Have you ever asked the question, “What is Dyslexia?” The real answer may surprise you, but for me, finding out the real definition changed my life as an elementary Intervention Specialist. Finding out what Dyslexia is and learning how to teach Dyslexic students was the best thing for my teaching.

As educators, we are not taught about Dyslexia in our college classes.  So when we enter our first classroom and find out we have a student who has been identified with Dyslexia we question ourselves.

 We may ask,

1. What is Dyslexia?
2. What have I been doing wrong? Or right?
3. What are teaching strategies for Dyslexic students?

 Before we get into the nitty-gritty of answering those questions, if you are new to discovering what Dyslexia is or if you are looking for powerful accommodations to provide your struggling readers, I hear you! I have help! Begin your life-changing journey by checking out my guide I’ve prepared for awesome educators like you who are searching for tried and true accommodations to support your struggling readers. Click here to have the guide sent to your inbox so you can begin implementing the strategies tomorrow!

 This guide will give you quick, easy-to-implement accommodations you can begin trying tomorrow with your students with Dyslexia. Will all the accommodations work for every student all the time? No. Is it worth your time to at least try one or two strategies? YES!

Your students are worth it! Your students deserve it!

My students were worth it too!

In my mind and more importantly in my teacher's heart I knew each and every one of my students was deserving of an even playing field. Each student deserved to learn to read. I repeatedly asked myself: 

• how do I teach those struggling to learn. 
• how do I learn what is important to teach.
• am I willing to take the time and learn what I have to learn in order to meet my students’ needs.

I asked myself those questions when I came to a roadblock. I was trained as a reading specialist, so I should know what to do, right?

 I found out quickly I didn’t.

 I couldn’t believe I paid so much money for 4-year college education and not once was Dyslexia mentioned (as I remember), nor do I recall ever being taught how to teach Dyslexic students. I was angry that my college failed me.

But then I took a step back and sent a little grace to my alma mater. I realized that when I graduated from college in 1997, Dyslexia was not a popular topic because little to nothing was known about it.

I knew then and there I had to learn about how to help Dyslexic students myself.

I didn’t know if I had it in me to go the extra mile; to study materials to teach me how to teach, and take more college classes. But I knew my kiddos needed me too. In my heart, I knew I needed to find a way to change my teaching so I could give the students what they deserved: a chance to read.

The more I dove into my own learning and studying, and talked to current educators about Dyslexia I realized they were in the same boat as me. They knew little to nothing about teaching Dyslexic students.

The trajectory of my teaching career shifted to teaching educators about Dyslexia and teach teachers how to teach those with Dyslexia. Hence, Jennifer Jacobsen Consulting business was born! Click here to learn more about Jennifer Jacobsen Consulting.

Have you ever had a lightbulb moment?

Boy, do I remember the day my lightbulb showed bright! You know, when I had a fantastic idea? Of course, a real lightbulb did not hang over my head and turn on; just a figure of speech. 

Anywho, that day I was working with a fifth-grade student who was reading at a kindergarten level. I had been working with this kiddo, we’ll call him Mark, for months and no matter what I did, no matter how I said it, no matter how many times I repeated it, Mark was…not…reading any better.

You bet I felt like a failure! I felt like I was failing Mark. I was failing my principal who had faith in me. I was failing Mark’s parents who trusted I knew how to teach their son. I was embarrassed I was having this struggle; I was an Intervention Specialist for crying out loud.

That day I was at my wit's end. I decided to try one new thing I had just heard of from scientists saying fluorescent light shining on a white piece of paper with black font can distort the font in the brain. The font may look clumped together or appear to be moving on the page or a big black glob. The idea was to use a colored piece of paper with black font to activate the proper brain to see the font properly. Now, I am not a scientist nor do I claim to be a medical doctor, but I was grasping at straws at that point. What did I have to lose trying this theory? So I took a light blue transparency out of my cabinet and laid it over the page Mark was struggling to read.

I

Will

Never

Forget

The

Look

On

Mark’s face when he looked down at the paper then covered with the blue transparency.

TOTAL SHOCK! TOTAL JOY!

Mark said for the first time in his life, he could see the words. The words were not moving, he explained. He hugged me so tight and said he couldn’t wait to learn to read!

THAT MOMENT IS WHY I TEACH Y’ALL!!! 🥰 That response is what teachers dream of hearing!

Mark asked for the blue transparency so he could show his parents. Who was I to keep it with me?

But, the story doesn’t end there. I left school that day feeling joyful, surprised, shocked, and so many other feelings I can’t put into words. I just felt great! That night I was in the grocery store and I coincidentally ran into Mark and his parents. Mark was still on cloud nine when he saw me and told his parents I was the teacher who was going to help him read.

“Oh Mark, not here, you will cause me to blubber cry with your words right here in aisle 5,” I thought to myself.

