Common Academic Challenges

Reading is one of the most pleasurable activities available to those of us who love to read. But for the child struggling to read, it can be pure torture. If your child’s reading ability is behind his or her peers, despite average or above overall intelligence, then your child may have a learning difference such as dyslexia or a language-based impairment that is interfering with the ability to make the connection between sounds heard to letters seen in words. Pinpointing the reason for your child’s reading difficulties is not a simple process, as there are a number of factors that may be an influence, but if your child is otherwise bright and curious, and if there are no other impairments, such as visual or auditory problems, then it is reasonable to suspect that something may be different on a cognitive level that warrants investigation. This does not mean that there is anything “wrong” with your child or that your child cannot learn to read. Rather, your child simply needs to be taught in a structured, multi-sensory, sequential method that fits his or her learning style.

Writing is an extraordinarily complex process that most of us take for granted. It requires simultaneous development of ideas, organization of thoughts, mechanical formation of letters, correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and so much more. For a student with dyslexia or dysgraphia, writing can be extremely difficult and frustrating to the point of no longer wanting to try. With appropriate support and instruction, however, writing can become an enjoyable and rewarding activity.

Spelling can be one of the most dreaded aspects of school for some students, and for good reason. The English language is hodgepodge of different languages that has morphed over the centuries into a complex, exception-to-the-rules mess. But despite a seemingly impossible challenge, any student can learn to spell by presenting spelling patterns in a logical, sequential method that fits the student’s learning style.

Reading (decoding) and spelling (encoding) are highly related, but different, skills. Whereas reading involves recognition memory with letters as a prompt, spelling involves recall memory without any prompts. In other words, when a child is learning to read, the letters they see on the page prompt the memory to recall the associated sounds. The word “cat” has three sounds associated with it, and each of those letters prompts the memory of the individual sounds. Conversely, there is no visual prompt for a child asked to spell the word “cat.” Instead, the student has to depend on memory to essentially pull the letters out of thin air. It is no wonder, then, that even after a child with dyslexia or other reading  difficulty learns to read, spelling continues to be a challenge.

Some research indicates that spelling should be taught before reading, and that teaching reading before spelling is actually confusing and less effective and efficient. Most literacy experts prefer, however, to teach reading and spelling concurrently. Since spelling has an inherent writing component, teaching reading and spelling simultaneously includes the three basics of literacy: reading, writing, and spelling.

Ideally, spelling should be taught from pre-literacy stages through secondary school. In early education, spelling instruction should focus on phonological and phonemic awareness (relating the sound of language to its written form). For beginning readers, the focus should be on the common Anglo-Saxon layer of language, such as basic consonant and vowel blends, syllable patterns, prefixes and suffixes, and spelling “rules.” Advanced readers can learn about Latin and Greek roots, which greatly enhances vocabulary and provides a deeper understanding of the English language. Throughout all stages of spelling instruction, material should be presented in a fun, engaging way that motivates students rather than turning them off to spelling. Because as tempting as it may be for us to say that students won’t need to learn to spell thanks to technology, we all know that spell check can go only so far in helping students cover up their aversion to spelling.