Jamie Oliver has been bringing some much-needed attention to supporting children with Dyslexia in UK schools. His Channel 4 documentary showed the heart-breaking situations faced by children with Dyslexia, who make up around 10% of all learners. Dyslexic children are failing in our schools because the system fails them, the damage to self-esteem can last a lifetime; Jamie shared his own story and is still very emotional about the subject himself, even with his now very famous & successful life.
Jamie is challenging Bridget Phillipson and the government to change school provision and make classroom teaching Dyslexia friendly. Dyslexia-friendly teaching methods usually work for the whole class, so it’s a simple win/win. Teacher training and early screening are key to successful intervention and prevention. Jamie is asking everyone to write to their MP and support this cause.
Dyslexic children can struggle with reading, writing and/or spelling, processing & remembering information and organising thoughts. Dyslexic brains learn and express themselves differently from a neuro-typical brain – and this can be a strength in later life, “out of the box” creativity and thinking.
FREEDOM FROM THE PEN!
It can feel daunting for parents trying to help a Dyslexic child – but there’s one simple, specific, easy to measure successful way to help a dyslexic child right now: teach them to touch type. Handwritten work is usually a really disliked and discriminating way to assess a Dyslexic child. Using a laptop for written work is transformative, and typing by touch offers a very different & effective way to learn to spell – words are patterns and finger movements, something a Dyslexic brain often finds much easier.
Touch typing can transform written work for Dyslexic children. Touch typing really does mean by touch, not sight – this means building to an unconscious physical skill (like a musical instrument or sport) – it’s very different from most classroom learning but it will help across the curriculum, anything that needs words on paper. You can help your child to learn at home in as little as 6 weeks and the long summer holiday is the perfect time to do it. And the success at typing is a huge much needed boost to self-esteem. Englishtype can help you to help your child – “zero to hero in 6 weeks” a Dad said about how his daughter felt after learning to touch type last summer.
The BDA’s (British Dyslexia Association) new short report “Mind the Gap” also aims to help Dyslexic children in school. It has 4 recommendations including “access to technology and specific teaching to use it”. “How to use it” is a really important point – teaching touch typing rarely taught in schools and is too often confused with basic keyboard familiarity; surprisingly, few teachers, Senco’s or assessors focus on the importance of transforming to unconscious skill. Unconscious skill (know as automaticity “auto-mat-i-city”) means an unconscious, automatic process (think about how driving is unconscious after the early learning phase). Typing by touch improves accuracy and speed but also spelling and reduces cognitive load (frees the brain to concentrate on what to write) – meaning a Dyslexic child can express their real potential in written work. And see a beaming smile and huge boost in self-esteem that success brings.
