3 Ways Teachers Can Help Students with Dyslexia: Pt. 3 - Focus on Strengths
1. Understand How Dyslexia Affects the Student
2. Help Students with Dyslexia Overcome Language Difficulties
3. Focus on the Strengths of Students with Dyslexia
On top of providing effective reading interventions, one of the best ways to help students with dyslexia is to help them embrace and build the skills that come naturally to them.
Recently there has been talk about our current “Creativity Crisis.” Researchers have found that over the past 20 years young people have become increasing less creative. Whether this finding is perfectly accurate or not there is a reason that creativity is a concern: it is very valuable to our society.
“There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource of all. Without creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns.” — Edward de Bono
Because of the strong right brain of students with dyslexia, they are often naturally creative and adept problem solvers. If you can help students with dyslexia focus on their creative and problem-solving abilities there will be many ways they will help our society progress in the future.
It is especially important for you to help students with dyslexia appreciate their strengths because with their struggle with language subjects, it is easy for them to undermine their potential.
“The principle goal of education is to create men who are capable of doing new things, not simply of repeating what other generations have done—men who are creative, inventive and discoverers.” —Jean Piaget
This quote offers sound insight into how you should approach students with dyslexia (and all students in general). It is easy to teach what other people have already learned, but as Piaget said, it is more important for you to teach students how to learn things that have not yet been discovered.
By helping students with dyslexia hone in on their creative abilities, you are helping them learn how to invent and discover new things. It is this ability that will likely provide success for them in the future.
“Creativity can solve almost any problem. The creative act, the defeat of habit by originality, overcomes everything.” — George Lois
Another valuable strength of students with dyslexia is their empathetic abilities. Many students with dyslexia can easily relate and feel the emotions of others. This can be a difficult social skill for many individuals that have a dominant left brain to learn.
Students with dyslexia often possess two of the most valuable abilities: creativity and social skills. When you realize this, it is sad to know how susceptible they are to developing low self-esteem. They have strengths that can lead them to success and that can enhance society in so many ways. As you work with students with dyslexia, be sure they know their value!
Free Dyslexia Webinar:
“Dyslexia: From Symptoms to Solutions,” presented by Reading Horizons Dyslexia Specialist, Shantell Berrett.
View the free dyslexia webinar! ›
Learn how Reading Horizons uses a structured literacy program to help students with dyslexia overcome their challenge with reading.