CHAPTER 2

TEACHING METHODS FOR DYSLEXIC CHILDREN

2.1. The dyslexic learner in the classroom - teacher's role and support

It is a good idea to find out about dyslexic pupils’ ways of learning (especially their learning style) and respect them. Every child has individual preferences for visual, auditory, tactile or kinaesthetic processing. In addition some pupils choose to work alone and some with others in pairs or groups.

According to Tod (2000) dyslexia is a problem that many pupil face and has terrible difficulty coping with in a school environment. However, with the help and support of the teacher, dyslexic pupils can become auspicious learners. The teachers' role is to make educational adjustments to facilitate learning and create successful class environment. The teacher ought to bear in mind that get hold of a great amount of knowledge about a dyslexic pupils is the factor that may play an essential role in a pupil's later success. Therefore, the teacher ought to assemble a lot of information about a dyslexic pupil, his or her family, friends and environment as possible. Whenever a dyslexic pupils are positively certain that the teacher recognises and is aware of the nature of pupil's difficulties and helps him or her to overcome them, it may increase motivation as well as make him or her apt to learn.

Continuing with the teacher's role in working with dyslexic pupils, it ought to be remembered that the curriculum needs to be designed in an appropriate way to suit dyslexic pupils need textbooks and materials selected with the dyslexic in mind. When teacher is choosing a suitable course book for a dyslexic pupils, he or she should be remembered that the course book must be clear and well structured. Moreover, schematic layout ought to be provided so that the pupil knows what to expect form a particular unit or part. When teacher is choosing the course book, he or she ought to pay attention to the size of the font - the bigger letters are easier for a dyslexic pupil to perform reading skils. Certainly, as far as the content of the course book is concerned, it should not be overloaded with new grammatical structures and new lexical items. It is advisable for the teacher to select a course book accompanied with a workbook with enought numbers of exercises for dyslexic pupil's individual practice. Undoubtedly, there is no trigger why a dyslexic pupil ought to be taught different lexical items and grammatical structures than the rest of pupils in the classroom. Certainly, the sole changes the teacher is to introduce are in the strategy of teaching, not the matter. The elementary rule for teachers is to bear in mind that a gradual development is the key to successful teaching.

The teachers should take into notice the fact that while working with dyslexic pupils, certainly more time should be spent on revising material already familiar to pupils rather than introducing new material. School environments play an important role for a dyslexic students. A structured, predictable and ordered educational environment ought to be ensured by teachers, as pupils with learning difficulties work best and respond most favourably in such settings.

A general approach, that is on one hand positive and at the same time sympathetic, might as well diminish the dyslexic pupil's anxieties and doubts and remove unnecessary pressures. In a positive and encouraging environment, dyslexic students practice the feelings of satisfaction, success and self-value. A lot of the achievements as well as failures that happen in dyslexic learner's school life rely on the teacher's attitude to a great extent.

2.2. General rules on how to teach dyslexic children

According to Sapiejewska (2002) teacher must remember that dyslexic children are especially demanding students. Therefore:

·         Apply an individual approach (It is important to distinguish the uniqueness and the individuality of each learners: what works well for one pupil may not necessarily work for another).

·         Revise.

·         The teacher must find ways to help his or her pupils concentrate:

-          Change the activity regularly,

-          Plan lessons including short breaks (dyslexic pupils can only concentrate for short periods at the time).

-          Do not learn things that are very similar one after the other.

·         Learn to be well-organized – dyslexic pupils need a regular routine and help with organising things.

·         Accentuate the pupil’s abilities and teach through his or her strengths.[1]

·         The teacher should give exact instructions or explanations of tasks (short and concise).

·         The teacher ought to use friendly material like a clear layout[2], pictograms and graphics to help locate information, picture dictionaries, listening material (tape or CD) used at home, consistent color coding, ‘window marker’ for reading.

