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Many learners with dyslexia benefit from organizing ideas visually. Microsoft Whiteboard, a collaborative digital canvas in Microsoft 365, gives students opportunities to mind map and express ideas using:

Ink and highlighters

Sticky notes

Shapes and lines

Images

Templates

Color coding, and more

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Organize learning content into a personal workspace using OneNote

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Organize learning content into a personal workspace using OneNote

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OneNote is a helpful organization tool, helping students track assignments, processes, and more in an easy-to-use digital notebook. Learners can keep all their content in one place so it’s easy to find what they’re looking for and great ideas never get lost. It also provides multi-sensory experiences to turn notes into living documents through features like:

Digital inking

Sketching diagrams

Adding videos

Inserting pictures and images

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How to organize thoughts with OneNote Class Notebook in Microsoft Teams

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To build on the strengths of learners with dyslexia, encourage them to talk about how they use classroom systems for recording and submitting assignments, as well as their planning processes around assignments. Technology tools that provide structure and multi-sensory experiences, such as organizers and mind maps, can help learners develop focus and confidence.

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While learners with dyslexia bubble with brilliant ideas, they often face challenges with memory, organization, and concentration. These can include:

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While learners with dyslexia bubble with brilliant ideas, they often face challenges with memory, organization, and concentration. These can include:

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Verbal challenges - Remembering spoken instructions

Sequential challenges - Ordering facts and information

Working and visual memory challenges - Writing down thoughts and ideas

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You Can Improve Reading Skills With Microsoft Learning Tools

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o support learners with dyslexia, it's important to focus on the content of their work, not the spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Remember:

Analysis over criticism

Content over mechanics

Process over product

Growth over perfection

Assistive technologies can aid learners with dyslexia who often struggle to read and recognize what is written accurately and fluently. The best part is that many of these technologies are built into tools learners are already using.

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Dyslexia & Technology Training – Tools for Spelling, Punctuation & Grammar

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Reach all learners by ensuring content is accessible

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In this topic

Use the Accessibility Checker

1. On the ribbon of the Microsoft 365 app, select the Review tab. If you're using Outlook, you'll only see the Review tab when writing or replying to messages.

2. Select the upper part of the Check Accessibility split button. The Accessibility pane opens to the right of the screen. The Accessibility ribbon activates at the top of the screen.

Tip: To see more options, select the lower part of the Check Accessibility button.

3. In the Accessibility pane, review and address the findings as instructed in Apply recommended actions.

Apply recommended actions

In the Accessibility pane, you'll see a list of errors, warnings, and tips with how-to-fix recommendations for each. To quickly fix the issues, apply one of the recommended actions. For more information on how the findings are categorized, go to Rules for the Accessibility Checker.

1. In the Accessibility pane, select an issue under Warnings or Errors. The list expands and shows the items and objects affected by the issue.

Tip: To view the exact location of the affected item or object, select the item or object.

2. To address the issue, select the down arrow button next to it. The Recommended Actions list opens.

3. To apply a one-click fix, select an action from the Recommended Actions list. To view more options, select the right arrow button next to an action (if available).

4. Go through and resolve each issue under Warnings and Errors.

Don't see the Accessibility Checker?

If you don't see the Check Accessibility button on the Review tab, you might have an older version of the app. Follow these steps to open the Accessibility Checker in an older app version:

1. Select File > Info.

2. Select the Check for Issues button.

Tip: To the right of the Check Accessibility button, under the Inspect heading, is a list of any potential issues.

3. In the Check for Issues drop-down menu, select Check Accessibility.

4. The Accessibility Checker task pane appears next to your content and shows the inspection results.

5. To see information on why and how to fix an issue, under Inspection Results, select an issue. Results appear under Additional Information, and you're directed to the inaccessible content in your file.

See also

Check accessibility while you work in Office apps

Everything you need to know to write effective alt text

Use a screen reader with the Accessibility Checker

Make your content accessible to everyone

Make your content accessible to everyone with the Accessibility Checker

Use the Accessibility Checker

1. To launch the Accessibility Checker, do one of the following depending on the app you are using:

In Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, select Review > Check Accessibility.

In OneNote, select View > Check Accessibility.

In Outlook, while writing or replying to an email message, select Check Accessibility. If you don't see the button on the toolbar, you need to add it there manually. Select (See more items) > Customize toolbar. Then drag and drop the Check Accessibility button to the toolbar.

Tip: In Outlook, you can also access the Accessibility Checker from a MailTip at the top of the message window. The accessibility MailTip appears if one of your message recipients has set up a preference for receiving accessible email.

