World Dyslexia Forum Update

In this dyslexia blog article I would like to give an update on the Dyslexia World Forum:


The World Dyslexia Forum took place this year in Paris.If you go to the Dyslexia International website you can access the notes from the speeches made by people like : Prof. John Stein ( Oxford University).

http://www.worlddyslexiaforum.org/


As part of the World Dyslexia Forum activities a free online training course about dyslexia is being launched :

Basics for teachers – Dyslexia: Identification and What to do

This online learning course for teacher trainees is designed for use in national and local education authorities’ teacher-training programmes.

Ministries of Education, Local Education Services, and units for Special Education Needs can apply to access the free course by contacting Dyslexia International for details.

They will be asked first to sign conditions for use.

The course consists of three sections:

The first section definition of dyslexia and looks at the causes

The second part provides informal tests for teachers to use to detect whether or not a child may have dyslexia.

The third section focuses on how to include children with dyslexia in mainstream classrooms wherever possible, and on the tools and techniques that meet the learning needs of these children, in particular for the acquisition of literacy skills.

The course in available in French and English.


In Turkey it is complusory for trainee teachers to cover special needs as part of their course.However the quality and amount of training may vary from university to university. In addition, in Turkey we badly need in-service training for teachers already working in schools ;as most teachers are oblivious of dyslexia !! Since dyslexia is one of the most common problems a teacher will come across at the chalkface ;it is imperative that teachers are trained and given practical strategies to help them to assist dyslexic children.

http://www.dyslexia-international.org/

How to help your kids concentration levels

Very shortly all children in Turkey will be back at school in their classrooms.For all children,but especially for those who are dyslexic or have a learning disability, concentration can have a key impact on their success or failure to achieve.

Often childrens' concentration can be affected by seemingly simple things such as uncomfortable seating, poor nourishment and dehydration.

*The World Health Organisation found that if a person is 2% dehydrated their ability to concentrate will fall by 20% .
You need to drink about 2 litres of water a day, depending on the weather conditions and your level of activity. As a result we need to encourage our children to drink sufficient water while at school.

*In addition school pupils need to eat healthy foods and snacks. Unfortunately in most Turkish schools the canteens where children can buy snacks at break and lunch-times only offer unhealthy fast foods and sugary drinks such as cola. Instead of giving money for the canteen you could give your child some fruit or nuts etc to take with them.

*In addition, parents should encourage children to take regular exercise and to reduce tv/ computer time. Watching too much tv can drastically affect concentration.

*Children also need a good nights sleep if they are going to be able to concentrate fully .So make sure your kid goes to bed early !!

Mark Champkins ,a clever inventor, runs a UK company which develops and make products to help children concentrate at school.His products include a chairpadbag - a bag that doubles as a padded seat. Also a bottlecoolerpenholder - which
has an insultating jacket for water bottles that store pens/pencils and reminds the children to drink during lessons.

Mark Champkins has won some awards for his product designs.

Have a look at his company site and also his blog which has some interesting information about concentration.

http://www.concentrate.org.uk/

From Dyslexia Blog we wish all returning dyslexic students success in their studies !

I believe in me. Do you believe in me ??

Dalton Sherman is an American fifth-grader who gave a wonderful motivating and inspiring key-note speech at a teachers conference in the USA sometime ago ..

Dalton is not dyslexic however I think his words are still very relevant and thought provoking and also truely inspiring..

It is crucial for a dyslexic child to believe in themselves,despite their apparent short-comings in certain areas.Unfortunately, however self-confidence is often lacking in many kids.Also teachers need to believe in the dyslexic child and make it clear to them that they have faith that they can succeed.

Here is the text of Dalton's speech- with a few alterations.
To get the full impact of his speech watch the video on the internet :

http://www.schooltube.com/
( keyword : Dalton Sherman )

"I believe in me. Do you believe in me?

Do you believe I can stand up here, fearless, and talk to all 20,000 of you?

Hey, my school – do you believe in me?

That's right – they do.

Because here's the deal: I can do anything, be anything, create anything, dream anything, become anything – because you believe in me.

And it rubs off on me.

Let me ask you a question..

Do you believe in my classmates?

Do you believe that every single one of us can graduate ready for college or the workplace? You better. Because next week, we're all showing up in your schools –
and what we need from you is to believe that we can reach our highest potential.

No matter where we come from, you better not give up on us. No, you better not.

Because, as you know, in some cases, you're all we've got. You're the ones who feed us, who wipe our tears, who hold our hands or hug us when we need it. You're the ones who love us when sometimes it feels like no else does – and when we need it the most.

Don't give up on my classmates.

Do you believe in your colleagues?

I hope so. They came to your school because they wanted to make a difference, too. Believe in them, trust them and lean on them when times get tough – and we all know, we kids can sometimes make it tough.

Am I right?

Can I get an Amen?

So, whether you're a counselor or a librarian, a teacher assistant or work in the front office, whether you serve up meals in the cafeteria or keep the halls clean, or whether you're a teacher or a principal, we need you!

Please, believe in your colleagues, and they'll believe in you.

Do you believe in yourself? Do you believe that what you're doing is shaping not just my generation, but that of my children – and my children's children?

There's probably easier ways to make a living, but I want to tell you, on behalf of all of the students in , we need you. We need you now more than ever.

Believe in yourself.

Finally, do you believe that every child in Turkey needs to be ready for college or the workplace? Do you believe that Turkish students can achieve?

