invention of highly sophisticated machines that capture brain activity in real time, scientists now have a deep understanding of how the brain learns and develops. Research shows the following:
The brain is naturally wired to use and understand spoken language. During the infant and early childhood years, children rapidly develop these skills as they interact with their environment.
At birth, the brain is not structured to read written language. The brain’s structures and networks change over time to learn to read.
Kearns et al., 2019; Seidenberg, 2017; Dahaene, 2009
The process of learning to read involves connecting letters or strings of letters with their sounds. Research shows that explicit, teacher-directed instruction linking sounds to their written representations is most effective for early readers.
SPEECH SOUND
PROCESSING AND ARTICULATION
SOUND-SYMBOL (LETTER) CONNECTION
LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION
Reading involves the coordination of regions and networks across the four lobes and multiple layers of the brain.
Research shows that the brains of people with dyslexia differ from those of typically developing readers.
LETTER AND WORD RECOGNITION
Learning to Read
Skilled reading requires both language comprehension and wordreading skills, as shown by the Simple View of Reading.
Simple View of Reading
Word Level Reading Skills
Gough & Tunmer, 1986
Language Comprehension Skills
Skilled Reading
Language comprehension skills:
• Background and vocabulary knowledge
• Understanding of the structures and meaning of language
• Ability to make sense of spoken and written words
• Knowledge of how text is organized
STAGES OF READING DEVELOPMENT
Beginning from infancy, children develop language and literacy skills for reading across stages of their lives as shown by Chall’s Stages of Reading Development. In the early childhood and primary years, children gain critical skills for learning language and proficient word reading. As they enter upper elementary, children transition from learning to read to reading to learn.
INITIAL READING PREREADING
CONFIRMATION AND FLUENCY
READING FOR LEARNING
“THE NEW”
4
MULTIPLE VIEWPOINTS
• New understandings 3 5 2 1 0
CONSTRUCTION AND RECONSTRUCTION
• Oral language development
• Letters represent sounds
• Sound-spelling relationships
• Decoding skills
• Fluency
• Additional strategies
• Vocabulary
• Background and world knowledge
• Strategic habits
• Text analysis
• Multiple viewpoints
• Synthesis
While Chall’s stages reflect typical reading development, some reading and language skills cross developmental stages. In addition,
• children with risks for reading disabilities may demonstrate difficulties with foundational literacy or language skills in the earliest stages of reading development.
• English Learners (ELs) may be at different stages of reading development in their native language and in English.
Chall, J. S., 1983
What is Dyslexia?
Dyslexia is a brain-based disability that impacts a person’s ability to read accurately and fluently despite adequate reading instruction.
Reading disabilities like dyslexia are among the most common learning disabilities.
Typically, people with dyslexia have a primary difficulty in connecting the written units of language with their sound representations (known as phonological deficit).
SIGNS AND BEHAVIORS OF DYSLEXIA
Signs and behaviors of dyslexia are detectable as early as age 3 and include difficulties in
• learning the alphabet and connecting letters to their sounds (letter-sound correspondence);
• rhyming, blending, and segmenting words into sounds;
• naming a series of familiar items, like objects, colors, letters, or numbers; and
• reading words and passages accurately.
Adlof & Hogan, 2018; International Dyslexia Association, 2019; Kearns et al., 2019
What is DLD?
(Developmental Language Disorder)
DLD is a brain-based disability that impacts a person’s ability to learn, organize, and understand language. DLD has also been referred to by other names, such as specific language disorder, specific/primary language impairment, and language learning impairment. people worldwide have DLD.
50 %
Research shows up to a co-morbidity (wherein both disorders are present) between DLD and dyslexia.
SIGNS AND BEHAVIORS OF DLD:
Signs and behaviors of DLD include difficulties with vocabulary and new word learning;
understanding and expressing ideas verbally; and organizing thoughts and ideas in writing at the word, sentence,
ARE DLD AND DYSLEXIA SIMILAR DISORDERS?
DLD and dyslexia are both common language-based learning disabilities that are lifelong. While they both indicate difficulties with language and reading, dyslexia reflects a primary word reading difficulty, whereas DLD results in weaknesses with overall language. Both disorders are highly inheritable between families.
Adlof & Hogan, 2018; Bishop et al., 2016; The DLD Project, 2022; NIDCD, 2023; Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists, 2020
School-Based Instruction and Interventions
Structured literacy is a comprehensive approach to teaching reading that benefits all students and is essential for those diagnosed with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities. Instruction using this approach is:
Explicit
Reading and writing skills are taught directly by the teacher. This involves clear modeling and high levels of interaction between the teacher and student.
Systematic
Skills are taught in a specific sequence. Lessons start with foundational skills and progress to more complex skills as students become proficient in each step.
Cumulative
New skills build on previously learned ones, helping students apply existing knowledge to increasingly complex material.
Diagnostic
Teachers regularly monitor progress to identify individual needs, targeting specific skills for review and reinforcement.
