Tips for Writing: Dyslexia Resources for Struggling Writers
Broken pencils. Papers with holes from erasing. Tears on assignments. When a writing assignment is due, children with dyslexia often struggle. While these kids are full of creative ideas, capturing those thoughts on paper can be an overwhelming challenge. Writing is a complex process, even for children without learning difficulties, and many students with dyslexia receive little direct instruction on how to write effectively. That’s why access to the right dyslexia resources is crucial for helping students succeed.
At Read Write Learning Center, we focus on providing comprehensive dyslexia resources and the best programs for dyslexia to support students in improving their writing skills. Below are some helpful strategies that serve as essential resources to help with dyslexia:
1. Use Oral Language to Support Writing
Children with dyslexia typically have stronger oral language abilities than written language skills. As part of the dyslexia resources we offer, we suggest starting with verbal discussions to help children prepare for writing tasks. Engage in a brainstorming activity by naming a category and encouraging students to call out related words. This process preloads the vocabulary they’ll need for their composition. Next, create a bullet-point outline with words, phrases, or pictures, allowing students to orally rehearse their ideas with a partner or parent before drafting their work. Repetition of this process helps children feel more confident in their writing.
2. Focus on Ideas Over Mechanics
To effectively use dyslexia resources, it's important to prioritize the content of a child’s writing over mechanics like spelling and handwriting, especially in the early stages. While these technical aspects are important, focusing too much on them can overwhelm students with dyslexia and prevent them from even starting. When it’s time to write, allow them to focus on their ideas without worrying about mechanical errors. Spelling and grammar should be taught separately and later integrated during the editing phase. This strategy is a key component of the best programs for dyslexia.
3. Provide Structured Writing Prompts
A structured approach to writing can significantly help students with dyslexia. For example, when assigning a descriptive paragraph, offer specific sentence prompts:
1st Sentence: State the object & category.
2nd Sentence: Describe the first attribute.
3rd Sentence: Describe the second attribute.
4th Sentence: Explain the object’s purpose and use.
5th Sentence: Compare it to a similar object.
6th Sentence: Restate the object & category.
Initially, writing may seem formulaic, but with time and practice, students will learn to adapt creatively. This is one of the most valuable dyslexia resources we use at our dyslexia learning center to support struggling writers.
4. Break Writing Assignments into Smaller Chunks
Writing assignments can be overwhelming, especially for children with dyslexia. Breaking the assignment into smaller tasks—such as brainstorming, outlining, and drafting paragraphs—helps reduce anxiety. Provide feedback after each stage, allowing students to make corrections before moving forward. This incremental approach is part of the resources to help with dyslexia that we recommend at Read Write Learning Center.
By utilizing these strategies and accessing the right dyslexia resources, students can improve their writing skills and become more confident writers. Explore more tools and support programs through our dyslexia learning center for further assistance.
For additional ideas, visit this link:
How to Help Your Child with Writing
