Dyslexia Remediation

Jaclyn Baharestani

Special Projects Coordinator, Winston Innovation Lab

At Winston Preparatory School, we often approach initial discussions about dyslexia by debunking myths frequently associated with this neurological disorder. For example, dyslexia only affects boys, dyslexia refers to a visual weakness, or dyslexia is curable. These prevailing untruths about dyslexia tend to perpetuate various harmful ideas about the diagnosis.

We believe that in conversations about dyslexia remediation, it is important to discuss its causes. It’s crucial to understand how and why it impacts learning. Dyslexia is rooted in several key weaknesses. These can include rapid automatic naming, phonological awareness, and working memory, resulting in challenges in learning to read.

Presenting With Dyslexia

Dyslexia is most often associated with skills related to decoding, encoding (spelling), and reading fluency. However, it also tends to affect a student’s abilities in other related areas.

Dyslexia can be associated with the following difficulties:

Written expression
Mathematical operations
Following directions

Dyslexia also hinders successful reading comprehension as students struggle to fluently decode. The significant cognitive effort it requires to decode leaves little energy for deciphering the meaning of text.

From this breakdown comes subsequent gaps in the following:

Vocabulary
Background knowledge
Contextual understanding
Complex grammar

With regard to social emotional development, the cognitive and clinical underpinnings, as well as the personal challenges of being diagnosed with dyslexia, tend to further impact self-esteem and frustration tolerance. Such challenges can lead to weaknesses in Self-Regulation and Resilience. Oftentimes, school-based experiences can influence their mindset about themselves as learners and others’ expectations of them. As a result, it can be challenging for them to buy-in to future opportunities to learn.

Dyslexia Remediation Techniques

At Winston Preparatory School, we implement evidence-based research to explicitly develop decoding, encoding, and reading fluency skills. While it is never too late to begin remediating dyslexia, early intervention is key. This is largely due to the fact that students who are undiagnosed or untreated fall rapidly behind their classmates. This is a result of limited practice, reduced exposure to written language, and the lack of needed individualized and highly structured support.

Our instructors recognize that students with dyslexia require at least two hours of explicit, systematic instruction daily. As such, these skills are targeted in every content class in addition to a daily 1:1 remedial class. They also benefit from ongoing opportunities to practice and receive supportive feedback throughout the course of the school day.

Communication between the student’s entire team, which includes families, instructors, and students themselves, is also key. The result is a consistent, effective program that tackles the greatest areas of weakness. Such programs continuously shift to meet students’ ever-changing needs.

We draw upon evidence-based interventions that are strategically and systematically planned out. Such interventions solidify foundational skills and build upon them with a clear scope and sequence.

Assessment and Individualization

Methods such as previewing, modeling, practicing, and reviewing are essential to decoding instruction, as is explicit development of reading fluency skills.

While each student may benefit from a tailored approach to instruction itself, multisensory decoding and encoding instruction leads to the most positive outcomes. It works to rewire the brain, tapping into memory and retrieval muscles. Instruction engages visual, auditory, and kinesthetic senses, building and strengthening connections over time.

Assessment is also truly central to remediating dyslexia. Applying our Continuous Feedback System, we call upon both formal and ongoing informal assessments to readily evaluate our students’ progress and mastery of various target skills.

Self-assessment is an important part of the process, particularly as it pertains to social-emotional skill building. Students with dyslexia often display strengths in Self-Reflection, leading to a heightened awareness of the expectations that they set for themselves. They may have difficulty processing thoughts about not meeting those expectations or the expectations of others.

Developing students’ understanding of who they are as learners supports their ability to constantly build upon their aforementioned implicit strengths while also supporting effective Self-Advocacy skills. As a result, they succeed in capitalizing on opportunities to build confidence and undo negative self-talk.

Through this work, students tend to buy-in further to strategy development, understanding its connection to their overall independence and wellbeing.

Reinforcing Skill-Building

Decoding, encoding, and reading fluency practice, as well as social emotional skill building are woven into the entirety of the program that we provide to our students with dyslexia. This highlights the importance of ongoing skill-based instruction and collaborative team communication.

More than two hours per day of systematic, direct instruction in decoding, encoding and fluency takes place throughout the school day. Educators also make reinforcing related key skills a priority.

The content material itself is used as a vehicle through which to drive strategy and skill development. For example, in literature class, students participate in at least thirty minutes per day of explicit decoding instruction. Students also have many opportunities to strengthen the cognitive processes that build additional academic skills.

While being exposed to high level literature, instructors may teach students how to develop and utilize graphic organizers or visual thinking maps. Visual tools alleviate the cognitive load on working memory in order to support a deepened understanding.

These strategies are hugely important, as students with dyslexia are often faced with the challenge of exerting all of their cognitive power on decoding text. As a result, they often miss out on a piece’s deeper meaning.

By supporting working memory skills, students are also better able to access their often intact critical thinking skills. This supports their bigger picture goals and ties their program together in a cohesive manner.

Dyslexia remediation extends far beyond language classes, however. It permeates each and every learning opportunity that students encounter throughout the day. In history, for example, students might engage in a word sort activity using vocabulary related to the history content. Exercises that task students with syllabicating, categorizing and sorting content-driven, tier 2 words based on word form patterns provides meaningful decoding practice and exposure to information.

Additional explicit strategies to support vulnerable working memory, such as retrieval practice or rehearsal methods, are implemented in all content areas including math and science. The same skills can be remediated from content area to content area as long as there is true consistency in instruction and goal setting.

Tools to Help with Dyslexia Outside of Academics

At Winston Preparatory School, we believe that skill remediation should also occur in enrichment classes, such as art, music and physical education. Each one presents tangible opportunities to practice strategies to support the ability to accurately follow directions, strengthen self-esteem and further develop Resilience.

These skills, as previously mentioned, can present as weaknesses in students with dyslexia due to breakdowns in working memory, adaptability, and low frustration tolerance. Such difficulties may manifest as challenges with taking academic risks, communicating, or resolving conflicts.

With explicit modeling, ongoing guided and independent practice, and a deeper understanding of self, students can employ a range of supportive strategies and make notable gains. For instance, by participating in team sports with ongoing strategic support and feedback, students with dyslexia can cultivate strengths and nurture social relationships. This results in greater overall confidence and positive team learning experiences.

Students with dyslexia can have this same opportunity in art class, whether working independently or with a partner. This is particularly beneficial if they have personal or cognitive strengths that lend themselves to hands-on learning and creativity, such as strong visual spatial skills.

Winston Preparatory School is an innovative, individualized program for students through 12th grade with learning differences such as dyslexia, nonverbal learning disabilities (NVLD), and executive functioning difficulties (ADHD). Learn more and discover how Winston Preparatory School supports dyslexia remediation throughout every school day.

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