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This week I’m pleased to introduce you to guest blogger and author, Mary Moynihan. Mary is a registered and pediatric, board-certified occupational therapist with 38 years of experience in the field of pediatrics. She has worked in a variety of settings including developmental education centers, neonatal intensive care unit, early intervention and preschool settings, as well as public schools and clinics. Most recently, she published, Fun Kinesthetic Games to Improve Gross Motor and Perceptual Skills , one of our newest downloads that is available at Dyslexia Materials . I’m sure that over the years you have known children who appear a little “lost in space.” These are the children that bump into every desk on their way to the front of the room, don’t realize they have fallen out of their chair till they land on the floor, and continually rub against the walls as they walk down the hallways. They may be able to stand on one foot when their eyes are open, but if you ask them to clos...

Text to speech has been used as an accommodation for the blind and struggling readers, but did you know that it is a valuable device for writers too? In fact, I often teach all of my students how to use this technology to help them edit their essays and papers. What is Text to Speech? Text to Speech is a form of assistive technology that uses speech synthesis to convert text to a spoken, computerized voice. In other words, the computer reads aloud the text on the screen. How can Text to Speech Assist with Editing? Many students struggle to edit their own work because they often read their words as they meant to write them. Furthermore, some errors remain difficult to see. For example, simple letter and word reversals such as "was" and "saw," are often overlooked when visually scan text or using a spell checker. In addition, many young learners get confused by words that look similar but are pronounced differently such as loose and lose. Text to Speech allows student...

In my practice as a learning specialist and educational therapist, I have witnessed that students are receiving less and less writing instruction in school. In fact, it is an academic skill that is requested by most parents, homeschoolers, and young adults that come to see me in my practice. https://www.learningspecialistcourses.com/courses/color-coded-writing-a-structured-and-multisensory-approach-to-teaching-writing-skills What is my Experience Teaching Writing? Over the past 20 years, I have had enormous success teaching discouraged and struggling writers, and it has taken me much of that time to create all the materials and high tech solutions.  This multisensory and highly structured approach works with all students from the gifted to those with learning disabilities.  In addition, my methods work for students in elementary, middle school and high school. How Can I Learn to Be an Accomplished Writing Specialist? Now, I'm happy to share my approach with you! Teaching Writi...

Federal law requires schools, colleges, and universities to provide reasonable accommodations for students who have documented learning disabilities such as dyslexia (commonly called a Specific Learning Disability). Many of these students with dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities need a foreign language requirement to be modified. A common accommodation is a foreign language exemption, waiver or modification. What are Foreign Language Exemptions, Waivers and Modifications? Over the years I have heard a few terms that have been used to describe foreign language accommodations in education.  Here is a quick review: A foreign language exemption : Some state laws provide mandates that a student with a disability that adversely affects the ability to learn a language may be exempted from these requirements.  A foreign language waiver : Some schools choose to "waive" a foreign language requirement and allow a course substitution that is approved by their foreign ...

Visual processing is an important cognitive skill for students to master. It assists with the encoding of information into the brain, and it helps students make sense of the learning content. This skill often needs to be developed and exercised, and there are many engaging activities that can help. What is Visual Processing? Visual processing is a cognitive skill that allows us to process, interpret and find meaning from visual images. In other words, it is how we make sense of what we see. Why is Visual Processing Important? Visual processing is vital because it plays a key role in learning visual information from our environment. It is a fundamental skill for reading, math, and spelling. What Are the Different Types of Visual Processing? Visual processing involves a number of cognitive processing skills: Visual Construction Skills: organizing and manually manipulating spatial information to make a design.  Visual Processing Speed: processing visual information at a certain pace ...

Getting a school to recognize, test, and then accommodate your child with dyslexia can be an arduous and frustrating task. Although public school systems can accommodate the individual needs of our struggling students, many administrators don’t like to tap into the general education coffers for a single student. As a result, parents often have to rally and wrestle to obtain reasonable accommodations for their children with dyslexia and other disabilities that impact learning. The key to navigating this slippery slope is to understand the laws, the lingo as well as the menus of mandated accommodations and modifications. What are my Options? There are two options for acquiring accommodations: 504: A 504 is a formal plan that protects the rights of students with disabilities in school. Covered under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, this civil rights law gives students with disabilities access to services and supports in the general education classroom. There are no mandated rules on...

Finding the best dyslexia test, dyslexia help, and dyslexia treatment can be challenging to locate and finance. I, too, had problems uncovering dyslexia resources when I first opened my practice 20 years ago.  So, over ten years ago, to help parents, teachers, and therapists with this process, I created my site,  Dyslexia Materials . This summer, I committed to redoing and upgrading the content, and the new site is up and running.  At Dyslexia Materials you can now find all of the following FREE content: a dyslexia test or screener advice homework help schools for dyslexia colleges for dyslexia organizations serving dyslexia dyslexia manuals v ideos about dyslexia I also offer an ever-growing selection of fun, multisensory teaching, and remedial products for students with dyslexia under the following categories: Assessments Cognitive Remedial Executive Functioning and Memory Language Arts Reading Math Writing Discounted Bundles  Other Programs t...