Dyslexia course

“It has been a considerable time since I completed this course and have been able to use what I have learned supporting Child B with a number of other children with varying degrees of need since. My practice is now more informed and I am much more confident in my own ability to support the children.

“Self-esteem is a key element in helping all children to progress, but for those with dyslexia, low self-esteem will be a major barrier to progress. Helping them to accept that they have learning differences, but can achieve great things is key.

“What became clear was the need to avoid rushing into larger targets. In my practice now I select much more manageable targets for these children, thus enabling them to approach their learning with realistic and reachable goals.

“Before starting this course, I had no knowledge of dyslexia. I thought it was just a case of ‘swimming letters’ when trying to read and confusing b and d and p and q when writing. I now realise that there is much more to it than just these possible traits I have learnt the importance of a dyslexia friendly workplace. We try to make our classrooms as appealing as possible to the majority of students, but fail to take into account the needs of a dyslexic pupil. Something as simple as changing the background on the smartboard from white to buff could make a huge difference. Labelling trays with images rather than just words could save everybody's time, rather than just that of our struggling pupils.