8/15/2024

What Are the Best Dyslexia Reading Programs?

According to the Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity, dyslexia affects 20% of the population and represents up to 90% of all people with learning disabilities, making it the most common of all neurocognitive disorders. This means that potentially one in every five students will have a learning disability, so it is important educators have an in-depth understanding of the unique barriers students with learning disabilities face, and how to support them with reading programs for dyslexia.

Despite the commonality of dyslexia, many people with this learning disability have never received a diagnosis nor participated in intervention programs. However, this has been changing during the past few years as more educators familiarize themselves with the signs and symptoms of dyslexia. 

What is Dyslexia? 

According to the International Dyslexia Association® (IDA), dyslexia is, “a specific learning disability that is neurobiological in origin.” It is characterized by: 

• Difficulties achieving accuracy and/or fluency in word recognition
• Poor spelling and decoding abilities

These difficulties tend to stem from:

• A deficit in the phonological component of language
• The delivery of effective classroom instruction (dysteachia)

Additional consequences may include “problems with reading comprehension and reduced reading experience that can impede the growth of vocabulary and background knowledge.” 

Evidence-Based Programs Work Best for Students With Dyslexia

The most effective reading programs for dyslexia are evidence-based. Grounded in rigorous research, these programs address the unique challenges faced by learners with dyslexia, ensuring they receive tailored instruction that meets their specific needs.

Evidence-based programs are typically rooted in the science of reading, a gold-standard body of research that explains how the human brain learns to read. Along with being based on the science of reading, individual programs must undergo scientific research to determine if their intervention methods support student reading success. This means the best reading programs for dyslexia help all learners, regardless of their circumstances or disability. 

Why Choose a Structured Literacy Approach? 

The IDA states that taking a Structured Literacy (SL) approach is the most effective way to instruct students with reading difficulties. This is because dyslexia and other reading disorders stem from language processing issues. Structured Literacy, backed by the science of reading, tackles language head-on through “analysis and production of language at all levels: Sounds, spellings for sounds and syllables, patterns and conventions of the writing system, meaningful parts of words, sentences, paragraphs, and discourse within longer texts.”

With this knowledge and a grasp of brain-related science to back it up, teachers can develop focused strategies to ensure all students—especially those who have or may have dyslexia—become confident readers.

When taking a Structured Literacy approach, educators must consider dyslexia reading programs that include these essential components.

Components of a Structured Literacy Program

Phonology

Phonology is a branch of linguistics concerned with the study of the sound systems within languages. It examines the 44 phonemes in the English language and their organization in spoken words.

Syntax

Syntax involves arranging words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language. It also includes understanding grammar rules, parts of speech, and word usage within sentences.

Semantics

Semantics is the study of meaning in language. It covers the interpretation of meaning in individual words, phrases, and sentences. Developing semantic understanding in both spoken and written language involves teaching vocabulary, understanding phrases and sentences, and comprehending text structure.

Morphology

A morpheme is the smallest unit of meaning in a language, including base words and affixes. Teaching morphology can significantly improve decoding skills, vocabulary growth, reading comprehension, and overall language proficiency.

Syllables

Syllables are units of pronunciation in words, each containing a single vowel sound. Understanding syllables aids in reading and spelling by breaking words into manageable parts, enhancing phonological awareness, and improving overall literacy skills.

Sound-Symbol Association

In the English language, phonemes (sounds) are represented by specific written symbols known as graphemes. These graphemes can be single letters (e.g., ‘a’, ‘s,’ ‘t’) or combinations of letters (e.g., ‘th’, ‘ng,’ ‘oa,’ ‘ew,’ ‘igh’) that correspond to sounds in written language. This relationship between sounds and symbols is known as the alphabetic principle.

Orthography

This term refers to a language's conventional spelling system. It includes the rules and conventions for writing words and how symbols (letters or characters) represent sounds, morphemes, and words in the language.

Implementing the Science of Reading in School Districts

Knowing the efficacy of Structured Literacy programs, school districts across the country have steadily implemented instructional strategies backed by the science of reading. As of April 2024, 32 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws or policies promoting evidence-based reading instruction in the classroom.  

As more school districts implement evidence-based practices, the impact on literacy achievement becomes increasingly clear. According to recent reports, students who participate in Structured Literacy interventions demonstrate markedly higher reading proficiency rates compared to those who do not receive such targeted support. This trend underscores the importance of using scientifically validated methods to guide instruction for students with dyslexia.

Promoting a Love of Reading for All Students

With such an emphasis on making sure students with dyslexia receive a proper diagnosis and intervention, it can be easy to overlook another important element: Fostering a love of reading for all children. Indeed, a post written by teacher and educational therapist Ezra Werb on the online ADHD-focused magazine ADDitude observed, “By some counts, more than half of children with ADHD also have a learning disability—and dyslexia is the most common.”

Werb went on to offer a handful of tactics that provide students with dyslexia and other disorders such as ADD or ADHD with a chance to nurture a love of reading. The first step is to make sure these students are receiving or have received “phonics and fluency intervention,” Werb said. However, this often is not enough. After all, the educator pointed out, students who struggle with reading often have related anxiety that may cause them to feel wary about plunging in on their own.

With this in mind, here are a few of Werb's suggestions:

• Allow and encourage students to read books, magazines, and other texts about things that interest them. Even if their choices center on topics that seem silly or frivolous, this tactic is a simple but valuable way to boost reading confidence.
• Recognize that all reading counts. For instance, although graphic novels contain less text than standard books, Werb noted they still “allow readers to practice comprehension skills that involve analyzing images and synthesizing those with the dialogue and narration.” Moreover, they can do wonders in terms of grabbing and sustaining a young reader’s interest, which may also help build reading skills.
• Utilize the library, keeping in mind that audiobooks and films based on books tend to work well with struggling or anxious readers. As Werb explained, watching a film is an incentive to read the book upon which it was based, while listening to an audiobook can provide a reading experience with “training wheels” that helps students gain confidence.

Lexia Core5’s Science of Reading Approach to Dyslexia

Explicit, systematic reading programs for dyslexia, such as Lexia® Core5® Reading, offer students a Structured Literacy approach encompassing six key reading areas: Phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, structured analysis, fluency, and comprehension. Grounded in the science of reading, Core5 tailors learning paths to each student's needs, catering to all ability levels, including those with dyslexia and other learning challenges like Developmental Language Disorders (DLD).

After one year, users with dyslexia and other reading and language-based disabilities were two times more likely to be proficient readers than non-users. Additionally, students find joy in reading with Core5. 

“My students LOVE Lexia. No bribes necessary. They often ask me for more time to work on their Lexia Core5 program, and get annoyed when they have to log off before they complete an entire "circle" of lessons!”  —Pamela Blegen, Special Education Teacher

With so many students impacted by learning disabilities like dyslexia, it's important educators leverage the existing science behind how we learn to read as a key intervention strategy. After all, teachers and administrators should not be left in the dark when it comes to deploying tactics that may help all students learn to read.

For more information about dyslexia and how Structured Literacy can help, check out our blog post, “Nationwide Shift to Science of Reading Helps Students With Dyslexia.”