KEY READING CURRICULUM COMPONENTS
• Alphabet Knowledge: Recognizing and naming letters
• Phonological Awareness: Understanding the sound structure of language
• Phonics: Connecting sounds to letters
• Word Reading: Decoding and recognizing words by sight
• Spelling: Applying patterns of letters that make up syllables, word parts, and words to written form
• Fluency: Reading accurately and smoothly with appropriate pacing
• Vocabulary and Comprehension: Understanding words, sentences, and longer text passages
INTENSIVE INTERVENTIONS
For students needing extra support, intensive interventions can offer
• increased instructional time;
• additional practice and feedback; and
• individualized instruction.
Implementing structured literacy instruction and intensive interventions schoolwide, with intention, care, and consistency ensures that schools can effectively support students in developing essential literacy skills. Collaboration between families and educators is vital for every student to receive the individualized support needed to thrive.
The International Dyslexia Association, 2019
Literacy Support at Home
Supporting a child’s literacy at home is particularly important for those with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities. Engaging in family literacy activities can reinforce the skills children learn at school and foster a love for reading and writing.
BUILDING BLOCKS: LANGUAGE SKILLS
Talk about the world around you and engage in activities that build strong oral language skills. Discuss daily events, describe items in the environment, and encourage children to express their thoughts and ideas.
Use rich language, label items around the home, and play sorting games to help children build their vocabulary.
ACTIVITIES THAT PROMOTE ALPHABET AND WORD KNOWLEDGE
Encourage children to “I-Spy” letters and words in their environment, everywhere from cereal boxes to road signs.
Use letter tiles and magnets to build alphabet and word knowledge.
For more activities, explore the Institute of Education Sciences resources for families:
Teach children nursery rhymes and play initialsound and “rhymes with…” games.
READING TOGETHER
• Story Time: Read with your child daily. Choose a mix of fiction and informational books that match their interests.
• Read Aloud: Encourage children to read aloud and give them positive feedback to build fluency and confidence.
• Comprehension: Ask questions and model thinking out loud when reading. Focus on critical story elements like characters, setting, problem, and solution. Make predictions and discuss the story's theme or lessons.
USE LIBRARIES AS RESOURCES
• Explore books at your local library like alphabet books, decodable readers, fiction picture books, and informational texts.
• Libraries host a variety of literacy-focused events, and librarians can recommend resources tailored to a child’s interests and reading level.
HOME-SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS
• Connect With Teachers: Regularly discuss your child’s progress with their teachers and ask for activity recommendations that reinforce school learning.
• Share Details About Home Life: Share your child’s interests, strengths, and challenges with teachers to create a comprehensive literacy approach.
Families can play a vital role in their child’s reading journey. Consistent exposure to books and literacy experiences, coupled with strong homeschool partnerships, creates a solid foundation for literacy development and encourages a lifelong love of reading.
Did you know?
There are over 5 million English Learners (ELs) in public schools across the United States.
Language acquisition and dyslexia can sometimes present similar characteristics, such as delayed language development, weak phonological awareness and reading comprehension, and limited vocabulary knowledge. Just as educators should not assume that reading challenges among EL students are due to a disability, they should not assume that reading challenges are solely related to learning the English language.
ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR ENGLISH LEARNERS
Screenings
1. Screenings can occur before students have developed oral (i.e., speaking and listening) proficiency in English.
2. Conduct screenings in a student’s language of instruction. To help assess the child’s abilities in both first and other languages, consider screening measures in a child's native language, when available, or add supplemental tools to help assess the child's abilities in both first and other languages.
3. To determine whether further evaluation is warranted, compare skill progress in English to skill progress in the student’s native language.
Instruction
1. Incorporate culturally relevant materials and texts.
2. Utilize cognates, words similar in form and meaning across languages.
3. Incorporate visuals.
4. Explicitly teach academic vocabulary.
5. Emphasize activities that integrate reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills.
6. Provide opportunities for oral language practice and peer collaboration.
Escanea el código QR para obtener la traducción al español de este folleto.
National Center for Education Statistics, 2024; IDA, N.D.; American Federation of Teachers, 2018; Center for Standards, Assessment, and Accountability, 2017.
WHAT IS SCREENING? WHY SCREENING MATTERS
Screening is a valuable tool to identify students who may be at risk for reading problems.
Screening cannot diagnose dyslexia or other language-based learning disabilities. Effective screening measures are quick and easy to do, reliable, repeatable, and include these elements:
Assessment of individual skills to reveal areas of reading achievement that need additional attention
Varied formats that can be administered three to four times a year
Standardized instructions for administration and scoring
SEEKING A FORMAL EVALUATION
Catching reading difficulties early allows for timely intervention.
Early intervention helps prevent the development of more severe reading problems and related issues, such as low self-esteem and academic failure.
Regular monitoring will allow teachers and parents to identify areas of growth and any areas of continued concern.
Screening helps in creating personalized learning plans that address the specific needs of each child.
Although early intervention is best, screening can be valuable at any age.
If a student continues to struggle with literacy skills despite high-quality instruction/intervention, a formal evaluation to determine a diagnosis may be necessary. Evaluations are completed by trained specialists (for example, psychologists, neuropsychologists, or educational specialists who have advanced degrees in assessment or education). An evaluation can be sought out through a school district or privately.
Scan the QR code for more information.
The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, 2023; Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2020; International Dyslexia Association, 2019; National Center for Education Statistics, 2019; Gersten et al., 2007
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