Dyslexia

Eanes ISD staff work diligently to identify and support students with dyslexia through specific, research-based instruction and appropriate accommodations.

Announcements

Dyslexia Awareness Night Presentation

As the state and international definitions explain, dyslexia manifests itself differently. Based on assessment data, specialized dyslexia intervention is delivered and student progress is monitored. Meanwhile, in the regular classroom, accommodations are in place to support mastery of grade level content. Parents who are concerned about dyslexia should consult with the classroom teacher, contact the Tier II dyslexia specialist on campus or talk the campus counselor to explore the possibility and take next steps accordingly.

Additional information from the Texas Education Agency can be found at: TEA Dyslexia and Related Disorders

Characteristics of Dyslexia

The primary difficulties of a student identified as having dyslexia occur in phonemic awareness and manipulation, single-word decoding, reading fluency, and spelling. Secondary consequences of dyslexia may include difficulties in reading comprehension and/or written expression. These difficulties are unexpected for the student’s age, educational level, or cognitive abilities. Additionally, there is often a family history of similar difficulties.

The following are the primary reading/spelling characteristics of dyslexia:

Difficulty reading real words in isolation
Difficulty accurately decoding nonsense words
Slow, inaccurate, or labored oral reading (lack of reading fluency)
Difficulty with learning to spell

The reading/spelling characteristics are the result of difficulty with the following:

The development of phonological awareness, including segmenting, blending, and manipulating sounds in words
Learning the names of letters and their associated sounds
Phonological memory (holding information about sounds and words in memory)
Rapid naming of familiar objects, colors, or letters of the alphabet

Secondary consequences of dyslexia may include the following:

Variable difficulty with aspects of reading comprehension
Variable difficulty with aspects of written composition
A limited amount of time spent in reading activities

Common Evidence of Dyslexia

The following may be associated with dyslexia if they are unexpected for the individual’s age, educational level, or cognitive abilities.

Pre-school

May talk later than most children
May have difficulty with rhyming
May have difficulty pronouncing words (i.e., busgetti for spaghetti, mawn lower for lawn mower)
May have poor auditory memory for nursery rhymes and chants
May be slow to add new vocabulary words
May be unable to recall the right word
May have trouble learning numbers, days of the week, colors, shapes, and how to spell and write his or her name

Kindergarten through Third Grade

Fails to understand that words come apart; for example, that snowman can be pulled apart into snow and man and, later on, that the word man can be broken down still further and sounded out as /m/ /ă/ /n/
Has difficulty learning the letter names and their corresponding sounds
Has difficulty decoding single words (reading single words in isolation)—lacks a strategy
Has difficulty spelling phonetically
Reads dysfluently (choppy and labored)
Relies on context to recognize a word

Fourth Grade through High School

Definitions of Dyslexia

Texas Education Code (TEC) §38.003 defines dyslexia in the following way: (1) “Dyslexia” means a disorder of constitutional origin manifested by a difficulty in learning to read, write, or spell, despite conventional instruction, adequate intelligence, and sociocultural opportunity. (2) “Related disorders” include disorders similar to or related to dyslexia such as developmental auditory imperceptions, dysphasia, specific developmental dyslexia, developmental dysgraphia, and developmental spelling disability. http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/Docs/ED/htm/ED.38.htm#38.003

The International Dyslexia Association defines “dyslexia” in the following way: Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurological in origin. It is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. These difficulties typically result from a deficit in the phonological component of language that is often unexpected in relation to other cognitive abilities and the provision of effective classroom instruction. Secondary consequences may include problems in reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede growth of vocabulary and background knowledge. (Adopted by the International Dyslexia Association Board of Directors, November 12, 2002) Students identified as having dyslexia typically experience primary difficulties in phonological awareness, including phonemic awareness and manipulation, single-word reading, reading fluency, and spelling. Consequences may include difficulties in reading comprehension and/or written expression. These difficulties in phonological awareness are unexpected for the student’s age and educational level and are not primarily the result of language difference factors. Additionally, there is often a family history of similar difficulties.

ALLISON KEY

Director, Student Support Services