The Accessibility pane opens. It lists accessibility issues organized into warnings, errors, and tips. For more information on the categorization, go to Rules for the Accessibility Checker.

2. To review and resolve the findings, select a category and an issue. Under the selected issue, you'll find all items and objects affected by the issue. Select an item or object to see why you should fix the issue and steps to take to change the content.

See also

Everything you need to know to write effective alt text

Use a screen reader with the Accessibility Checker

Make your content accessible to everyone

Make your content accessible to everyone with the Accessibility Checker

Use the Accessibility Checker

1. To check your content for accessibility issues, do one of the following depending on the app you're using:

On the ribbon of other Microsoft 365 for the web apps except Outlook on the web, select the Review tab. Select Check Accessibility. The Accessibility pane opens to the right of the screen. The Accessibility ribbon activates at the top of the screen.

In the Outlook on the web message you're writing to or replying to, select (More options) on the toolbar. Then select Check for accessibility issues. The Accessibility Checker pane opens.

Tip: In Outlook on the web, you can also access the Accessibility Checker from a MailTip at the top of the message window. The accessibility MailTip appears if one of your message recipients has set up a preference for receiving accessible email.

In other Microsoft 365 for the web apps except Outlook on the web, the issues are organized into separate tabs for errors, warnings, and tips. For more information on how the findings are categorized, go to Rules for the Accessibility Checker.

2. To review and resolve the findings, do one of the following depending on the app you're currently using:

In other Microsoft 365 for the web apps except Outlook on the web, in the selected category, expand an accessibility issue to see all items and objects affected by the issue. Select an item or object to highlight the corresponding part of your document, spreadsheet, or presentation, and then fix the issue. Address all issues in the errors and warnings categories. When you're done, select Recheck to make sure you didn't miss anything.

In Outlook on the web, select Fix this to address the issue. For example, if the Accessibility Checker reported a missing alt text, selecting Fix this opens the Add alternative text dialog box where you can type the alt text. Address all issues and when you're done, select Check again to make sure you didn't miss anything.

See also

Everything you need to know to write effective alt text

Use a screen reader with the Accessibility Checker

Make your content accessible to everyone

Make your content accessible to everyone with the Accessibility Checker

Make your content accessible in the Microsoft 365 apps

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Improve accessibility with the Accessibility Checker

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In this topic On the ribbon of the Microsoft 365 app, select the Review tab. If you're using Outlook, you'll only see the Review tab when writing or replying to messages. Select the upper part of the Check Accessibility split button. The Accessibility pane opens to the right of the screen.

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Provide opportunities to share learning and amplify student voice through recorded video and sound

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Students: Get started with Flipgrid | Microsoft Store

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Provide opportunities to express ideas without having to focus on things like spelling, grammar, and writing or typing speed

Explore below to learn quick tips for supporting Dyslexic Thinking with technology tools.

Dictate in Microsoft 365 lets learners use speech-to-text to author content in Office. Learners can use their voice to quickly create documents, email messages, notes, presentations, or even slide notes, saving time and building confidence.

Learn how easy it's to create documents and more with Dictate.

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Dictate in Microsoft 365 - Microsoft Support

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Word for Microsoft 365 Outlook for Microsoft 365 PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 Word for Microsoft 365 for Mac PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 for Mac Word for the web OneNote for the web Word for iPhone Word for Android phones More...Less

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Dyslexia & Technology Training – Tools for Dyslexic Thinking

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Research tells us that Dyslexic Thinkers have the exact skills needed for the workplace of today. The Value of Dyslexia Report points out that enhanced tasks and new roles will be created across industries that closely match the strengths of dyslexic thinking such as:

Leadership and social influence

Creativity

Complex problem-solving

Analytical thinking

Emotional intelligence

The 2021 Dyslexic Dynamic Report highlights that talent shortages are at a 15-year high. Having 10/10 of the soft skills employers are looking for means that people with dyslexia are perfectly poised to fill this skills gap. Dyslexic Thinking is also now a skill recognized by the world’s largest careers platform LinkedIn and an official term added to Dictionary.com.

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Made By Dyslexia & Microsoft Education PL Online Course

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Made By Dyslexia & Microsoft Education PL Online Course

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Educators and parents learn about the challenges learners with dyslexia face and explore technology tools to support learners with dyslexia.

Learning objectives

In this module, you will:

Identify practices for supporting dyslexic thinking.

Explain solutions to help learners with dyslexia meet challenges.

Describe technology tools to support learners with dyslexia and build on their strengths.

