Dyslexia Awareness
Arkansas Law, Common Myths,
and
Our Responsibilities
Outcomes
•Arkansas Laws
•Definition of Dyslexia
•Required Screenings
•Supporting Students with
Dyslexia
Arkansas Law
Arkansas Law
• Parents of struggling students with dyslexia
approached Arkansas lawmakers with
concerns regarding screening and
interventions for their children.
• From this, Arkansas State Legislature enacted
Act 1294 of the 2013 regular session to ensure
that children with dyslexia have their needs
met by all Arkansas public school systems.
Dyslexia is defined as a
learning disability that is
neurological in origin.
Dyslexia is characterized by…
A deficit in the phonological component of
language which can cause difficulties with:
➢decoding
➢accurate and fluent word recognition
➢spelling
➢reading comprehension
➢reduced reading experience
➢deficiencies in vocabulary and
background knowledge
These characteristics are
often unexpected in
relation to the student's
other cognitive abilities.
Myths about Dyslexia
• Very common among parents, teachers,
and the general public.
• Need to know myths as well as the
truths.
Picture Naming Exercise
• You will see two pictures.
• When you recognize the picture, name it
out loud.
• Ready?
True or False?
• Reversal errors are a defining feature of
dyslexia.
b for d
was for saw
53 for 35
True or False?
• Reversal errors are a defining feature of
dyslexia.
b for d
was for saw
53 for 35
• False!
If it were true…
you would all have dyslexia!
What’s the Story about
Reversals?
• Reversals are a symptom of early reading
development...not a cause for reading
difficulties.
True or False
• Eye tracking exercises are effective in
correcting dyslexia.
True or False
• Eye tracking exercises are effective in
correcting dyslexia.
• False!
Eye-Movements in Reading
• It feels like our eyes glide across the page
but they don’t!
– They move in little jumps with little
pauses in between.
– Faulty eye movements do not cause
poor reading but are a by-product of it!
True or False
• Dyslexia can be helped by using colored
lenses.
True or False
• Dyslexia can be helped by using colored
lenses.
• False!
What We Think Dyslexia Is
• Unexpectedly poor reading that is due to
a problem in language--not in vision.
• The language system implicated is the
phonological system—the part of the
brain used for processing speech sounds.
True or False?
• Dyslexia is more common in boys than in
girls.
Controversial: Two Views
• Male vulnerability is a myth. Equal
numbers of girls affected.
Controversial: Two Views
• It is a fact that more boys than girls
are identified as having dyslexia.
Controversial: Two Views
• If you are a teacher and have a
limited number of referrals, why might
you be more likely to refer a boy than
a girl?
Controversial: Two Views
• If you are a teacher and have a limited
number of referrals, why might you be
more likely to refer a boy than a girl?
• Behavior problems. Referral bias could
explain the fact of more boys being
identified than girls.
True or False?
• Parents with dyslexia are more likely to
have children with dyslexia.
True or False?
• Parents with dyslexia are more likely to
have children with dyslexia.
• True!
Familial Risk
• Having a parent or sibling with dyslexia
increases risk, but does not mean a child
will be affected.
True or False?
• Students with dyslexia commonly have
additional problems (e.g., ADHD, social
problems).
True or False?
• Students with dyslexia commonly have
additional problems (e.g., ADHD, social
problems).
• True!
Conclusions
1. Reversal errors are not a cause or
hallmark characteristic of dyslexia.
2. Faulty eye-movements are not a
common cause of dyslexia.
3. Dyslexia is a language problem not a
visual problem. Language problem resides
in the phonological system.
Conclusions
4. Dyslexia runs in families.
5. Children and adults with dyslexia may
have other problems (e.g., ADHD).
6. Dyslexia occurs in boys and girls.
BEACH BALL
BRAIN BREAK!
• Flip flops
Happy
Steven Spielberg - Dyslexia Interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lGr840jE_0
General Steps for Identifying Students at Risk
1. Screening
2. Inform the student’s parents
3. Develop and implement an intervention plan
4. Measure outcomes
5. Modify interventions if necessary
6. Measure outcomes
7. Seek further diagnostic testing
Who Should be Screened?