According to Sapiejewska (2002) the teacher can make his or her lessons more enjoyable by using:

·         nursery rhymes and poetry;

·         puzzles;

·         games: Simon says, Snakes & ladders, Bingo (helps visual perception), spot the difference (also to help with prepositions: over/under);

·         miming stories

·         Tape everyday sounds and play to students (‘Can they recognize them?’).

These methods possible sound familiar to most English teachers, who will have been using them successfully while working with their pupils without dyslexia. In fact teachers often will not do any injustice to ‘regular’ pupils. On the contrary, teachers are bound to help dyslexic pupils, since the practice of teaching the English language to them has been based on techniques that are easily digestable as well as those which most stimulate cognitive processes: attention, memory and auditory language functions (for example a multi-sensory approach, mnemotechniques).

2.3. Dyslexia and learning styles

Ellis (1985) described a learning style as the more or less consistent way in which a person perceives, conceptualises, organises and recalls information.

There are many ways of looking at learning styles.

Here is one classification system of learning styles:

·         visual,

·         auditory,

·         kinesthetic,

·         tactile.

Those who prefer a visual learning style often recognise words by sight, using displays or posters, etc., and using lists to organise their thought processes. Therefore, teacher should use many visuals in the classroom, such as posters, flash cards.

              Those who prefer an auditory learning style prefer the teacher to provide verbal instructions,like role-plays, and use rhythm and sound as memory aid.  Therefore, teacher should usestorytelling, videos, songs, etc.

              Those who prefer kinesthetic learning style like being actively involved, find it difficult to sit still for longer periods of time, and use movement as memory aid. Therefore, teacher should use physical activities, competitions, etc.

              Those who prefer a tactile learning style learn well with hands-on activities like projects, and use writingand and drawing as memory aids.  Therefore, teacher should use board and card games, etc. use while listening and reading activities, e.g. ask the students to label a diagram while listening.

2.4. Multi–sensory teaching methods

According to Tod (2000) the most effective teaching method for all pupils, particularly those exhibiting signs of a learning difficulty, is a multi-sensory approach. In fact, multi-sensory teaching methods are imperative for dyslexic learners. Using a multi-sensory approach to teaching dyslexic pupils would not only alleviate anxiety from the situation mentioned above, but also help dyslexic pupils’ brains absorb the feedback being conveyed to them.

Some teachers express reluctance to change their ways of teaching, but just making a few changes in the classroom can do the students a world of good. Multi-sensory teaching is exactly as it sounds, utilizing all the senses to relay feedback to students.

As adults, we go to exhibitions or show, presentations, even church, where we are exposed to multi-sensory experiences. We see a lot of things, hear music as well as voices, touch, sometimes taste and smell all forms of stimulating things at these events. The teachers should use those sense to teach children.

According to Tod (2000) multi–sensory teaching methods is especially crucial for a dyslexic pupils. Using a multi-sensory teaching approach means helping a pupils to learn through more than one of the senses. Most teaching in schools is done using either sight or hearing (auditory sensations). The pupil's sight is used in reading information, looking at diagrams or pictures, or reading what is on the teacher's board. The sense of hearing is used in listening to what the teacher says or what pupil hears from CD or tape. A dyslexic child may experience difficulties with either or both of these senses. The child's vision may be affected by difficulties with tracking, visual processing or seeing the words become fuzzy or move around. The child's hearing may be satisfactory on a hearing test, but auditory recollection or auditory processing may be not up to much.

An example will make this method clear. According to Bradford (2008) the majority of dyslexic pupils experience confusion over the direction of ‘b’ and ‘d’. They can both be seen as a stick with a circle at its base. ‘But on which side does the circle sit?’ A teacher might give the dyslexic pupil a tactile (touchy/feely) experience of the letter ‘b’ by getting the  dyslexic pupil to draw the letter really large on the carpet. This will involve the dyslexic pupil using their arms and hends, their acumen of balance, their whole body. They will remember the day their teacher had them 'writing' on the carpet with their hand making this great big shape, and dyslexic pupils can use that memory the next time they come to write the letter. Some teachers purchase letters made out of sandpaper so that the pupil can run their fingers over the letter ‘b’, giving them a strong tactile memory. Writing the letter ‘b’ in cursive handwriting on paper and with a big motion in the air puts a quite different slant on this letter. The letter starts on the line and rises to begin the down-stroke: there is nowhere else to put the circular bit but ahead of the down stroke.

