How do you identify dyslexia before children can read and write? Here’s what to look out for. 

As a qualified dyslexia and literacy specialist, plus a former classroom teacher for mixed year 1 and 2 children, it was my job to teach my class to read and write. It was also my job to identify the children potentially on the dyslexia spectrum. But how do you identify dyslexia before children can read and write? Here are some of the things I was looking out for ...

Spotting literacy difficulties in year 1 children: some common signs. 

How can you spot literacy difficulties in those children who have started school and are having their first reading and writing lessons? What exactly are they doing that alerts teachers (and parents/carers) that learning to read and write isn’t going as smoothly as it could be? ...

Supporting reading comprehension: 5 top tips

Once you’ve cleared the hurdle of learning to read (and that will take as long as it takes!), you move on to the most common purpose of reading – reading to learn. Most of the reading that we do during the day, whether at school or at work, is not actually for pleasure, it’s to gather information. Or, in school, it’s often to prove that we can gather information! So here are a few handy pointers to help you to do that more effectively ...