Help Them Learn with their Strengths:

Zane is quite the storyteller! That is not all. He has played on the high school football and baseball teams. He is big and strong and able to move with power and determination. He works on cars and trucks with his brother-in-law and can take an engine apart and put it back together again. He knows how to diagnose what’s wrong with vehicles, finds the needed parts in junkyards, and gets them running again. He says he plays trombone by ear in band. He listens to what the person next to him is playing and learns his parts that way. He doesn’t read music at all. He has also figured out the strategies for conquering very complex video games at levels his friends cannot attain. He is a problem-solver and solution-finder, an amazing young man! Zane has dyslexia and reads on a first-grade level. His writing is on a similar level, and his handwriting is difficult to read. He is in the 11th grade. He could never have written the story he so expertly and orally told. His mother says he is frustrated with school, feels dumb, and hates reading and writing. His spelling is even worse. Frankly, it is surprising he is even still in school. Most kids, when their dyslexia is not diagnosed or accommodated, end up dropping out of school, often by 10th grade. A student who can't read on grade level by 3rd grade is four times less likely to graduate by age 19 than a child who does read proficiently in 3rd grade (Sparks, 2011). When he was younger, Zane was diagnosed with a language delay and even a placed somewhere on the autism spectrum, so he receives Resource (Special Education service) support in Reading and Math. This service has somewhat preserved his school years. No one thought to test him for dyslexia, and, to be fair, no one knew how to do that in our state of Arkansas until recently. What if someone had discovered that he had dyslexia when he was in first grade? How would his school experience have changed if he had received the kind of intervention that we know now helps? What would he believe about himself now, as a learner and an intelligent person, if he had gotten help early in his school years from teachers who could provide dyslexia intervention and classroom teachers who thought his other skills and talents were worthwhile? One purpose of this book is to acquaint you with and persuade you about impressive children and adults like Zane. They have distinctive differences in the way their brains process information, particularly language and print. Most often, this is dyslexia. They seem to exhibit extraordinary talents, skills, and interests which, I have witnessed firsthand. Some books and articles are available on this subject but come without extensive research. Information in this book from interviews with 88 students who have dyslexia will add to teachers’ and parents’ knowledge and understanding of the complexity of how our brains work and how amazing their children are. There is a clear and proven need for these students to access intensive reading, writing, and spelling instruction and practice. An interventionist trained in using a dyslexia curriculum, either at school or home, is strongly advised for every student identified with dyslexia. Training is available for that type of instruction and, I do not minimize the need for intervention for these students. I wholeheartedly plea for that kind of intervention at school. There are many books and articles about this kind of intervention and, I train teachers to do it, but this book is not about intensive intervention. The other purpose is to convince you, educators and parents, that these students will significantly benefit if we infuse their talents, skills, and interests into how we teach and assess our curricula. Beyond the needed intense intervention in literacy, there are ways for dyslexic students to learn and show what they know in all subjects in the regular classroom. When teachers and parents understand how important this is, it will enhance their children’s confidence and self-image. Not just for students with dyslexia, but all students. There is controversy in the research literature about whether these observable skills and talents are different from the average learner. More studies are needed. However, in my observations of the 88 identified students with dyslexia, out of 131 children and adults I have assessed, I see myriads of extraordinary things they can do and some in spectacular ways. This book aims to enhance our perceived value of this group of children and adults, not as learning disabled, but rather differently-abled. We are the teachers, parents, grandparents, sons, daughters, siblings, and spouses of those we care about who display the characteristics of dyslexia. We already notice they are bright and, moms and dads already appreciate their strengths and abilities. We know what they are “good at.” However, they are a frustrating puzzle to us. We do not understand why they are so bright and talented but intensely struggle with reading, writing, and spelling. We just don’t get it. Neither do they. We sometimes accuse them of not trying hard enough or being lazy, and both accusations are wrong. In actuality, they strive harder than their peers. They are fully aware of how essential reading, writing, and spelling are in school and to us but, try as they might; they cannot get it. It comes too slowly to them. They know they are intelligent in many ways, but they are as frustrated as we are about their poor reading and writing, particularly spelling. As parents, grandparents, friends, and teachers of seemingly slow learners, we can change our perspectives about what these children are capable of and teach them using their strengths. Yes, they need dyslexia instruction to learn their literacy skills, but we can also help them shine in the regular classroom. Teachers and parents can infuse learning methods that mirror talents and skills apparent in their students. We can help accommodate their slower but adept literacy learning without labeling or shaming them. We can change their life’s trajectory, for goodness sake! (From the book Introduction)