We need you, ladies and gentlemen. We need you to know that what you are doing is the most important job in the city today. We need you to believe in us, in your colleagues, in yourselves and in our goals. "

EDA : European Dyslexia Association

"The European Dyslexia Association (Avrupa Disleksi Birliği) is a European non-governmental umbrella organisation for national and regional associations of people with dyslexia and other specific learning differences, children’s parents, professionals and scientists. It was founded and legally established under Belgium law in 1987 in Brussels as an international non-profit association by representatives of ten national dyslexia associations. It is the platform and the Voice of the people with dyslexia and so called ‘Specific Learning Difficulties’ in Europe.

The EDA currently has 23 regional and national Effective Members in 21 EU countries plus Switzerland and Norway and 11 Adherent member organisations; in all 34 member organisations in 24 European countries.

"EITHER the Austrian Dyslexia Research Center (Avusturya Disleksi Araştırma Merkezi), the Dyslexia Research Center AG (a swiss public limited company plc), the Erster Österreichischer Dachverband ( EÖDL - wrongly translated into Turkish : Avusturya Disleksi Birliği), Silverlife International NOR Ms. Ursula Günster Schöning are members of the European Dyslexia Association ( Avrupa Disleksi Birliği).

There are three Austrian Effective Members of the European Dyslexia Association:

Österreichischer Bundesverband Legasthenie (ÖBVL-Austrian Federal Dyslexia Association).

Steirischer Landesverband Legasthenie ( Styrian Dyslexia Association),

Initiative LEGA Vorarlberg ( Vorarlberg Dyslexia Association).

As a board member of the ÖBVL, I state that the ÖBVL has no contact to the associations and companies listed above."

Michael Kalmar ( President) : EDA

www.dyslexia.eu.com

Make Your Own Comics

In the long school holiday, as well as reading dyslexic children also need to practice their writing .Writing is usually the weakest skill of all in someone with dyslexia because it requires them to integrate many different skills – spelling, punctuation, handwriting, sequencing and organisation etc. Children with dyslexia usually hate to write, and it often takes significant encouragement to get them to write anything.!!As a result I am always on the look out for something which might motivate my child to want to write.

I recently found this great site called “Make beliefs comix” – where children can make on-line comics free.

You can create a comic strip fairly quickly.You can choose from a range of characters and their emotions, add thought or speech balloons and also add objects and prompts.It is very easy to use.

Comics are not saved on the site.As a result when your child finishes their story they need to print out or email their comic.

The site has some teacher ideas and also activities for families. For those struggling with writing ideas , the "Writer prompts" page is useful.

The comic strips can be written in different languages :English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, German and Latin.

Bill Zimmerman the designer of the site is a prize-winning newspaper editor and author of 18 books.

Google and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) listed Make Beliefs Comix among "the world's most innovative web sites in fostering literacy and reading."

http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/

Basic Maths Skills

Especially during the long summer holiday it is vital that children with dyslexia / dyscalulia etc practice basic maths skills .

Learning maths is like building a wall with building bricks. If some of these bricks are left out of the wall or if bricks are not securely cemented in then the wall will eventually fall down.

A solid math foundation is vital for children to succeed. Students with weak basic math skills will find maths a struggle as they progress with school. As a result it is crucial for children with dyslexia and dyscalculia to practice and improve their basic skills in addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

Here are some good online educational games your child can play.They are fun to play and your child will not feel like he is doing school work !! :

Arcademic Skill Builders

http://www.arcademicskillbuilders.com/


This is a website that features fun, arcade-type games to practice the four basic operations .Game titles include "Grand Prix Multiplication" and “Alien Addition”. Games can be played with one or more players at a time. There are also some literacy games available.

Crickweb site :

The Digit Workout :

This is a progressive range of mental maths activities in 6 levels, which can help to improve the recall of key number facts . Keep a record of your child’s scores and see if they can improve them.


http://www.crickweb.co.uk/assets/resources/flash.php?&file=digitmenu

World Cup Math from Mr Nussbaum

Your child must win the world cup by scoring as many goals as possible against world teams by answering math facts.

http://www.mrnussbaum.com/football/index.html

For other ideas of games see the great website set up by the Woodlands Junior School in the UK .


http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/maths/

Practice basic maths using a pack of cards – Shuffle the cards then turn them face down.Get your child to turn over two cards and write those values down on a piece of paper. Afterwards your child chooses whether to use multiplication, division, addition, or subtraction to find an answer. In the end get them to write down the answer.

Tar Heel Reader

With the long summer school holiday upon us I am trying to get my son to improve his English.I recently came across a useful site that could be used for dyslexic children to do some online reading and writing.

The Tar Heel Reader site is a collection of free,easy-to-read, and accessible books on a wide range of topics. The books can be read online or downloaded. They are all speech enabled.

The books are intended for teenagers who are just learning to read ,however many are also suitable for younger children who are beginner or struggling readers and also for English language learners. The books have very simple wording so they are suitable for dyslexic children.Books are also available in a number of different languages such as Spanish and German, as well as English.

Some of the books may be inappropriate for your child so it is best to create your own favourites page of the books suitable for your child.To do this you need to be a registered user.

Besides reading a book, students also have the option of creating their own books. They can make their own books using pictures from the Flickr collection or using their own photos. To create a book you will need to register for free.

This site is a result of collaboration between the Centre for Literacy and Disability Studies and the Department of Computer Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

www.tarheelreader.org/

NB Tar Heel is a nickname for the state and people of North Carolina.

Get your child to make their own books and put them online as this may help to encourage your child to want to write more !!

Please see the article I wrote about talking / audio books for dyslexics.