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by Sally Md Shaywitz (Author)
Dr. Sally Shaywitz offers new facts — and new hope — about how every young child can become a better reader.
- When young children get prompt, intensive help, they can master reading.
- Kids with reading problems need to practice often; the brain learns from practice.
- If your child is struggling, encourage him to do something he is good at, such as soccer or art.
When a child struggles with reading, life can be hard: The ability, or inability, to read directly affects every aspect of her life, including her self-esteem. Unfortunately, almost 40 percent of 4th grade students in the
However, we now know that reading problems can be identified in early childhood and, with the appropriate support, there is a good chance struggling readers will go on to become good readers. A groundbreaking study by researchers at Yale University School of Medicine revealed that when children are taught solid decoding skills (connecting sounds with letters) early on, and get prompt, intensive help in learning spelling, vocabulary and comprehension skills, they can indeed master necessary reading skills. In fact, researchers discovered — through comparing brain scans of struggling readers with those who received intense help — that the intervention helped "turn on" and stimulate the brain's reading systems.
To find out what it really means to have dyslexia and what you can do to help your child build stronger literacy skills, the editors at Scholastic's Parent & Child turned to Sally Shaywitz, M.D., a co-author of the Yale study and the author of the widely acclaimed book Overcoming Dyslexia: A New and Complete Science-Based Program for Reading Problems at Any Level. "Teaching matters," says Shaywitz. "You can change a child's brain when it comes to reading."
Parent & Child: What is the leading reading problem among young children?
Dr. Shaywitz: Dyslexia. People think it's a rare problem, but it's not. It's simply not true that reading comes naturally and easily to everyone. In fact, many boys and girls — including very bright ones — have a hard time learning to read. This problem is called dyslexia.
P&C: What challenges does a child with dyslexia face?
Dr. Shaywitz: For beginning readers, dyslexia involves an inability to notice and manipulate the sounds in spoken words. This deficit affects reading accuracy, and later, reading rate and spelling. Once a child develops an awareness of the sounds of spoken words, he can then link the letters to these sounds and go on to sound out new words. That's the key to breaking the reading code — and we have to help children who struggle to do it.
Very often, children who are dyslexic also have terrible handwriting. Their mouths have trouble forming sounds and their hands have trouble forming letters.
P&C: Do dyslexic children also see letters and words backward?
Dr. Shaywitz: No, that's a myth. And it's also a myth that dyslexia will be outgrown, that it's just a lag in a child's reading skills. Dyslexia is not outgrown; this means that children need to get help as soon as a problem is noticed.
P&C: What are the signs that might signal a young child is struggling?
Dr. Shaywitz: Children around age 3 and older may have trouble enjoying or learning common nursery rhymes, like Jack and Jill, or recognizing that in the "Cat in the Hat" rhyme, the common link is "at." A little later, they may have trouble recognizing the names or sounds of letters in the alphabet. I'm not talking about singing the ABC song, but about identifying a letter and knowing its name and then its sound. They may be unable to read or write their own names.
The good news is that this is a time of great hope. Until now, we didn't know why children were slow readers. Now we know, and we can help. We know we can prevent a child from developing a reading problem in the first place — or solve the problem early by helping at the first sign of a struggle.
P&C: You recommend "intensive intervention" to help. What exactly do you mean?
Dr. Shaywitz: A reading problem is very serious. Kids with reading problems need reading programs that are scientifically proven to work; they also need to have intensive intervention — not just 15 minutes or a half-hour a week. They need to practice often; the brain learns from practice. If we want a child to be a good baseball player, we say, "Go out there and throw that ball."
P&C: What kind of support can a parent provide?
Dr. Shaywitz:
From the time a child starts talking, you can help him break words into syllables. You can teach him to clap the number of sounds in his name, or the syllables in each day of the week. The idea is to pull apart spoken words.
If your child is struggling, it's equally important to encourage him to do something he loves and is good at, whether it's playing soccer or painting. Even though it takes a lot of time to help children learn to read, there has to be time for fun too.
P&C: What should a parent do if she thinks her child has a reading problem?