ISTE Standards for Educators:

Educator - Designer

Educator - Facilitator

Educator - Learner

UNESCO Standards for Educators:

Teacher Professional Learning

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https://youtu.be/UQxPF2m2_wg

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Change handwritten ink to shapes, text, or math in PowerPoint for Microsoft 365

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Change handwritten ink to shapes, text, or math in PowerPoint for Microsoft 365

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Go from free-form ink to Office shapes, text, or a mathematical expression in a couple of strokes.

You can also scribble the title of a slide with your pen. When you do this, PowerPoint automatically offers to convert the ink to standard text.

These features are available to Microsoft 365 Subscribers on Windows and iOS.

The Ink to Math feature is only available to Microsoft 365 subscribers on Windows right now.

To convert ink you've drawn elsewhere on your slide

1. Draw or write in digital ink.

2. Select your ink by tapping on it, or using the Lasso selection tool.

3. On the Draw tab, choose Ink to Text, Ink to Shape, or Ink to Math.

Or just click the Convert Your Ink button.

4. If the result isn't what you hoped for, select the More Suggestions button to the right of your converted shape to see other options.

Requirements for the Ink Conversion options

To use these conversion features, you must turn on Office "connected experiences":

Open any Microsoft 365 desktop application on Windows, go to File > Account, and under Account Privacy, select Manage Settings. This opens the account Privacy Settings dialog box where you can select your privacy options.

For Ink-to-Text conversions, right-to-left languages are not currently supported.

See Languages supported for ink-to-text conversion for a complete list of supported languages.

This is a subscriber-only, Microsoft 365 feature.

Write a title with your pen
Applies to:

PowerPoint for Microsoft 365
Current Channel: Version 1806 or later
Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview): Version 1808 or later
Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel: Version 1808 or later
Find your Office version

Convert ink to text or shapes in the body of a slide
Applies to:

PowerPoint for Microsoft 365
Current Channel: Version 1804
Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview): Version 1808 or later
Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel: Version 1808 or later
Find your Office version

PowerPoint for iOS Version 2.19

Convert ink to math in the body of a slide
Applies to:

PowerPoint for Microsoft 365
Monthly Channel: Version 1901 or later
Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Preview): Version 2008 or later
Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel: Version 2008 or later
Find your Office version

Operating system:

Windows 10, version 1511
Find your Windows version

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Change handwritten ink to shapes, text, or math in PowerPoint for Microsoft 365

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Go from free-form ink to Office shapes, text, or a mathematical expression in a couple of strokes. You can also scribble the title of a slide with your pen. When you do this, PowerPoint automatically offers to convert the ink to standard text. These features are available to Microsoft 365 Subscribers on Windows and iOS.

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Learners with dyslexia are often particularly strong in spatial and big-picture thinking. However, they may struggle with the fine detail aspects of mathematics.

Using digital ink tools, such as ‘Ink to Math’ and electronic workbooks like OneNote, can support learners in laying out their work in a way that supports the identification of errors.

Using 3D models, arrays, and other graphical representations can benefit mathematicians with dyslexia greatly – particularly in assimilating number facts like the times tables. These tools can be easily embedded in tools like OneNote, which also allows them to have early access and learn before the lesson.

Using tools such as Immersive Reader supports learners in identifying the key information in written problems.

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The planning phase of a piece of writing is crucial. Consider utilizing thinking maps to organize ideas. Digital ink and on-screen diagrams are useful in generating plans as learners are able to edit their ideas intuitively.

The use of spelling and grammar tools provides immediate feedback to writers with dyslexia, which they can act upon immediately.

Dictation tools support students in recording their initial ideas rapidly.

OneNote can be set up to utilize word banks and support with spelling.

Learners with dyslexia can often be very creative and imaginative in their written work when properly supported.

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Accessibility, special education, and online learning: Supporting equity in a remote learning environment - Training

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Learn to teach with the accessibility tools in Windows 10, Office 365, and apps including Teams, Immersive Reader, Math Tools, Word, Translator, and OneNote. Dive deep into areas of student need to learn about specific opportunities and considerations for special education and online learning.

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Educational technology, when viewed as a core element of teaching, has the power to ensure that children’s learning is organized in a way that helps them to focus on exactly what they need to do.

Shared notebook tools, like Microsoft OneNote, can be organized in a way that displays information that is accessible and focused.

Microsoft Teams brings together a number of tools like Sli.do, Polly, Forms, and Planner that allow students to respond to teachers’ questions and to organize their thinking and tasks on the go.

Digital inking allows students to access devices in a multisensory manner, to respond to tasks graphically. Digital pens also support students in accessing tools more intuitively than simply utilizing a keyboard.

Video tools, such as Flipgrid, can provide an alternative to written tasks. In addition, spelling and grammar tools can scaffold students with dyslexia when written answers are necessary.

