Dyslexiology

Dyslexia: The Miracle Cure

This is a story of one man's journey to find a cure for a condition that drove his daughter to attempt suicide.

Wynford Dore's new cure for dyslexia - "the Dore Programme" - is a fascinating break through treatment that has been proven to work by thousands of people both up and down the country and internationally.

Wynford's aim is that one day his treatment will reach millions helping all those suffering with dyslexia. This book is a thorough and comprehensive guide to the Dore Programme, detailing how to identify learning difficulties, explaining attention deficit disorder, autism and Asperger's Syndrome, and taking us on the journey of the discovery of a cure.

With examples, diagrams and case studies this really is a book for the everyday people looking for advice and solutions - with chapters on Toyah Wilcox and rugby star Kenny Logan, explaining how they conquered dyslexia.
Dyslexia: The Miracle Cure

Use a squashy ball in your other hand as you write. Hold it in the opposite hand with which you write. Holding an object in your opposite hand helps you to focus on the task and keeps the other side of the brain occupied.

Multisensory games are good for reducing anxiety as well as reinforcing learning across the different learning channels. Using objects such as clay, or sand to "build" new words allows the child to utilize his/her creative outlet to enhance the learning in the task. It enables them to develop mental pictures, concepts or ideas using the "hands-on" materials.

Write instructions down - don't rely on memory.

Use colors in lists wherever possible. Mind map ideas in colour and pictures.

Self-esteem is a major issue with dyslexic children.
See the featured lens below for lots of hints and tips to raise your child's self worth.

Ask the child to repeat instructions back to you before he or she begins the task.

School can be an agonizing place for dyslexic children. If your child is going through the humiliation of being laughed at by peers, singled out by teachers and attending special classes they need some time at home to heal. Home needs to be a safe place where they can play and be messy. If you tend to say, "No matter how many times I tell my child he/she can not keep his/her room tidy," then remember that school is anything but easy for them and their home needs to be their haven.

If you would like support, join our parents Forum here.

A child with dyslexia often sees different letters as the same one. For example, the letters b,d,p, and q look as though they are all the same letter.

To help a child distinguish between letters, use pictures with the actual letter. For instance, write the letter 'q' and draw a queen's crown across the top. The child will associate the queen's crown with the letter 'q'. Other graphical suggestions 'b'

Differentiating b and d can be helped by drawing the word 'bed' as a bed, with the b and the head of the bed and the d as the other end. (An exemplification of the Orton-Gillingham Technique).

Give a copy of your teaching notes to the dyslexic child. As an adult attending a seminar, it would be standard practice to receive a handout - why not let the child have the same facility.

Allow the child to take tests orally, rather than written. In knowledge based subjects, you're not testing the child's ability to write, rather their ability to understand the subject.

Put three lines of space between questions.

Reinforce the child's self-esteem at every opportunity.

Never ask a child with dyslexia to read out loud without letting them know in advance that they will be called upon. This allows the child to practice at home or after school.

Never: tell them that the work is easy; tell them to pull themselves together and work harder; humiliate them in front of the class; keep them behind at the end of the lesson; suggest that reading and writing is the be-all and end-all of education.

Learn how to type. Make sure that you choose a school which is in tune to the needs of dyslexic pupils - one which will allow you to use a computer to present your work. The computer tells you when a word is spelled wrongly - that's what secretaries do too.

Ask your teacher if you can use the computer to do your homework.

Use large type.

Experiment with darker backgrounds to see if it helps you.

Make sure that the spell-checker is on.

Write as much as you can - emails, MSN to friends. (Then you may notice how many of your friends are using a language which is not taught in the classroom. You will be less noticed in this medium.)

Just write freely without worrying about spelling or grammar. Get it all down and worry about the details later. Ask someone else to proof-read it for you - that's what writers do!

Get creative. Look at the monthly Haiku competition and send one in. Remember that 10% of the students who have submitted their work into this competition are dyslexic.

What causes dyslexia?

Our brains have a left and a right side.

The right side controls creativity and artistic skills. The left side controls logic and maths skills.