Mark’s mom told Mark to come with her and Mark’s dad stayed with me. He said he had something to talk to me about.

“Oh, Mark’s dad, please don’t reprimand me here in aisle 5,” I thought to myself.

Mark’s dad got teary-eyed right there in aisle 5. Trying to hold back tears he told me that he had never seen Mark so excited about learning to read until today. Mark’s dad explained when Mark got home he showed his mom and dad what a difference the blue transparency made. He was able to read a few words with the overlay on a page.

That was the first time Mark’s dad had ever heard him read. EVER folks!

Dad went on to admit he struggled throughout his whole life to learn to read. He told me he learned how to fake read to get by in his job. He explained to me he had some of the same struggles Mark did with seeing text move on a page instead of staying in one place.

Cue the box of kleenex, please. 😭

Then crying, Dad said he took the overlay and put it over a text after Mark had shown him how. Y’all, dad said that was the first time IN HIS LIFE  that he had been able to see text stand still and read a couple of words.

 I’m surprised a grocery store employee wasn’t standing by us with a mop and bucket because by then, Dad and I were both shedding tears.

To this day, this is one of the best stories of my teaching career. One I will always remember. And the story that convinced me I needed to learn all I could about Dyslexia and how to change my teaching instruction from sour and old to sweet and new.

SIDE NOTE: Dyslexia is not a visual disability. A colored overlay is not one of the acknowledged accommodations recommended for Dyslexia.

Y’all teaching is HARD! Can I get an amen?! Educators are trusted to nurture and instill valuable information into little, growing brains. In my opinion, the most challenging job on the planet!! Ok, maybe the second hardest job next to being a parent/guardian. But we are expected to follow curriculums, pacing guides and standards, collect data, analyze data, write lesson plans, prepare materials, teach the lesson, answer 6,000 questions an hour, email “that” parent back, grade papers, make sure our classrooms are safe and inviting, teach young ones to correctly blow their nose, get everyone out of the building for a fire drill, and so on and so on. I feel many times I am herding a herd of cats!

My goal is to help make your life easier. Help you spend more time teaching while your students are engaged in the lessons you have prepared.

What I am going to share with you is not at the forefront of teaching instruction as it should be, in my opinion.

I wish someone had shared this information with me when I was in college, or even since then. Because I was on the struggle bus trying to figure out why my kiddos aka my students were not making growth with the instruction I was taught to teach and expected to teach. What was I doing wrong? I was down on myself, and no one seemed to have an answer for me, or at least an answer I was willing to accept. So, I ventured out on my own to learn and while I was on my Dyslexia journey, I realized I knew nothing of Dyslexia. All aboard the struggle bus for me!

What is Dyslexia?

According to the International Dyslexia Association, “Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that is neurobiological 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.”

What are three characteristics of Dyslexia?

Characteristic One

Students struggle to learn letters and letter sounds. Dyslexia is a language-based disability that affects a student's ability to master phonemic awareness skills. Structured Literacy instruction is recommended for students with Dyslexia. Using mnemonics, songs, and hand signals corresponding to letter sounds are all strategies to use to support students' letter learning.

Characteristic Two

Those with Dyslexia have may have difficulty with spoken language. Someone who learned to speak after the average milestone is likely to have Dyslexia. Even children that come from affluent families with a wide variety of vocabulary can have difficulty with spoken language. Sometimes students have trouble explaining ideas, comprehending a story, or understanding multi-step directions. Saying words incorrectly is a sign as well. An example is saying “s-ketti” instead of “spaghetti.”

Characteristic Three

Students with Dyslexia may have spelling struggles. Those with Dyslexia have trouble spelling because they have not mastered phonemic awareness skills-the skills related to the sounds of letters and names of letters. How a student enunciates words is an indication of how they will spell.

How to support students with Dyslexia; a non-extensive list

1. Teach them using the Structured Literacy model. The model clearly demonstrates students with Dyslexia need explicit, systematic, and diagnostic instruction in order to meet their needs.
2. Support students by reading aloud to them every day. When they hear how fluent a reader is, and how a reader uses expression while reading the student is witnessing good reading.
3. Use visuals and models and charts for reference or cuing purposes. For example, mnemonics-ROY G BIV (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, Indigo, violet) is an excellent strategy.

Interested in Learning More About Dyslexia?

Click here to grab the Teaching Reading to Students with Dyslexia resource book containing three classroom scenarios characteristic of Dyslexic students, and learn three strategies to solve the problem. 

One More Thing!

You are amazing!

I know you are doing the absolute best you can each and every day! If you are feeling overwhelmed and realizing something is missing in your instruction because some of your students are getting left behind, feel free to reach out to me! I’ve got your back!

Click here to jump to my website where new information, courses and tips, and strategies are always being added. 

If you haven't already grabbed Teaching Reading to Students with Dyslexia FREEBIE Click here!