What do students at risk for dyslexia struggle with?
- Delay in learning tasks such as tying shoes, telling time
- Difficulty expressing self
- Inattentiveness, distractibility
- Inability to follow directions
- Left-right confusion
- Difficulty learning alphabet, times tables, words of songs
- Difficulty learning rhymes
- Poor playground skills
- Difficulty learning to read
- Mixing order of letters or numbers when writing
- Reversing letters or numbers
Supporting students with dyslexia: What can you do?
According to the International Dyslexia Association official publication of Perspectives on Language and Literacy, Vol. 44, 2018, here are six steps to help your struggling students:
1. Screen for dyslexia
- Become involved in implementing or improving universal screening programs for dyslexia by reminding administrators about specific laws.
- If you suspect your student has dyslexia, request that common reading and writing skills associated with dyslexia are assessed (e.g., basic reading skills [phonics and sight word identification], spelling, reading rate).
2. Dyslexia training for teachers and reading specialists
- Advocate for the appointment of a specific person in charge of dyslexia training.
- Request specific teacher training that includes structured literacy programs (e.g., explicit, systematic reading instruction, phonics instruction, etc.). Request dyslexia awareness training for all ¹ú²úÈý¼¶Æ¬“12 teachers.
3. Eligibility for accommodations and services for students with dyslexia
- Become involved in the Response to Intervention, Multi-tiered system of support, or a similar system at your school. Ensure that the accommodations and services that are provided are appropriate for students with dyslexia.
- Collaborate with colleagues to evaluate the effectiveness of accommodations and services being provided to students with dyslexia.
4. Classroom instruction for students with dyslexia
- Become familiar with differentiated instruction strategies (e.g., use of centers during instruction).
- Learn and help colleagues learn about specific reading programs designed to help students with dyslexia (e.g., structured literacy programs).
5. Dyslexia handbook
- Request that your state or district develop a dyslexia handbook to guide teachers and offer other states’ handbooks as a reference.
6. Dyslexia awareness
- Consult with fellow educational professionals in your school(s) to hold events and encourage discussions about dyslexia during October (National Dyslexia Month).
DIBELS® 8th Edition is validated for the following measures: DIBELS 8th Edition Subtest Alignment with Dyslexia Screening Areas
| Rapid Naming Ability |
Phonological Awareness |
Alphabetic Principle | Word Reading | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Letter Naming Fluency |  |
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| Phonemic Segmentation Fluency | |
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| Nonsense Word Fluency | |
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| Word Reading Fluency | |
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| Oral Reading Fluency | |
How mCLASS can help you identify and support at-risk students
mCLASS® with DIBELS® 8th Edition’s free dyslexia screening measures provide additional screening for risk of dyslexia in students in grades ¹ú²úÈý¼¶Æ¬“3 through subtests that help identify early warning signs of reading difficulty. Measures include:
- Vocabulary
- Encoding
- Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN)
- Word Reading Fluency (WRF)
- Letter Naming Fluency (LNF)
- Phonemic Segmentation Fluency (PSF)
