Are you concerned about someone with
a spelling or reading difficulty?
I'm Diane Cunnington.
Let me help you.
ABOUT ME
I'm a certified tutor in the Barton Reading & Spelling system. I have over 15 years of experience in public schools as a classroom teacher, a substitute teacher, and a paraprofessional. My time in the schools has convinced me that the standard way of teaching reading does not work for some students.
What is Dyslexia?
The most common myth is that people see letters and words backwards. Dyslexia is not caused by a vision problem.
Yes, some people with dyslexia reverse their b's and their d's and say “was” for “saw.” But that's caused by their lifelong confusion over left versus right and by their difficulty reading by sounding out.
Dyslexia is an inherited brain difference that makes learning to read and spell more difficult. It also affects other areas of life, including left-right confusions, rote memorization, and memory of sequences, for example, tying shoes.
Dyslexia occurs in a wide range of severity, from mild to profound. To some extent, it affects about one-fifth of the population. It is NOT related
to intelligence.
Dyslexia is often associated with giftedness in other areas: athletics, arts, and creative problem-solving.
Here are some of the famous people with dyslexia.
What can be done about it?
Research shows that 95% of reading failure is preventable—by using appropriate reading systems and well-trained teachers.
All the latest scientific, independent, replicated reading research supports the Orton-Gillingham sequence and methodology when teaching reading
to students with dyslexia.
Orton Gillingham is a structured language approach that is different in both what is taught (reading and spelling are taught as related subjects) and how it is taught (the methodology).
Influenced by Orton-Gillingham approach is
the Barton system. It is a multi-sensory, direct, explicit, structured and sequential program designed for intense intervention. It is intended for individual tutoring.
How do I know if I or my child has dyslexia?
Dyslexia is the most common reason a person with adequate intelligence will have difficulty in reading and spelling.
There is no specific test for dyslexia, but a professional who is an expert in dyslexia and has also received intense, specialized training in how to accurately give and score the tests, and to interpret the results, can make a diagnosis from a battery of tests.
Here are common signs in Elementary students:
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Slow, non-automatic handwriting that is difficult to read
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Letter or number reversals continuing past the end of the first grade
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Slow, choppy, inaccurate reading:
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guesses based on shape or context
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skips or misreads prepositions (at, to, of)
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ignores suffixes
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cannot sound out unknown words
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Terrible spelling
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Extreme messy bedroom, backpack, and desk
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Dreads going to school
For a more extensive list, click here.