Dr. Shaywitz: The first step is to see your child's pediatrician, who can make a referral for further evaluation. For young children, the best expert is usually a speech and language pathologist.
P&C: In your book, you write about the special strengths of children with dyslexia. Please explain.
Dr. Shaywitz: A lot of successful people are dyslexic, including the author John Irving, the playwright Wendy Wasserstein, the financial expert Charles Schwab, and the noted heart surgeon, Delos Cosgrove, M.D. My husband [Dr. Bennett Shaywitz, M.D.] and I have developed a model: A dyslexic child has a weakness in decoding surrounded by a "sea of strengths." These higher-level strengths apply to comprehension, knowledge, problem-solving, and more. Children who struggle with dyslexia often see the big picture when others don't, and they often excel in life.
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Interview from http://www.schwablearning.org/articles.aspx?r=718
A Conversation with Sally Shaywitz, M.D., author of Overcoming Dyslexia
“Today … the future for each dyslexic child and adult should be filled with hope.”
A: Dyslexia refers to a difficulty in learning to read in a person who has good intelligence, strong motivation, and who has received appropriate teaching. Logic says such a child or adult should have learned to read and yet he or she has not. And so dyslexia represents a paradox, particularly in our society where reading ability is often taken as a proxy for intelligence and it is assumed that if you are a good reader you are also highly intelligent and if you struggle to read you must not be so smart. Dyslexia violates that assumption because people who are dyslexic are both highly intelligent and struggle to read. It is exciting that scientists now understand exactly why otherwise smart children and adults can have trouble reading and know how to help them. There are now highly effective methods for diagnosing and treating children and adults with dyslexia at all levels and all ages.
A: Perhaps the most common myth about dyslexia is that people who are dyslexic see words backward (“dog” as “god” or “was” as “saw”). This assumption is wrong. Another myth is that children outgrow reading problems. They don’t. This means that it is imperative that dyslexia be detected early and treated seriously. A third myth is that dyslexia affects only (or mostly) boys. In a study published in 1990 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, we demonstrated that dyslexia affects comparable numbers of boys and girls. A fourth myth holds that people who struggle to read are not very smart. On the contrary, some of the very brightest boys and girls struggle to read. Dyslexia occurs at all levels of intelligence, average, above average, and highly gifted. The writer John Irving and the financier Charles Schwab are both dyslexic and I have included their stories in Overcoming Dyslexia not only because they dispel myths about dyslexia but also because they provide wonderful examples of how boys and girls who struggle can become highly successful men and women. A fifth myth is that dyslexia only occurs in languages that use the alphabet and so it does not occur in countries like China and Japan whose languages are logographic (based on characters or pictures). Studies have shown that reading problems are as prevalent in these countries as they are in the United States and that struggling readers in
A: Today, most children who struggle to read are not recognized until third grade, though some are identified earlier. Many more go undetected until much later. Some are not identified until they are adults. Scientists have discovered that almost all cases of dyslexia reflect a problem in getting to the basic sounds of words. Children who are dyslexic are unable to attend to the individual sounds (called phonemes) making up all words. For example, the word “bat” has three phonemes — b - aaaa - t. It is important for children to be able to detect the individual sounds making up a spoken word because that is how they go about solving the reading puzzle.
In Overcoming Dyslexia I review, step-by-step, how children learn to read and which signs tell a parent that a child is not on track for becoming a reader. The earliest clues can come from listening to a child’s spoken language; a mild delay in learning to talk or a difficulty learning words that rhyme are often very early indicators of a possible reading problem. A little later, difficulty learning the names of the letters of the alphabet and then the sounds of the letters may be signs of an imminent reading difficulty. But once these vulnerabilities are identified there are now scientifically proven early reading programs that bring a child up to speed and allow her to catch up to and keep pace with her classmates.
A: A knowledgeable and proactive parent is often the critical factor responsible for transforming an unhappy struggling reader into a happy, proficient one. A parent plays a determining role in ensuring that her child: 1.) is accurately and promptly diagnosed; 2.) is provided reading programs that are scientifically proven to work; and 3.) develops a lasting positive sense of himself. The critical factor is the child’s sense he can succeed. I believe it is essential to find the time to develop and nurture a child’s strengths — in athletics, drama, whatever — to view himself as a competent individual.
