5 Ways to help your Dyslexic Child at Home

1. READ TO THEM EVERYDAY 

This is shown to help brain develop for all children and they should be read to up until the age of 11. In Dyslexic children this is even more crucial. As most Dyslexics find reading challenging, being read to allows for vocabulary development. Hearing descriptive language helps them to recreate it or even copy it in their own writing. Children are able to develop their inference skills (see things not explicitly written in the text). This skill is so important for comprehension and literacy understanding and can be developed just as well but being read to. It allows Dyslexic children to develop a love of stories which could otherwise be lost due to the frustration and difficulty of reading. Finally, it gives all children a wealth of stories to draw from and use in their own writing, from characters ideas to plot lines, they will develop as writer’s by listening to and reading stories.

2. DEVELOP AN AREA OF STRENGTH

Every child has an area of strength, something they shine at not only in their ability but also in the joy radiates from them as they do it. Our job as parents is to give opportunities for children to find that strength and joy at home. It maybe through classes out of school or doing an online course with them, however you do it, if you see that spark of joy or talent, embrace it, pursue it as having this strength will build confidence around them so when they struggle they have that joy to hold onto.

3. PRACTICE WRITING

Get you child writing shopping lists, writing out recipes for you as this develops their ordering and processing of information skills. You could as your child to write thank you letters or notes to Grandparents. It is a skill Dyslexic children find hard but that doesn’t mean we should avoid it, we should just make it fun and a side product of a nice activity. Writing practice should not be about writing lines it can happen quickly in short bursts in everyday life.

4. PRACTICE WORD MANIPULATION GAMES

Dyslexic children struggle typically with phonology (phonics) of the English language. It is good to practice these at home consistently and again in small bursts. One fun game is as follows. You say a word ” cat” and say take away the C and add a m makes…. and the child should say “mat”. This can be nonsense words to its just about sound manipulation in words. You can also play the same game and switch vowel sound and many other versions. It allows Dyslexic children to practice in a fun way and make mistakes in a safe and fun environment.

5. PRAISE, PRAISE, PRAISE

Let’s face it, life can be really frustrating and tough for Dyslexic students. They are intelligent students with amazing insight and ability but are often unable to get this across as succinctly as other students. Praise their effort, praise their patience and praise their determination. Our job is to have their back no matter what!