The American Dyslexia Association helps dyslexic and dyscalculic people of all ages with free information, free teaching aids, and the AFS-Method, a comprehensive and open framework that has been helping children succeed for more than 25 years.
Dyslexia and dyscalculia are genetic predispositions that run in families. Dyslexic people of good or average intelligence perceive the world around them in a distinctly different way, and their attention fades when they encounter letters or numbers. That is the whole story: not a weakness, not a disease, and not a learning disability, but a learning difference.
Because letters and numbers are taken in differently, learning to read, spell, write, and/or calculate takes a different path. Everywhere else, those different sensory perceptions can be a real advantage: many dyslexic people are highly talented in the arts, in music, in science, and in athletics.
The good news: with the right educational support, dyslexic children do learn to read, spell, write, and/or calculate. The AFS-Method shows how, in three areas that always belong together:
Learning to keep the mind on letters and numbers, until it becomes second nature
Sharpening the sensory perceptions needed for reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating
Working on the child's own mistakes in reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating, with material from the child's own error profile
“A person with dyslexia, of good or average intelligence, perceives the world around them in a distinctly different way. When they encounter letters or numbers, their attention fades, because their different sensory perceptions make them experience these symbols differently than people who are not dyslexic. This results in difficulties in learning to read, spell, write, and/or calculate.”Dr. Astrid Kopp-Duller, 1995
If a bright child unexpectedly struggles to learn to read, spell, write, and/or calculate, the best time to act is now: individual, specific, and targeted help, before secondary problems have a chance to develop.
A comprehensive and open framework, backed by a long-term study. Progress comes from working on attention, function, and symptoms together, never on symptoms alone.
Classroom teachers can support a dyslexic child in many ways, but they cannot be expected to solve the problem alone. In almost every case, a Certified Dyslexia Trainer outside school is needed as well.
Tailored worksheets for visual skills, auditory skills, spatial orientation, body perception, and symptom training for dyslexia and dyscalculia.
We talk about primary dyslexia when the first three signs below appear together as soon as a child works with letters or numbers. The everyday signs that follow often come with them.
Situational inattentiveness when reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating, which sets in as soon as the child meets letters or numbers
Different sensory perceptions that are not yet formed the way learning to read, spell, write, and/or calculate requires
Perception errors in reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating that follow from those different perceptions and from the inattentiveness they cause
Mixing up letters that differ only in position (d/b, u/n), and halting, slow reading
Trouble remembering and repeating what was heard, and difficulty learning to tell time
Untidy, hard-to-read handwriting with uneven letter sizes and spacing
Dyslexic children show situational inattentiveness, caused by their different sensory perceptions, and often anxiety as well. These are associated symptoms of the dyslexia, not clinical symptoms.
If the child can concentrate intensively on activities that have nothing to do with reading, spelling, writing, and/or calculating, and the anxiety appeared only around the start of school, then associated symptoms are the likely explanation.
Can teachers and parents help? Yes! Most dyslexic children can be helped on the educational level with specific, targeted training. Certified Dyslexia Trainers test the child with the AFS-Test, build an individual training plan, offer weekly sessions, and show parents what they can do at home.
Worksheets, games, and training materials for Certified Dyslexia Trainers, teachers, and parents.
Visual skills, auditory skills, spatial orientation, body perception, symptom training for dyslexia and dyscalculia.
DownloadReading is the key to success. The specific design makes reading easy and fun. Teachers worldwide use it with children.
ShopAn innovative card game for children who find numbers hard. Counting with cards makes learning figures and basic arithmetic fun.
ShopAccess our blog for the latest articles on dyslexia research, teaching strategies, and community resources.
Visit blogThe American Dyslexia Association is dedicated to providing free information and teaching aids to help dyslexic and dyscalculic people reach their full potential.