As I prepare for another IEP meeting I am once again reading Ben Foss' book, The Dyslexia Empowerment Plan. If you have not read this book, you really need to. It is one of the books I recommend for all parents of dyslexic children. Ben is a huge supporter of assistive technology and invented the Intel Reader, a mobile device that takes photos of text and recites it aloud.
One major draw back of AT is that as kids get older they don't want to look different than their classmates, and using an iPad, for example, might be the very thing that makes them look different. While reading his book this statement made an impact on me...
One major draw back of AT is that as kids get older they don't want to look different than their classmates, and using an iPad, for example, might be the very thing that makes them look different. While reading his book this statement made an impact on me...
"...the accommodation meant that I was getting something "extra" that the other kids in my class couldn't have in order to do the same work. But now I know that a better way to think of this is that some people were not given a key to the building, and the accommodations were simply a way of getting into the school. That metaphor might help your child understand the value of accommodations and be comfortable getting them."
And...
"The best path to learning for dyslexic children is to use an Orton-Gillingham-based reading method for the first two to three years after having been identified, while simultaneously employing the best accommodation technologies"
So now you may be asking what kind of assistive technology is out there? The number one accommodation needed is a way to ear-read. In school kids learn to eye read but as we know that is not easy for dyslexics so listening to a book is very important for a child to build their vocabulary just like their classmates do when they eye-read. Bookshare and Learning Ally are get sites that you can get a membership to, with a documented reading disability, that have thousands of books that you or your child can listen to.
An iPad has many apps that can help a dyslexic, from reading to writing to memory and organization.
An iPad has many apps that can help a dyslexic, from reading to writing to memory and organization.
Solo 6 is used in the Knox County school district which is a great program that allows a student to type with word prediction software and also reads the sentences typed to the student as well. Dragon is also a good speech-to-text program.
There are many things out there, but you must do your research. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
There are many things out there, but you must do your research. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
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