Dyslexia

Support strategies Classroom environment

• Ensure that all pupils can see your face clearly, and vice versa.

• Consider seating pupils with dyslexia near to the front of the class, with a close friend

  to act as a ‘buddy’.

• Reduce distractions, e.g. shut doors to reduce noise and try to maintain a cool, but

  not chilly room temperature.

• Check that all pupils have enough personal space at their desk to aid their ability to

  focus.

  Giving instructions

• At the beginning of the lesson, give an overview of what will be covered.

• Break instructions down into clear, simple steps and give no more than three pieces

  of information at a time.

• Repeat instructions as necessary, in a friendly, patient manner.

• Check pupils understand by asking them to explain what has been said.

• Use connectives to signpost instructions, e.g. ‘firstly’, ‘secondly’, ‘next’ and ‘finally’.

• Display key words on the board or somewhere prominent, and ensure they are

  visible for the whole lesson.

• Use visual prompts to make explanations clear and handouts where necessary.

• Develop clear routines for noting down homework information – give pupils plenty of

  time to write down information and check that it has been recorded correctly.

  Written material

• Reduce the glare of black text on white paper by printing handouts on pastel- coloured paper or by using a pastel coloured overlay over white paper.

• Provide ‘reading rulers’ for pupils who find that text ‘jumps around’ on the page.

• Choose rounded, sans serif fonts, such as Arial, Verdana, Helvetica or Comic Sans.

• Use a minimum font size of 12 or 14 and avoid justifying text, so there is a ragged

  right margin. This can help pupils to follow the lines of text with their finger when

  reading.

• Double-line spacing and a line between paragraphs will make text easier to read.

• Put headings and important information in bold text or highlight, to make them easier

  to scan.

• Present information simply, using bullet points, images or diagrams when possible.

• ‘Chunk’ numbers to make them easy to remember and/or copy, e.g. 864 126 321.

  Spelling and handwriting

• Teach vocabulary associated with words, such as vowels, consonants, syllables, suffixes, prefixes and homophones (words that sound the same, but are spelled differently), to aid learning.

• Help pupils to learn the spelling of tricky words by using amusing mnemonics.

• Encourage pupils to spell words aloud, allowing time for repetition or revision of

  learning.

• Use multi-sensory methods to reinforce letter writing, e.g. interactive whiteboards,

  iPads, spelling/writing apps.

• Teach primary pupils how to write using cursive script if possible, as it can aid the

  ‘physical memory’ of each letter. The continuous flow of writing also helps to improve

  handwriting speed and pupils are less likely to reverse letters such as ‘b’ and ‘d’.

• Consider the use of rubber pen grips or typing of written work for pupils with severe

  writing difficulties.

  Confidence building

• Mark work on content where there is a large amount of incorrect information.

• Rather than crossing work, just tick what is correct, then follow up misconceptions

  with pupil.

• Do not draw attention to every spelling error – instead, ‘pattern mark’ work to focus

  on specific types of spelling errors.

• Do not minimise difficulties – instead, help pupils to recognise, understand and tackle

  problems.