Many dyslexic people have a slightly larger right side of the brain making them creative, musical, sporty and good at problem solving. Cool!

Join the local library and borrow unabridged audio-versions of interesting books suitable for the age of the child, along with the book themselves. Plug the child into the headphones (or vice versa) and watch the transformation!

Dyslexic children love reading this way.

For a start, there's no-one sitting next to them correcting every word and making them feel inadequate.

Secondly, they are not restricted to 'easy' books - which is embarrassing when your friends are reading 'harder' books.

Thirdly, they are introduced to difficult words within the context of the sentence. They can relax into the book and just enjoy it.

If you think that they will only listen to the book, rather than read, just watch their eyes - they follow every word. They are proving to themselves and to you that they can read material which is appropriate to their age. This has a direct effect on their self-esteem.

My latest student has moved from Dr Seuss to Harry Potter within 12 months!

When teaching children to read it is becoming fashionable to use phonics instead of memorization. In my experience many children learn through the process of memorising and not phonics. All dyslexics are different. Don't try to use one method for all children.

Many people with learning disabilities (LD) are aware of everything happening around them and are naturally curious so they are easily distracted. Use a wall chart or check off list to help your child stay focused.

Say, "I love you" to a child with dyslexia - EVERY DAY. Often people with LD are singled out daily. This is especially true in a school setting. Many kids are targeted by peers and are laughed at for making mistakes or being "stupid". Those three words of comfort should come from those who love the child unconditionally.

Find five things they are doing well before briefly mentioning how they could improve on one aspect of their learning.

To help with left - right disorientation here's a simple trick: When you hold your hands up in front of you, as you view your thumb and index finger on your LEFT hand, you see the letter "L". For right-handers, you can use the maxim, 'I write with my right.'

* Robbie Williams
* Muhammad Ali
* Tom Cruise
* Richard Branson
* Steve Redgrave
* Albert Einstein
* Princess Beatrice
* Winston Churchill
* Walt Disney
* Leonardo deVinci
* Thomas Edison
* Henry Ford
* Michael Faraday
* Jamie Oliver
* Alexander Graham Bell

In fact, looking at all of those scientists, inventors and artists on the list, it makes one think that perhaps dyslexia is possibly a pre-requisite to being a creative lateral thinker!

Dyslexia is not a 'condition' it is a gift.

Alpha to Omega is a comprehensive course for dyslexic pupils. Many teachers use this as their definitive reference material for the coverage of spelling patterns. This pack contains the students book and the teacher's book.

See it here in the UK.

and here in the US.

Reader Review: This is an excellent multi-sensory programme, written specifically for dyslexic learners. It can also be a useful resource for busy class teachers, needing spelling lists/language activities for the literacy hour.

It teaches the rules for each spelling pattern and contains guidance to indicate how frequently each word is used, thus enabling teachers to create differentiated/extension lists for varying ability groups.

In addition to phonic instruction, A - O also contains dictations for spelling practice, activities for language usage and games. It can be used on its own or alongside the accompanying activity packs or with any other suitable resources at the teachers discretion.

UK version: The Gift of Dyslexia: Why Some of the Brightest People Can't Read and How They Can Learn

US version: The Gift of Dyslexia

Reader Review:
This self-help book is an absolute must for anyone who suffers from dyslexia, dyspraxia, dysculculia or related related conditions.

Through its pages it shows sufferers that far from being a disability it is fact a gift. It gives a first hand account of how the author overcame his severe dyslexia, but also gives sufferers practical information on how to overcome their condition, explaining in a clear and concise way how their condition affects them and other people.

This book is useful for adults or children. For anyone wanting to know why they are dyslexic and how they can be helped, this is a very down to earth, commonsense book.

Read it - you will not be disappointed.

UK resources:
How to Develop Numeracy in Children with Dyslexia
Making Dyslexia Work for You: A Self-help Guide
Dyslexia, Dyspraxia and Mathematics
Dyslexia in Secondary School: Practical Handbook for Teachers, Parents and Students
Beat Dyslexia: Multi-sensory Literacy Programme(Book & CD)Multi-sensory Literacy Programme: Bk. 2