Decoding Dyslexia
Sarah sees the letters backwards and confuses b and d when she reads and writes!
Jacob says the words seems to move around on the page!
Danielle skips lines and words when she reads!
 These are common statements that lead parents and others to believe that the reading disability, commonly known as dyslexia, is caused by vision problems. While some children with reading problems may also have weakness in their visual processing skills, dyslexia is a language-based learning disability and the most common cause of reading, writing and spelling difficulties. Dyslexia affects males and females nearly equally.
How do most children learn to read?
Developing reading skills is a complex, multistep process, with each stage preparing us for the next. The process of learning to read happens in a predictable order. First the brain connects letters to sounds, then arranges and sequences the sounds to create words. Next, it strings the words together into sentences, and ultimately into paragraphs, which we read and comprehend.
 From ages 6 months to 6 years, children are in the emergent pre-reader stage of development. While they cannot yet read most words, they are able to retell a story that has been repeatedly read to them. Between ages 2 and 4, they are aware of rhyming sounds and can match words that rhyme. From ages 3 to 5, they become aware of syllables in spoken words, as they can count or clap out the syllables in words and combine syllables to create compound words (for example, hot-dog). They can also recognize words with common initial sounds (for example, boat – ball). As they approach the end of the pre-reader stage, children can name the letters of the alphabet, print their own name, and recognize and read familiar signs, such as stop signs.
Between ages 6 and 7, children move into the novice reader stage as they begin to link speech sounds to letters to make words (often called letter-sound correspondence and/or phonics). They begin to use their phonological awareness skills to sound out one-syllable words (d-o-g), and are beginning to read simple texts containing high-frequency words (word recognition) and regular words that can be phonetically sounded out (phonological decoding). As they approach the end of this stage, most children can read about 600 words.
Between ages 7 and 8, children read more fluently with intonation. Their reading sounds similar to how they talk, as they are now in the transitional readers stage of development. They are developing strategies to help them decode words and are strengthening their  understanding of what they read. Children in this stage still need support with more challenging material and help with decoding irregular words.
Children age 8 and up are now entering the fluent reader stage of development. They are reading longer, more challenging material independently with greater confidence in their skills. They now use word parts, such as root words, prefixes, and suffixes, to sound out multi-syllable or longer unfamiliar words.
What is the cause of dyslexia?
There is not a single cause of dyslexia. For some children there seem to be genetic factors. Also research has shown that there are structural brain differences between individuals with dyslexia and those who are typically-developing readers. Individuals with dyslexia also struggle to learn how letters make specific sounds, as well as have difficulty identifying individual speech sounds in words. Typically-developing readers easily learn these skills. However, these negative differences can change! Researchers Virginia Berninger and Todd Richards, of University of Washington’s Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, showed that these brain differences often disappeared after children with dyslexia received specialized reading and writing instruction, which also improved their reading and writing skills.
I think my child has dyslexia! How do I really know?
While children with dyslexia may show normal progress in other academic areas, the hallmarks of dyslexia are impaired word recognition, phonological decoding, and spelling. They struggle to recall the sounds that match the individual letters, or combination of letters (such as ‘ing’) they see on a page. The struggle with this basic step creates a spiral effect, making the other steps of reading harder.
Phonological processing difficulties are a root cause of dyslexia. This makes it hard for a child to analyze speech from identifying individual words down into word parts or syllables, and then further down into the smallest parts of phonemes (speech sounds, as in the letter /b/ says “buh”). While it can often be difficult to know whether or not a child is having significant struggles in reading development during their early years, when they are just learning to read, it is important for parents and/or teachers to take notice if they observe the child who is age 6 or older having difficulty in:
- Identifying or saying rhymes.
- Identifying individual sounds in spoken words.
- Quickly naming aloud a series of familiar items, like letters, numbers, or colors.
- Sounding out unknown words.
- Remembering words seen many times before.
- Reading “like you talk” instead of word by word.
- Remembering the ideas in a story.
- Spelling words correctly.
How common is dyslexia?
In 2018, 48,000 Washington State students were identified with a specific learning disability, including dyslexia. About 1 in 5 children having some degree of dyslexia. This statistic led Washington lawmakers to approve Senate Bill 6162 requiring every child in kindergarten through 2nd grade to be screened for learning difficulties, including dyslexia and other language-learning disabilities. The goal is for all schools to conduct these screenings beginning fall of 2021. Many school districts have become “early adopters” by making use of the state-recommended literacy screening tools already. A Dyslexia Advisory council was created to address needed changes in reading instruction programs throughout the Washington State education system.
What should I do if I suspect my child has dyslexia?
In order to properly diagnose dyslexia, a child should have a full evaluation through the school district or a specialist, such as a clinical psychologist, neuropsychologist, reading specialist or speech-language pathologist. The International Dyslexia Association website has a Provider Directory that lists professionals who provide evaluations and/or therapy services in various areas of the US and Canada. An evaluation will include collection of background history, evaluation of receptive and expressive language skills, and specific formal tests to closely examine the child’s phonological processing skills (including phonological awareness, phonological memory, and rapid automatic naming), reading, spelling, and writing skills. This comprehensive evaluation will provide a picture of the child’s language-learning strengths, while identifying potential areas of weakness that affect their reading- and writing-based abilities.
Can we just take a “wait and see” approach with reading development?
Quickly identifying a reading disorder and implementing a strong and effective reading program as early as possible is essential. Children with dyslexia who receive effective phonological awareness and phonics training in kindergarten and 1st grade have significantly fewer problems learning to read at grade level than children who are identified later.
If it is dyslexia, what can be done to treat it?
Early identification of phonological difficulties and poor reading development is key to helping children with dyslexia. These children require instruction that is systematic, cumulative, and explicit, while involving several senses (often called multimodal learning) at the same time when engaged in activities. Many popular reading programs, such as Guided Reading and Balanced Literacy, are ineffective for children with dyslexia because they do not emphasize learning to decode words. Research has found that structured literacy, which uses an explicit and systematic approach to teaching decoding skills, is effective for all developing readers, including those with dyslexia. Structured literacy places an emphasis on the following six factors:
 Phonology – the study of sound structures in spoken words, including rhyming, counting words in spoken sentences, clapping syllables in words, and identifying the individual sounds in words.
Sound-Symbol Association – learning how to map the sounds to the symbols/printing letters through visual to auditory exercises (reading) and auditory to visual exercises (spelling).
Syllable Instruction – teaching of the six basic syllable types in English and using syllable division when decoding.
Morphology- increasing knowledge of the smallest unit of meaning in language, such as base words, roots, prefixes, and suffixes.
Syntax- increasing awareness of the sequence and function of words in a sentence, including grammar, sentence variation, and language mechanics.
Semantics- comprehension of the meaning behind the words being read.
Families and school districts can access resources through The National Center on Improving Literacy which has partnered with literacy experts, university researchers, and technology assistance providers, or the International Dyslexia Association. Both sites provide a wide range of guidelines, resources, tools, and activities for parents, schools, and state agencies to support reading development in children.
If you have questions or concerns, talk to your child's teacher.
Christine Stevenson, MS, CCC-SLP
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