Return-Path: <nifl-ld@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id iAKHEE119926; Sat, 20 Nov 2004 12:14:14 -0500 (EST) Date: Sat, 20 Nov 2004 12:14:14 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <200411201709.iAKH9i119823@literacy.nifl.gov> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-ld@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-ld@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-ld@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: "Glenn Young" <gyoungxlt@comcast.net> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-ld@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-LD:4517] RE: Dyslexia X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: Microsoft Office Outlook, Build 11.0.5510 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; Status: O Content-Length: 7450 Lines: 161 The research of NICHD clearly is pointing to phonemic awareness issues at the basis for reading failure in persons with LD/dyslexic ... If there is no clear basis for the understanding of the relationship between sound and letter (or letter combinations) then reading becomes guess work ... However, part of the hallmark of persons with LD/dyslexia is auditory processing .... Difficulty in determining fine tones .... So if "ba" is heard the same as "pa" or "du" then how can the person realize that one is the sound for b and one for p and one for d if all the sounds are the same .. Then there is the issue of recall .... Rapid recall in association of sound and vision (letter or groups of letters) which add to the mix. Many, if not most adults in adult basic education programs (who are not there for ESL issues) are not able to consistently relate a sound and a letter ... (never mind combinations of letters) Therefore, the best they can ever achieve is sight reading ... Which is greatly impacted by recall issues ... And not successful for rapid reading or comprehension. Now from my personal experience of starting to try to learn to read effectively at age 30 with an Orton Gillingham instructor ... It took 6 months of intensive individual drill (two hours a day three days a week and then a lot of work at home) for me to develop an ability in rapid fashion to know the sound/letter relationships ... Due in large part the time was spent on sound drills ... Helping me learn the sounds and how to distinguish them. So ... If food works ... For this individual ... Great ... But extensive drilling on sounds and then sound letter relationships ... Seem to be key ways ... And supported by the NICHD research ... Of course ... The issue always in time and money and how do we measure progress ... Unfortunately ... What we mostly see in adult education is little time and little money and little progress ... Because in large part because the methods supported by research are no promoted or used in the system. If we followed that format ... Adult literacy class for entry level persons would be in groups of no more then 5 and last no more then an hour .... Slowly building up to two hours ... The mass class approach and the use of individual tutors who are not trained in NICHD approaches has consistently failed (based on the extensive drop out rate and the over all slow progress of those who stay ...) Maybe one of the good things coming out of the election is that adult literacy programs will be held accountable for using researched based approaches ... That have been found successful for those with LD/dyslexia. Glenn Young 505 East Braddock Rd # 608 Alexandria VA 22314 703-684-1750 gyoungxlt@comcast.net -----Original Message----- From: nifl-ld@nifl.gov [mailto:nifl-ld@nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Susan Jones Sent: Saturday, November 20, 2004 10:19 AM To: Multiple recipients of list Subject: [NIFL-LD:4516] RE: Dyslexia THe backwards approach is a valid one -- see http://www.thewordworkshop.com/ Susan Jones Academic Development Specialist Academic Development Center Parkland College Champaign, IL 61821 sujones@parkland.edu Webmastress, http://www.resourceroom.net >>> cmcdonne@ccbcmd.edu 11/19/04 12:10 PM >>> I'm the Carol with the dyslexic student. Nothing worked until I had a chat with one of our volunteer tutors. A retired reading professor, he told me of the difficulties he had encountered when trying to help a dyslexic young man learn to read. What worked for him, and did the trick for my student, was to teach sounds by associating them with taste and sight. Every sound we worked with, we ate! Honestly, I didn't think I could find something for each sound, but I did. The young man enjoyed it and learned the sounds. After that, we were off and running. I used Language Experience stories with him, letter and word cards, concentration games, etc. We have a volunteer who comes to class every day. He assists the young man with reading when we do group work. this allows the student to be a part of every discussion and project that we do. I have also found Internet sites that have an audio feature. The student can listen and follow along. My student has excellent oral vocabulary, but writing is tedious and frustrating for him. (This year, however, he's able to write about three sentences before the frustration sets in.) We purchased Dragon Naturally speaking so that he could dictate his wonderful ideas and see them immediately before him on the screen. The program does require that the speaker punctuate sentences. This is a good feature for students who are learning writing skills, although it's time consuming for them. As far as the student explaining his difficulty; he can't. He gets very upset when trying to verbalize about himself. I will say that this young man has a very difficult situation at home, and that's certainly affected his academic performance. He will tell me that he can read better if he reads "backwards". Now, backwards to him is reading a suffix, for example, and then actually sounding out the rest of the word backwards. When I work with him to sound out from the beginning of a word, or find a small word within a word, he says that mixes him up. What he actually reads to me is correct, but the process he uses boggles my mind. Irlen overlays didn't help this student. I've seen them work wonders several times before, but not with this guy. It's my understanding that they work for about sixty per cent of dyslexics, is that accurate? I observe a student who exhibits the restlessness and inattention of ADD. He is scattered and struggles with low self esteem-not unusual for someone who has struggled so hard, so long. On a positive note, this student has progressed tremendously. He wants very much to become a firefighter. Since that requires a high school diploma, he had the idea to join a volunteer company. When he asked if I would do the leg-work for him, I said no. We discussed the steps HE would need to take to see that desire become a reality. He took them! Each step was wrought with anxiety, but he did it. He went to the library and got a study manual, looked up information on the Internet in class (there's no computer at home), filled out a five page application, went to the interview-and was accepted. He self-disclosed his LD and will receive accommodations during training. (Last year he would have never told anyone he had a learning difference.) This whole process could never have happened last yea! r. I am seeing a much more confident and capable individual. It's very exciting. -----Original Message----- From: nifl-ld@nifl.gov [mailto:nifl-ld@nifl.gov]On Behalf Of Carol Petrashek Sent: Friday November 19, 2004 8:30 AM To: Multiple recipients of list Subject: [NIFL-LD:4501] RE: Dyslexia I don't believe I am the Carol you are seeking. Sorry. AWilder106@aol.com wrote: > Dear Monika and Carol, > > Thank you both for your help. > > I will contact Don McCabe, thanks for the reference. > > Carol--I would be very interested in hearing about what works and what doesn't: also, how does your student explain his difficulty? How do you observe it? Could you give a specific example? > > when he "reads backward" do you mean he starts at the right side and reads left? Or starts in the middle, reads that section to the right, then goes to the beginning, and reads that section? > > Thanks. > > Andrea
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