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Number talks were developed for classroom teachers to engage students in "mental math" through grappling with interesting mathematics problems. Educators can use number talks regularly as introductions to the day's mathematical practice, as "warm ups" for other lessons, or as stand-alone extended engagements with mathematical concepts. The teachers in these videos are from schools participating in the Silicon Valley Mathematics Initiative.

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Number talks were developed for classroom teachers to engage students in "mental math" through grappling with interesting mathematics problems. Educators can use number talks regularly as introductions to the day's mathematical practice, as "warm ups" for other lessons, or as stand-alone extended engagements with mathematical concepts.

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Number Talks (extract from online course) - YouCubed

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This teaches the pedagogical strategy called 'Number Talks' with some interesting different methods shared by Stanford students. The full online course is available at: Stanford Online - How to Learn Math for Teachers

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Recognising, creating and describing patterns with numbers

Children often enjoy saying how they see something differently from someone else.

Adults could show interesting arrangements of objects and invite children to talk about the numbers they see.

The Activity
Arrange five large magnets on a tin tray and confirm that everyone sees five. Ask, 'What numbers can you see hidden inside five?' Collect different views. Turn the board away to rearrange, show briefly and ask, 'How do you see them now?'

Encouraging mathematical thinking and reasoning:

Describing
Can you tell me how you saw them?
Did anyone see them differently? How did Lucas say he saw them?

Reasoning
How did you know how many there were?
Does this way make it easier to see how many there are? Why did you find it easier?

Opening Out
Has anyone got a quicker way of counting?
Can you arrange your counters so that you can quickly see how many there are?

Recording
Can you copy this pattern with your counters?
Can you record this by drawing or stamping or with stickers?

The Mathematical Journey

S hape, space and position: Number:

using spatial language, like 'on the top', 'underneath' or 'left' and 'right'

perceptual subitising and cardinality - recognising small numbers without counting

part-whole awareness - talking about numbers being made up of other numbers and numbers within a number, e.g. "I knew there were three because there's two and there's one"

recognising doubles, e.g. "When I see six I see three and three"

conceptual subitising - recognising the whole number by subitising and adding subgroups, e.g. "There's two and two and one, and that makes five"

counting in twos (unitising)

Development and Variation
Show numbers of things in less familiar arrangements and provide counters for children to copy.

Invite children to make lots of different arrangements for five with counters, matchsticks, shapes or small cubes, and to talk about how they are made up with different numbers.

Bunny ears: ask children to show a number on the fingers of two hands held above their heads. One child can show a number briefly in this way for others to say how many there are.

Discuss images from Making Number animations ( https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-school/pd-books/making-numbers, you'll need to register) or Number Talks ( ntimages.weebly.com).

Download a PDF of this resource.

Acknowledgement: Stephanie Latimer on Teaching Channel

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Recognising, creating and describing patterns with numbers Children often enjoy saying how they see something differently from someone else. Adults could show interesting arrangements of objects and invite children to talk about the numbers they see. The Activity Arrange five large magnets on a tin tray and confirm that everyone sees five.

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Note: For general tips on what Numeracy Routines (e.g. Number Talks, WODB, Estimation 180, Notice/Wonder, Clotheslines, etc.) are, why they are important, and how to begin please click on the Numeracy Routines pages. The following page is specific to Number Talks.

To begin, I'd recommend you attend a session in your District on Number Routines where you can engage in the activities as a learner and see them modelled. If that isn't available to you, I would dig into one of the following books and/or the following websites.

Number Talks
Author Sherry Parrish

Recommend for Intermediate Teachers

​Making Number Talks Matter
Authors Cathy Humphreys and Ruth Parker

Number Sense Routines
Author Jessica Shumway

High Yield Routines K - 8
Authors Ann McCoy, Joann Barnett, Emily Combs

Dot cards
Dice
Dominoes
Five and Ten Frames
Rekenreks
Hundreds Frames
Pictures of items
Images of real life arrays - this PPT has many great images - Greg Tang books also have great images that can be used.
Number Strings - Video example of a Grade Four class
Any addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division question

The teacher will present a problem on the board. Students will be given thinking time to solve the problem mental. I typically introduce "Thinking Thumbs" and explain to the students that I do want them to rob their friends of their thinking by blurting out answers. Sherry Parrish feels that this strategy is better than having students raise their hands because she when several hands are in the air, students often stop thinking because they are used to teachers calling on the students with raised hands for the answer. When students are ready, they will indicate by holding up one thumb up to show they have a solution. If the students have more than one way to find the solution they will raise a finger by their thumb. When most students show that they have a solution (e.g., majority of thumbs are up) that is when I ask students to share their thinking. Try not to rush the thinking time as Parrish states "the aim is not to reward speed, but to focus on the thinking about mathematical relationships (Parrish, 2010, Number Talks, pg. 18).

