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Literacy problems: a practical approach
Is our child dyslexic? Should we consider an assessment? What else can we do? It is very worrying for parents when they realise that their child is failing to make progress with reading and writing at school.
The effect of school
Discussions with parents show that these difficulties usually come to light during the first few terms of a child’s attendance at school. There are all sorts of reasons why this may happen and it doesn’t follow that your child is dyslexic.
Some children settle into school quickly but for others the experience is overwhelmingly negative; their distress during the day causes tiredness and irritability when they come home. Emotional and behavioural problems may occur due to constant tension and low self-esteem. Over time the build-up of unhappy experiences may affect the child’s capacity to learn, and the ability to make progress with reading and writing may be the first casualty of the self-doubt which has formed in the child’s mind.
Recovery at home
Learning at home frees the child from the treadmill of failure and anxiety and creates the conditions which are necessary for recovery. When the child’s stress is reduced, visual and auditory discrimination may improve. The home provides a safe, happy, peaceful environment in which the child is able to learn without fear and ridicule or the embarrassment of looking silly in front of the class and teacher. Where teasing or bullying has occurred in school this advantage is significant.
Home educated children and reading readiness
Dr Alan Thomas has observed that the age range within which children who have been home educated from the beginning become confident readers is far greater than amongst school pupils. Further, he found that hardly any of the home educated children failed to become fully literate over time, although some took much longer than others.
These findings suggest that there is a significant natural variation in children’s readiness to read and write, although it is essential for the successful organisation of the age-based school system that children all learn to read and write at the same time. It is legitimate to ask, then, whether in some cases the system itself is creating the problems.
The research raises the possibility that some pupils at school who appear to be failing may be perceived as having difficulties simply because the arbitrary age range for success has been set too narrowly. When money and politics enter the equation the success of the system becomes the overriding concern. The cart is placed firmly before the horse, and the needs of the individual child are overlooked.
Home and school: different educational environments
At school, reading and writing are essential for learning in class; the system itself places children under pressure to develop literacy skills during the early primary phase whether or not they are ready to do so. Home education, on the other hand, puts the child at the centre. When children learn individually at home there are many excellent learning opportunities which do not depend on their ability to read and write. Valuable learning may take place through shared experiences, storytelling, discussion, observation, practical activities, conversation and through experimenting, testing theories and interpreting the results. Reading and writing are not essential in any of these activities.
Vision and hearing checks
When children have difficulty with reading and writing it’s a good idea to have their vision and hearing checked. Minor visual difficulties (including long sight) which may not be noticed in daily life may make reading and writing uncomfortable. This may be enough to mar the pleasure that children usually find in reading, drawing and similar activities. Hearing problems may make it hard for a child to distinguish the subtle differences in vowel sounds which are fundamental to both reading and writing.
Building confidence
All sorts of activities which the child enjoys may form a useful part of learning at home. It is particularly important to rebuild the child’s confidence if this has been damaged and one way of doing this is by experiencing success. At home there is time and space to do what the child is good at and it is possible to concentrate on strengths rather than weaknesses. There is also time to repeat and practise skills that need reinforcing, and opportunity to try different approaches which are not associated with failure.
Frequent breaks may be needed when concentration wanes and the learning activities may be changed quickly if the child shows signs of distress. Watch for signs of discomfort and be ready to say that it’s time for a walk to the shop for an ice cream.
Learning through art and craft
Most children enjoy art and craft activities and these assist with developing fine motor skills, observation, co-ordination, imagination and sequencing. Success in these areas may do wonders for a child’s self-esteem. Work in art and craft may include a lot of practical maths which the child would find impossible if it were presented in a more formal, traditional manner. Particularly for those who are gifted with practical skills this is an effective way to learn.
Teaching reading
Reading is a complex business and many theories and fashions have come and gone. There is no such thing as a sure-fire method of teaching reading because children are all different. Currently phonics-based methods are in the ascendant but these strategies do not suit every child. Older learners in particular do not find phonics helpful.
Many European countries don’t begin the study of reading and writing until the age of seven and this approach is also central to the educational philosophy of Waldorf schools. Until this age the emphasis is placed on sensory experience and motor skills.
Multisensory activities
Speaking, writing and reading are all part of the same process and a multisensory approach reinforces these connections. Younger children may enjoy making large letters of their names using different materials and feeling the textures of each letter, saying the name or sound and arranging the letters to form their name. Older children may make their own alphabet letters and play games arranging them or spotting the letter which has been removed from the alphabet.
Young children may like to play a variety of games which help to foster the skills necessary for literacy, for example clapping or tapping simple rhythms, rhyming games, drawing patterns, spot the difference, drawing in the sand and so on. Try encouraging large shapes, drawing first from the shoulder and later from the elbow. This may be followed by play writing – or scribble – which should be encouraged as it helps to develop fine motor control. Some children find that triangular pencils or pencil grips help them to write more smoothly.
Teaching writing
Some children find printed writing difficult, especially if there is a tendency to reverse letters which look similar. It may help to try joined-up writing as soon as possible. Some experts recommend that a cursive script (each letter ending in a tail) should be taught first. This does not apply in all cases and som
e children continue with effective printed script into adult life.
If children have not developed a flowing hand, either cursive or printed, and some spelling skills it will be difficult for them to achieve fluency of thought, and it may be necessary for someone to be scribe for them. As time progresses young people may dictate stories, notes and essays to an adult as an intermediate stage, and others may prefer to use a computer. Keyboard skills are useful but not essential, as some young people manage to develop fast and accurate typing without having developed a traditional touchtyping technique.
The last word should go to a veteran home educator, whose adult son is now happy and successful after a very shaky start at school: ‘It took years to undo the damage that school did to him but we got there in the end. My advice would be to try to remain calm and unconcerned; celebrate your child’s strengths; be prepared to drop all attempts to teach reading and writing for a while (some months if necessary) and then try different approaches which don’t remind your child of past failures; don’t rush into expensive assessments until you’ve tried other ways and allowed time for your child to relax and be happy again; remember that you have plenty of time and above all be positive about the decision that you have taken to learn at home.’