Welcome to the holidays! The winter break is an excellent time for students and family members to recharge and reflect. With a slower pace and being away from the day-to-day routine, students and parents can take a step back and consider what is working well for them at school and where there is room for improvement. With the school year nearing the halfway point, it is an ideal time to increase communication. What do you want your teacher or therapist to know?
The first step could be providing education and information. A great starting point is to familiarize yourself and share Dyslexia Myths and Facts. Some students have turned to creating videos or writing letters from a parent’s perspective or a kid’s perspective to share facts about dyslexia. There are many additional ways to increase knowledge and community awareness by engaging in the following advocate activities.
Next, consider the range of accommodations that can be utilized and identify which ones work best for you. What works best for Suzy may not work best for Stan and all accommodations should be selected on an individual basis. The break may be a good chance to pull out the IEP and identify if the goals and accommodations are still appropriate or if they need to be revisited. At this point in the school year, there is knowledge of the routines and expectations for teachers and students, but that does not always mean that tools and strategies are being utilized.
What can a student and/or family members do if the teachers are not implementing the IEP or making the accommodations? Remind your teacher about the support that helps your student and provide them with education. Teachers may not know how to use text to speech or understand the benefits of word prediction. Providing information can increase understanding and comfort with utilization of accommodations for all involved. There are multiple tools available, but many children are hesitant to access them as they do not want to be different or need more special help than their peers.
The holidays and winter break provide an opportunity to both celebrate and contemplate successes and areas for growth. If you are feeling misunderstood, don’t despair. Please advocate!
If you’re worried your child has dyslexia or any other kind of learning difference, book a chat with us!