Next I ask students to share their answers. I record all of these, even the incorrect answers. In Number Talks, we use incorrect answers to discover misconceptions students have. Next students are asked to communicate their thinking. What strategies did you use? The teacher will record what the students says and ask if anyone used a different strategy. The rest of the class is actively listening and thinking about the strategies being shared. They are considering and thinking about other students' strategies and checking to see if they make sense. Through this, they are building their own repertoire of strategies. The teacher facilitates the discussion and is responsible for asking guiding questions, such as "How is this strategy similar or different to _______'s strategy?", helping students to make connections.

Before you provide a question for a Number Talk, you will want to think through all the potential responses your students might provide. You will need to consider how you will capture each student's thinking.

Some potential strategies for addition include:

counting all

counting on

doubles/near doubles

making tens

friendly numbers (e.g., 23 + 48 - Student adds 48 + 2 to get 23 +53 = 73 and then takes away 2 from 71

compensation (e.g., 8 + 6 The student takes away one from 8 and adds one to 6 to get 7 + 7)

decomposing numbers by place value (e.g., 12 + 43 becomes (10 + 40 and 2 + 3)

adding in chunks (e.g., 45 + 28 The student begins by adding 45 + 20 = 65 and then 65 +8 = 73)

Some potential strategies for subtraction include:

adding up

decomposing numbers into easy to remove parts e.g., 65 - 32 The student thinks of it as 65 - (10 + 10 + 10 + 2)

decomposing and subtracting by place value components

Teacher Education By Design (tedd.org/about/TEDD.org) - Created by the University of Washington designed to support teachers
You will need to register to access this free site full of amazing resources. Nested under the "Content Area" of Mathematics you will find links to Quick Image, Number Strings, Mental Math and True/False number talks. In part one, the introduction, you will find everything you need to get you started, such as videos from various grades, and teacher info sheets. In part two, the planning section you will find templates and suggestions. Part three, enact, provides key resources you can use and part four, provides valuable reflection prompts.

Number Talk Images - ntimages.weebly.com/ntimages.weebly.com - Curated by Pierre Tranche
This website has a collection of images, including dots, number strings, arrays that can be used for Number Talks.

Janice Novakowski - Richmond School District's Math Consultant Teacher.
Janice has done a lot of work in classrooms with Number Talks and has written about these experiences on her blog. I highly recommend you click on this link to her blogs.sd38.bc.ca/sd38mathandscience/?s=number+talks website to see the many ways Number Talks can be used in various classroom contexts.

Number Talks Build Numerical Reasoning by Sherry Parrish

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Note : For general tips on what Numeracy Routines (e.g. Number Talks, WODB, Estimation 180, Notice/Wonder, Clotheslines, etc.) are, why they are important, and how to begin please click on the...

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Traditionally, math is taught as facts to be memorized and problems to be solved through rote procedures. For the learner with dyslexia, rote memorization isn't a strength but verbal comprehension and big picture are!

Learners with dyslexia find meaning within the parts of concepts when given time to think, to work, and to problem solve.

Multisensory instruction in math makes connections between concepts and provides opportunities to connect context to application.

Learners with dyslexia often have strong reasoning and logic skills. Given the opportunity to use mental math or verbalization of their answers, demonstrates their reasoning through a dyslexic str

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Share This:

By Marilyn Zecher, M.A., CALT

Students with learning challenges begin to fall behind in math quite early, often before third grade. We know that learning to recognize and use quantity patterns is a core deficit in math. Students must learn the composition and decomposition of basic quantities such as what makes seven and what makes nine. They also need to understand how our place value system is organized and then to apply those early patterns across place value. If two plus three equals five, then twenty plus thirty equals fifty. By the time our students with dyslexia are in eighth grade, many are not proficient in math. Yet, they are expected to attempt algebra, a crucial course, armed with little reasoning ability and a calculator accommodation.

Parents and teachers worry about their ability to access grade-level content with below grade-level skills. And, with new approaches, students are introduced to multiple models when they do not fully comprehend one.
There are, however, some strategies that can help students with dyslexia understand core concepts and make sense of their pre-algebra and algebra content.

Let's begin with the language. Students need to understand the meaning of key terms such as variable, equation, expression, and square. Don't head for www.dictionary.com since most formal definitions are not
student friendly. Offer your student some non-math examples that will help him or her link to the math meaning.

