Three Tips for Parents Who are Concerned That Their Child is Struggling to Read
The following blog post was written by special education advocate Allison Meyerson.
Are you concerned that your child is struggling with learning how to read?
How do you know if your child qualifies for reading intervention through an individualized education plan?
With October being Dyslexia Awareness Month, I wanted to share with you three top tips that I share with all parents who have similar concerns.
1. Reach out to your child’s teacher today and ask: “Have you administered a dyslexic screener to my child?” If the answer is yes, ask to see the results. If the answer is no, request that a dyslexic screener is given to your child. As a parent, know what you are looking for with this screener – phonemic awareness. A powerful indicator of a child’s current reading skill is the child’s phonemic awareness abilities. Phonemic awareness is the ability to recognize, think about, and manipulate individual sounds, or phonemes, in spoken words. Research suggests that phonemic awareness is the critical predictor of reading success at the elementary level. It is a better indicator than IQ score, socioeconomic status, background knowledge, language proficiency, and alphabet knowledge.
2. If you suspect a learning disability, such as dyslexia, request a full and comprehensive evaluation. Put the request in writing to your child’s school principal and/or director of special education. While state laws vary, according to the IDEA states have no more than 60 days from date of receiving parental consent for evaluation to (1) determine whether the child is a child with a disability and (2) determine the educational needs of the child.
3. Remember that you are a meaningful contributor to the school team’s decision-making process. You too can collect and present information that better informs the team of your child’s abilities. For example, it would be very helpful to document if your child has difficulty with learning common nursery rhymes, learning and remembering the names of the letters in the alphabet, recognizing letters in his/her own name, and associating letters with sounds or rhyming. In addition, children who complain about or avoid reading and not appearing to have a strategy for reading new words, often have reading disabilities. Finally, dyslexia often run in families. Take note if there are family members that have a history of reading and/or spelling difficulties. Be sure to share this information with the school team.
Most importantly, please remember – do not delay, start asking questions and gathering information today! Remember, while his can be an overwhelming process, it’s best to look at it as a marathon, not a sprint.
If you need assistance for all or part of the journey, reach out to a special education advocate!
We are here to help!
Allison Meyerson is a non-attorney special education advocate serving clients in New York’s Orange and Rockland counties and New Jersey’s Union and Bergen counties as well as surrounding areas.