According to Bradford (2008) a commonly used ‘trick’ to remember the direction of ‘b’ and ‘d’ is to show the pupil the word ‘bed’ on a card (Diagram 2). This word begins with ‘b’ and ends with ‘d’, so that if you draw a bed over the letters, the upright part of ‘b’ will become the head of the bed, and the upright part of the ‘d’ will become the foot. You can also draw a child lying on the bed. The picture with the child lying on the ‘b-d bed’ will be complete and funny. This gives a strong visual memory for the child to use each time the letter has to be written.

Diagram 2: ‘Trick’ to remember the direction of ‘b’ and ‘d’

Source: Bradford (2008)

The teacher  can also show the child how to hold up their index finger on each hand, with the thumb and second finger touching, making the word ‘bed’, but without the ‘e’. If they learn to do this, they can make this shape discretely with their fingers each time they need a reminder in classroom.

The net result of these activities will be that a dyslexic pupil has a visual memory from seeing the letter, an auditory memory from hearing the sound it makes, a tactile memory from writing the letter in cursive handwriting, in the air, and from touching the sandpaper letter, and a kinetic (body movement) memory from having drawn the letter really large on the carpet.

Multi–sensory teaching methods have been used successfully for a long time, and we must remember that its success lies in the fact that the dyslexic pupils are not limited to visual and auditory experiences but they can make use of other expanses of the brain in trying to establish clear memories of letters, words and numbers that are difficult to recollect.

2.5. Confidence building

According to Page (2002) creating self-confidence is not just an exercise that we can do with a dyslexic pupil one to one. It is constituent of our day to day teaching in the classroom which benefits the dyslexic children as well as everyone else. Dyslexia is not a visible disease or condition. It is a silent learning difficulty, which can leave people feeling frustrated about their inability to learn things their friends find easy, such as spelling, reading or writing.

              Page (2002) wrote that confidence building methods work well for the dominant majority but set impossible tasks for dyslexic children to achieve. Students with dyslexia often seem very bright but they cannot learn in the ways that are so successful for their peers. People do not understand the problem – parents, teachers, friends – even the dyslexic children themselves.  People might label the student ‘lazy and not trying’. This can lead to feelings of low self-esteem and negativity for the dyslexic child. However there are things that can be done to help the child and a good starting point is ‘to focus on the hopeful and the positive.’ One way to do this is to set realistic goals.

              Ideas for encouraging children to succeed both at home and in the school are as follows:

·         At our school they have a ‘Principal's or Headteachers award’, where a child that has made an achievement, is called out to the front in assembly. They are given a ‘Principal's award’ sticker and a bottle of pop as a reward.

·         Another alternative to the ‘Principal's award’ is ‘The Brilliant Brick award’. If a child has made an achievement they may be given a ‘Brilliant Brick’, which is a photocopy of a brick. It has the child's name and why they were given the award. All of the Brilliant Bricks that have been given for that term are then pinned on the wall outside the Head teachers office to build a wall of achievements. This idea could also be done at home.

·         It would be nice for a pupil to be able to bring a letter home from school for the parent to read that their child has done well or tried hard at something. That way the child would get praise at school and again when they get home. The letter could then be hung on the wall.

·         One of the most important forms of praise is verbal. Teachers try to make a point of verbally praising eachers’ child for all of the achievements that child makes. Teachers explain exactly what child did that made his or her feels pleased with him or her, so that child understands why teacher is so proud of him or her. That way child is more likely to want to do what ever it was again and again.