Example 1: "The weather is variable at this time of year." A variable is a letter representing a quantity that can change. Sometimes it is an unknown that we can discover, but it can also be something that can change. We use variables to create expressions and equations for making predictions and modeling. "Wow" and "oops" are expressions in English. They convey meaning but they are not complete thoughts. The math expression 2n+7 is not a complete equation. It lacks an equal sign and therefore can only be used to "evaluate" different choices or options.

Example 2: Now, let's make a word web of all the ways we can think of to say "plus" or "add": plus, increased by, added to, 7 greater than, 7 more than. We can also say multiplication many ways. Think of two times a number, the product of two and a number, twice a number. Now let's construct all the ways we can say 2n + 7.

Most teachers begin with the math and expect students to comprehend the words. With students who have language challenges, begin with the words. The numbers are often easier.

The same is true for linear functions. Begin by helping your student build a model for a real life situation. Use linking cubes or even different colors of construction paper squares.

Example: If Tim pays a $10 fee to enter the climbing gym and then $2 per hour, how could we model that? Let's build the ten as our starting value and then use different colors of paper squares to model that constant rate of change.

Using simple manipulatives, you and your student can build linear functions in slope intercept form without ever using resorting to equations. Meaningful math begins with real life applications. Reasoning mathematically is at the heart of becoming fluent in math.

My favorite models for linear functions involve high priced athletes with signing bonuses and per game salaries or depreciation of VERY expensive luxury cars. Make up some wonderful examples for working with your child and then have some fun with math.

Marilyn Zecher is a nationally certified Academic Language Therapist and former classroom/demonstration teacher, Ms. Zecher is a specialist in applying multisensory, Orton-Gillingham-based strategies to a variety of content areas. She trains nationally for The Multisensory Training Institute of the nonprofit Atlantic Seaboard Dyslexia Education Center in Rockville MD and is a part time instructor at Loyola University, Baltimore.

Opinions expressed in Dyslexia Connection and/or via links do not necessarily reflect those of IDA.
Copyright © 2017 International Dyslexia Association (IDA). We encourage sharing of Dyslexia Connection articles. If portions are cited, please make appropriate reference. Articles may not be reprinted for the purpose of resale. Permission to republish this article is available from info@dyslexiaida.org.

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Math Strategies for Students with Dyslexia - International Dyslexia Association

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Share This: By Marilyn Zecher, M.A., CALT Students with learning challenges begin to fall behind in math quite early, often before third grade. We know that learning to recognize and use quantity patterns is a core deficit in math. Students must learn the composition and decomposition of basic quantities such as what makes seven and what makes nine.

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Dyslexia is a different way of processing information and language and this carries over to math, because math is a language unto itself.

Vocabulary words may take on a whole new and different meaning in math, such as homophones.

Explicit instruction of math vocabulary teaches a student with dyslexia how to read a math equation and use the words to find a deeper meaning of math concepts.

Teaching morphology, the study of word parts and their meaning, for a learner with dyslexia connects the language of reading with the language of math.

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Learners with dyslexia expend a lot of energy throughout the day, so incorporating movement breaks into the day allows the brain a moment to recharge.

Movement resets the brain’s ability to concentrate and therefore, better attend to learning.

Motor memory is the strongest memory pathway in the brain. Using multisensory activities, such as songs with movements, can help commit information to memory.

When learners with dyslexia have opportunities to engage with learning through movement, chances increase to remember and retrieve the information as the learning becomes meaningful.

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ReadSource is a non-profit launched by The Schenck School as a means for sharing the reading expertise of the School with other struggling readers. Our mission is to empower communities to serve all students who are learning to read, especially those who struggle. This is accomplished through our teacher training offerings, direct reading remediation services, and partnerships with other schools and non-profits.

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ReadSource is a non-profit launched by The Schenck School to share the School's reading expertise with struggling readers.

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An elementary teacher who has been using flexible seating for over a decade responds to the concerns he hears most frequently from other teachers.

A student at work in the author's classroom

During my 14-year flexible seating journey, I've taught a mix of first through third grade classes, including multigrade classrooms with up to 28 students. I've encountered plenty of challenges, but through research and some trial and error, I've been able to create a sustainable flexible seating environment that is differentiated for my students' needs.

The path has not always been straight, but when I see the impact flexible seating has on my students' focus and learning, I'm certain the journey has been worthwhile.

The Reality Behind 10 Misconceptions About Flexible Seating

1. I have to buy my own furniture! Every piece of my classroom's flexible seating was funded-by the school or through grants, donations, and crowdfunding. I've received funding from private grants, DonorsChoose.org, and the federal Rural Education Achievement Program.

I've also added small amounts to my regular budget requests by reducing some supply item lines to make room for flexible seating options. And when my school has needed to replace desks, tables, or chairs, I asked if I could give up some traditional furniture and spend the funds on flexible seating, which got me six standing desks.

