Dyslexia Support at school - or specialist dyslexia school (what do they do differently?)

[KisstheTeapot14]

DS is in Y4 and 3 years behind with reading and writing.

He is getting some input with reading and phonics at school but I had a look at Y1 material last night and he still has loads of gaps in knowledge. We do work at home too. Still doesn't remember sounds when there are words with aw ew for example.

I'm so worried about his glacial progress as he goes into Y5 next - just don't know how he will be able to access curriculum.

Head says she is happy everything is being done that can be.

I want to band head on brick wall.

If your child goes to a specialist dyslexia school what do they differently to help a child with low reading ability to help them make good progress?

Just applied for EHCP so hope this may highlight and focus minds!

A speech and language school not dyslexia, but many of the children had it:

1. Class of 10 children with teacher, two TAs and speech therapist. For literacy, the class was divided into three groups - DD was in the speech therapist’s group
2. Cued articulation lessons

3 phonological awareness training

1. Use of Toe by Toe - really helped DD
2. Use of Ace visual dictionary and taught to beat out number of syllables in a word, to enable use of dictionary
3. Used Type to Learn to teach touch typing
4. Use of Symwriter on notices around the school - it’s symbols/pictures above typed words
5. Use of a feelings tree at the start of lessons - if something was bothering a child, they picked the emotion off the tree and talked about how they felt! Then they could get on with the lesson, rather than stewing over it and learning nothing
6. A school counsellor

10. Considerable handwriting practice, probably with input from OT dept.

There was other input like colour shaped coding to teach the grammar functions of words in a sentence; but that might only be necessary for children with speech and language disorder?

Great - really useful to know what they are doing differently. I think a lot of these would enable DS.

Will get Toe by Toe and have a go over summer, see if it helps.

Thanks MontStMichel, appreciate the reply.

Practice undoubtedly helps with reading, even though it's a struggle. I used to buy high interest low reading age books for DD, which she enjoyed. I also bought her like a plastic ruler with above a coloured plastic overlay in green (established by testing as best colour background paper for DD) to go on what she was reading, as DD struggled with horizontal tracking.

These:

www.crossboweducation.com/reading-rulers?gclid=Cj0KCQjw6IfoBRCiARIsAF6q06sS2DcugpuYtunglWNkf8TxKQwwNywtTykQFH6KxSerAvX8bIYnXi0aAs6OEALw_wcB

Thanks, yes our school use these. He has a blue one in his school bag and we use at home too.

Ours (at state junior school) does:

Handwriting practice with 'Start Write Stay Right' course

Reading/writing in small group (3 of them)

Short speech and language sessions - 1 or 2 a week of 10 mins with a TA

A term or two of touch typing a couple of times a week (now finished)

School have Toe by Toe but it is not in use with DS (maybe due to time?)

Motor skills sessions

I suppose the main difference is that the TA who delivers has not had training in dyslexia or other SEN as far as I am aware. Its the access to qualified professionals with in depth SEN knowledge that schools seem to lack in general.