·         Take a sheet of paper and make two columns: in one column put 'Things that I am good at' and in the other 'Things that I am not so good at'. Take about five or ten minutes of discussion with the child for you to write a list of things that the child is - from an objective point of view - successful at. These will include such skills as swimming, sports, caring for pets, making a collection, dancing, drama, singing, art, painting, drawing, and so on. In the 'Not so good' column let the child tell you the things like spelling and writing that he really finds hard. The following exercise has a great effect on children, and can be carried out by a parent, or a teacher, or, if at all possible, both together with the child, who needs to be on his own (not in a group situation). The list will look something like this, depending of course on each child's interests:

Table 1: List ‘Things that I am good at’

Source: http://www.dyslexia-parent.com/confidence.html

The evidence is staring the child in the face: there are far more things that he or she is good at than things he or she has difficulties with. Child cannot possibly be stupid. Child is clearly a successful person. But he or she may well say that the things he or she is weak at are the things that matter in life. If pupil cannot spell, how can pupil pass exams and get a job? This is the stage at which teachers have to argue - not tell - and say such things as 'What do you value people for - because they are good at spelling? Of course not. Teachers value people for all sorts of qualities, especially their ability to be friendly, get on with you, consider your needs, think of other people before themselves and so on. It's up to teachers to keep the argument going until the child can really begin to see himself in a new light - as a successful person who just happens to have been born with a small handicap. Like being color-blind. It is not his or her fault. It is not because he or she does not try hard enough (as, unfortunately, many teachers will have told him).

2.6. Dyslexia and learning English grammar

Grammar is concerned with words and their usage. Just as a carpenter needs tools to make furniture, nails and glue are also required to hold the pieces of furniture together. Words are the bricks of our language; grammar is the mortar that binds them together. Dyslexic pupils need to be taught English grammar in a structured, explicit and multisensory way. The logic that runs through the backbone of grammar provides a blueprint for teaching. Letters lead to words, words lead to sentences, sentences lead to paragraphs and paragraphs lead to pages, articles, essays, reports and books. From this base, the interwoven threads that make up the umbrella term of ‘grammar’ radiate laterally. This is a perfect structure for the lateral thinker and dyslexic mind.

2.6.1. Word structure

According to Turner and Pughe (2003) words are the tools of our language. We encourage pupils to take an active interest in words themselves. We do this through modules in etymology, discussing roots of words, prefixes, suffixes and compound words. Our dyslexic pupils enjoy playing with words and find this activity challenging and motivating. They are curious about words and find the experience of discovering, for instance, where words and their roots come from both fascinating and helpful. They can fit the information they discover into a cross-curricular context tying in with humanities, modern foreign languages, science, technology and mathematics. Pupils can be investigators and work out patterns in words, looking at similarities, differences and common threads in spelling.

Dyslexic pupils enjoy manipulating words. Prefixes and suffixes should be taught logically, systematically, explicitly and in a visual way whenever possible. Pupils can then use prefixes and suffixes to change the meaning and function of words in sentences with ease and confidence.

When pupils experiment with words such as they do with these activities, they extend their vocabulary both orally and in a written sense. They not only become more confident with words themselves, but the additional familiarity they experience brings with it the bonus of self-esteem and success. No one wants to be restricted to saying and writing a simple code and denied access to the richness and variety of language that others use, because of fear of failure and a lack of confidence in handling language. We believe that the inclusion of language usage is as important as the inclusion of reading and membership of the reading club of life. A thorough grounding in word structure is therefore an essential component of any English grammar programme.

2.6.2. Punctuation

Without punctuation it is difficult to make sense of what is written. Punctuation is an aid to communication. Without it, the sense of what is to be conveyed through the written word can be lost and ambiguous. According to Turner and Pughe (2003) some dyslexic pupils do not make the connection between punctuation used in speech and punctuation used in writing. They do not realise, unless it is explicitly pointed out to them, that when we articulate we use pause, intonation and stress to make sense of what we are saying, thus making meaning clearer for the listener. This concept is fundamental for applying written punctuation.

For example, many dyslexic learners can tell you, quite accurately, that sentences start with a capital letter and end with a full stop. However, they do not apply this in their writing. One reason of that could be that they know what to do and ...