A: Research studies have shown that delaying kindergarten entry for a year does not help a child scholastically or emotionally. The idea of a “maturation lag” is not supported by science. To the contrary, research has shown that if a child seems to be behind, it is critical that he receive help as soon as possible.
A: The hallmark of dyslexia is an unexpected reading difficulty in a child who seems to have all the equipment (intelligence, verbal skills, motivation) necessary to become a reader. In such children we expect to see difficulties getting to the sounds of words, and at the same time, strengths in other areas of language such as the ability to understand what she hears (as opposed to what she reads). The diagnosis of dyslexia is made mostly by the history as well as by observing the child read and analyzing his performance on tests of reading and language. Older children and adults who are dyslexic demonstrate a lack of fluency, that is they read slowly and with great effort. This is in contrast to others, who with the same degree of education, read not only accurately but quickly and effortlessly. And so, slow reading, requiring extra time on tests, and finding reading extremely tiring are the hallmarks of dyslexia in a bright young adult. It is exceedingly rare that an emotional problem is responsible for a reading difficulty; more likely, unidentified and untreated dyslexia gives rise to frustration and anxiety.
A: I conceptualize dyslexia as a weakness (in getting to the sounds of language) surrounded by a sea of strengths (conceptualizing, thinking out of the box, seeing the big picture). Dyslexics think in new and original ways. As I explain in Overcoming Dyslexia, revolutionary brain imaging technology shows dyslexics use different pathways; for reading, this presents a problem; for thinking creatively, I believe, this presents an extraordinary opportunity. Some of our greatest and most talented writers are also dyslexic (John Irving, Wendy Wasserstein, Stephen J. Cannell, John Grisham, Richard Ford). In Overcoming Dyslexia, you will read about Nobel Laureates and some of our most creative scientists and physicians who are also dyslexic.
A: These all had two things in common: first, few would have predicted their ultimate success; second, in each instance there was someone — a parent, a teacher, a coach — who truly believed in him and who helped him to develop a passionate interest in an area in which he could find success. For writer John Irving, it was his wrestling coach; for playwright Wendy Wasserstein and novelist Stephen J. Cannell, it was a college professor who saw beyond the spelling errors and slow reading to recognize and to encourage true talent. In Chapter 22, “Protecting and Nourishing Your Child’s Soul,” I provide specific steps that a parent can take to ensure that her child’s self-image is protected.
A: I devote an entire chapter to accommodations because they are frequently misunderstood and yet are essential if a child is to be judged by his strengths and not his weakness. Timed, multiple choice standardized tests represent a major barrier to the pathway to success for highly qualified, hard-working students who are dyslexic. After reading the accommodations chapter in Overcoming Dyslexia, including what new brain imaging studies reveal about the dyslexic’s absolute physiologic need for extra time, there will no longer be any doubt about the critical need for such accommodations for young men and women who are dyslexic. As I write in the book, the dyslexic’s need for extra time is as fundamental as is the diabetic’s need for insulin.
A: Today, in 2003, the future for each dyslexic child and adult should be filled with hope. I am exhilarated by the extraordinary progress scientists have made in understanding dyslexia. I want people to know that it is possible to identify dyslexia early and accurately, to diagnose dyslexia precisely in older students and adults, to provide highly effective treatments that lead to skilled reading. Today, we know more about dyslexia than about most other problems in medicine — we have to get that news out.
My purpose in writing Overcoming Dyslexia is to ensure that each and every parent and child and affected adult and teacher knows and understands dyslexia, and feels empowered and confident enough to be able to take the necessary steps to success. I want to offer dyslexic children and their families and their teachers hope, to tell each and every one that success is within their grasp and how to attain that success. I want each dyslexic child’s life to be defined by his strengths and not by his weakness in reading. Yes, dyslexia can be overcome.
This feature appears courtesy of Alfred A Knopf, publisher of Overcoming Dyslexia. Overcoming Dyslexia is available in bookstores nationwide. Posted on 07/28/2003
Sally Shaywitz, M.D., is a neuroscientist, a professor of pediatrics at Yale, and codirector of the
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