According to Ark. Code Ann. § 6-41-603, a
school district shall screen:
• Each student in kindergarten through
grade two (K-2);
• Any student in grade three or higher
experiencing difficulty, as noted by a
classroom teacher.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
The screening of students shall be
performed with fidelity and include
without limitation :
Phonological and phonemic awareness;
Sound symbol recognition;
Alphabet knowledge;
Decoding skills;
Rapid naming; and
Encoding skills.
(Ark. Code Ann. § 6-41-603)
Kindergarten Administration: Recommended Mid-Year
DIBELS Subtest
Phoneme Segmentation
Fluency (PSF)
Letter Naming Fluency (LNF)
Nonsense Word Fluency
Required Component
Phonemic Awareness
Alphabet Knowledge
Sound Symbol
Recognition/Decoding Skills
Kindergarten Administration: Recommended Mid-Year
Recommended Assessment
Arkansas Rapid Naming
Screener*
Developmental Spelling Analysis
(DSA)**
Required Component
Rapid Naming Skills
Encoding Skills
* Located on the ADE website.
** Located in Word Journeys by Kathy Ganske
First Grade Administration: Recommended BeginningYear
DIBELS Subtest
Phoneme Segmentation
Fluency (PSF)
Letter Naming Fluency (LNF)
Nonsense Word Fluency
Required Component
Phonemic Awareness
Alphabet Knowledge
Sound Symbol
Recognition/Decoding Skills
First Grade Administration: Recommended BeginningYear
Recommended Assessment
Arkansas Rapid Naming
Screener*
Developmental Spelling Analysis
(DSA)**
Required Component
Rapid Naming Skills
Encoding Skills
* Located on the ADE website.
** Located in Word Journeys by Kathy Ganske
Second Grade Administration: Recommended
Beginning-Year
DIBELS Subtest
Nonsense Word Fluency
Oral Reading Fluency (ORF)
Required Component
Sound Symbol
Recognition/Decoding Skills
Decoding Skills/Fluency
Second Grade Administration: Recommended
Beginning-Year
Recommended Assessment
Arkansas Rapid Naming
Screener*
Developmental Spelling Analysis
(DSA)**
Required Component
Rapid Naming Skills
Encoding Skills
* Located on the ADE website.
** Located in Word Journeys by Kathy Ganske
3rd – 12th Grade
Screening measures should be
administered when a student in
grades three or higher has difficulty in
reading and writing.
Dyslexia Resource Guide,
August 2014, ADE
Third - Sixth Grade Administration:
(as needed)
DIBELS Subtest
Oral Reading Fluency
Required Component
Decoding Skills/Fluency
Seventh - Twelfth Grade Administration:
(as needed)
The teachers should use grade-appropriate informal
inventories.
Whatever the plan of action,
researchers now know that the
human brain has an incredible
capacity to change—at every age
level.
Supporting Students with Dyslexia
Response to Intervention
• Tier l: Core Instruction
• Tier ll: Supplemental Intervention
• Tier lll: Intensive Intervention
Supporting Students with Dyslexia
• Multi-sensory approach
Visual
Auditory
Kinesthetic
Tactile
Supporting Students with Dyslexia
• Instructional practices
– Explicit teaching procedures
– Step-by-step instructions
– Repeating directions and emphasizing
a daily review of previous learning
– Recording directions, stories, and
specific lessons
Supporting Students with Dyslexia
• Materials
– Limit distractions
– Additional practice
– Provide a glossary in content areas
– Develop study guides
Supporting Students with Dyslexia
• Technology
Supporting Students with Dyslexia
• Performance adjustments
– Flexible work times
– Adjusting assignments
– Scaffold (easiest to hardest)
– Instructional aids
Supporting Students with Dyslexia
• Arkansas Department of Education
–Dyslexia Resources
What is most critical is that students
with difficulties in learning to read
are identified as early as possible, and
that intensive and well-targeted
interventions be provided to those
students who are lagging behind, no
matter what the cause.
Contact Information
Deborah Curry
deborah.curry@scscoop.org
Anna Warriner
anna.warriner@scscoop.org