And then there's old-fashioned scrounging: I found one table in storage, and someone donated a coffee table.

2. Some students just can't handle it! You're right, some can't-at first. Moving to flexible seating is a process that must be intentionally taught. Sometimes I have to tell a student they can't use a seating option, and I have traditional options for this reason. But I always give that student another try with flexible seating. It typically doesn't take long for them to meet the expectations. It's good to keep some traditional seating anyway-there are those who prefer it.

I've written more on interactive modeling and expectations for classroom management, and I find California middle school teacher Laura Bradley's article on managing older students' use of flexible seating useful as well.

3. My room isn't big enough! With the right options, flexible seating can be done in any size classroom. It can even create more open space if done thoughtfully. Stand-up desks take less space than traditional ones because there's no chair footprint. Table or desk legs can be removed to make kneeling workspaces that don't require chairs. Students of all ages love sitting in nooks and crannies around classrooms-on carpet squares or cushions on the floor, behind bookcases, or under tables.

I have a lightweight, folding adjustable-height table that I store away behind a bookshelf. Plastic gaming rockers can stack with a small footprint, and rubber wiggle cushions or vinyl seat pads on traditional seating don't require more space.

Try adding a few things that don't take much room, and keep adding from there. It took me 10 years to fully transition to flexible seating due to space and money restrictions.

4. Flexible seating won't last-it'll fall apart! Traditional furniture is expensive and heavy duty for a reason-it gets used for almost seven hours a day, 180 days a year. Unfortunately, most educators don't obtain enough funds to buy heavy-duty versions of flexible seating options all at once, so I suggest buying a small number of sturdy school-grade items whenever possible-it will just take a few years to complete the switch. Patience is a virtue, right?

For the last several years, I've found the funds to get three to six wobble stools each year, and I now have flexible seating options that will last decades.

5. I need flexible options for every student! My flexible seating journey began 14 years ago-I was supporting students with dyspraxia and ADHD who had weak core strength and needed to move. I worked with our occupational therapist to get OT seating tools written into the students' IEPs. Then I asked our OT for an additional tool to share so every student had a chance to try one out. The students with IEPs benefited the most, but other students liked the options too. For several years, I had only a handful of flexible options, until I found ways to fund my whole classroom.

6. The fire marshal won't let me use fabric furniture or pillows! There are dozens of fire-code-safe options. I have no fabric seating-my students use stand-up and kneeling desks, plastic wobble stools, vinyl cushions, plastic scoop rockers, and rubber wiggle cushions.

I was told I could have pillows if I applied fire-retardant spray. Work with your fire marshal to ensure that you'll be able to use whatever your school purchases.

7. Students need to learn how to sit in desks for the real world! Have you been in a staff meeting with a teacher who chose to stand in the back or a college course where someone sat on the floor with their back against the wall? Do you like to read while sitting on a chair with one leg folded under you, or lying on the floor? So do some students, no matter the grade.

Sitting still in traditional seating can be challenging. People who have trouble sitting still may not take a desk job for a career, but if they do, knowing about tools that can help will be key. Seat cushions, ball chairs, standing desks, and more are available in many workplaces. And flexible seating encourages the collaboration and communication that will be necessary in that future workplace.

8. Students will be overstimulated by all the wiggling and wobbling! Typically those students who would be overstimulated choose seating in a quieter area of the room. I've seen these students face their seating toward the wall to help themselves focus.

Classroom expectations should be clear: Flexible seating must help all students retain focus, and students must be mindful of how their movements affect not only themselves but others as well-for reasons of both safety and focus.

9. My substitute teacher won't be able to handle the class! I make sure my students know the expectations around flexible seating in the first six weeks. I intentionally teach each piece of seating, and students know what is expected of them, no matter who the adult in the room is. My rule is that if I hear that a student had difficulty utilizing flexible seating with a guest teacher, they will lose the flexible seating privilege for a while-but this has not happened in the 14 years I've had flexible seating.

10. Flexible seating can't be used during standardized testing! I've searched the Smarter Balanced standardized testing requirements and found nothing stating that students must sit in a chair at a desk. Check with your standardized test administrator to be sure your state, test, or district doesn't have specific seating requirements.

I've known some teachers to use libraries, large multipurpose instructional areas, or conference tables and chairs during testing. My students in grades 1 to 3 perform considerably better when they can use flexible seating during assessments because they use flexible seating during all learning situations and assessments. So I say assess away and let the flexible seating benefit not only student learning, but also student assessment.

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An elementary teacher who has been using flexible seating for over a decade responds to the concerns he hears most frequently from other teachers. A student at work in the author's classroom During my 14-year flexible seating journey, I've taught a mix of first through third grade classes, including multigrade classrooms with up to 28 students.

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Dyslexia Awareness Part 1: Module 4 - Inclusive Classroom

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A student centered classroom encourages student engagement.

Standing desks, flexible seating options, and a thoughtful arrangement of the classroom can invigorate learning and lessen distractions.

A classroom setup centered on the student’s needs includes organized materials so that students can quickly find what they need and start the task.

Taking a class outside of the classroom or into a different space can re-engage a student by recognizing a student’s difficulty and then addressing it.

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Executive Function Challenges in Middle Schoolers | Working Memory

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Learn about executive function challenges in middle schoolers. Find out how to help kids in grades 6 to 8 with executive function skills like working memory.

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Executive function includes key skills like attention and working memory. Learn how problems with executive function impact learning, working, and everyday life.

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A learner with dyslexia may struggle with executive functions (staying attentive, organized, and on task) because they are thinking or excited by something new or with a creative idea.

Providing outward structure for executive function skills in the school-aged years is important so they develop and can be used independently throughout life.

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Dyslexia Awareness Part 2: Module 4 - Memory, Organisation & Concentration

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Calendars, Clocks, and Confidence: Organizational Skills for School

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When ADHD or learning disabilities are involved, organization challenges can go from tough to torturous - and the perpetually messy rooms, lost homework assignments, and missed soccer games can stress out everyone. Calm the chaos and build your child's self-esteem by teaching organizational skills that last - starting with these basic rules.

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https://www.understood.org/en/articles/how-to-teach-your-grade-schooler-organization-skills

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Here are seven ways to teach your child organization.

1. Recognize "wants" vs. "needs."

Goal: Sort out and prioritize what your child wants to do vs. what your child needs to do.

Example: Your child does homework first. Playing with friends comes later.

2. Take one out, put one in.

3. Categorize, label, and sort.

4. Picture the day.

5. Make daily checklists.

6. Keep a family calendar.

7. Break big projects into smaller steps.

About the author

About the author

Amanda Morin is the author of "The Everything Parent's Guide to Special Education" and the former director of thought leadership at Understood. As an expert and writer, she helped build Understood from its earliest days.

Reviewed by

Reviewed by

Ginny Osewalt is a dually certified elementary and special education teacher with more than 15 years of experience in general education, inclusion, resource room, and self-contained settings.

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7 Ways to Teach Your Grade-Schooler Organization Skills

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Ready to help your grade-schooler get organized? Here are seven simple ways to teach your child organization skills.

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Learners with dyslexia have brilliant ideas but can have difficulty with time management, organising themselves, and creating routines and systems.

Use clear, consistent, and structured systems in the classroom to inform students how to record, store, and turn in assignments like homework.

Have students talk about the planning process, and how it isn't just the assignment itself but also materials and additional people involved. This taps into the dyslexic strength of problem-solving strategies.

Encourage accountability and study habits. These skills lead to greater success in the areas of memory, organization, and concentration throughout life.

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From Keys to Content Writing Professional Book Study Guide (for use with the Keys to Content Writing training book) The Writing Rope: Grades 3-12 WAG (Writing Assignment Guide) Writing Beliefs Poster Writing is Thinking Poster Writing Process Steps Template for Collecting Source Information W Cards Comprehensive Information Writing Checklist [French] Comprehensive Information Writing Rubric Comprehensive Argument Writing Checklist Comprehensive Argument […]

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Assessing is an important part of all classrooms and teachers need to be thinking about it in a different way.

Before a writing assignment begins, present a clear message about grading and marking.

The learner with dyslexia needs time to work through stages of writing. Do not rush the process to fit into a specific unit of time and expect a polished masterpiece every time.

Knowing how the student will be assessed prior to the assignment gives the student ownership and a tool to guide the process.

Assessing a student's writing can feel subjective or as if you're picking the piece apart. Therefore, focus on clear and explicit areas of writing to assess such as content, transitions, vocabulary usage, and mechanics. These can even be individual or separated grades.

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Grammarly's free writing app will make sure your messages, documents, and social media posts are clear, mistake-free, and impactful.

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If the writing process is taught in sequential steps, then the initial instruction is focusing on the goal of idea generation and composition. The next step is editing and is often hardest for the learner with dyslexia.

The use of checklists that contain the common traits of writing, student-to-student peer editing, and interactions with a student’s own writing helps students with dyslexia have confidence in their own writing.

Remember the editing stage is about analysis over criticism, content over mechanics, process over product, and growth over perfection.

Technology, like text to speech, can aid a learner with dyslexia who often reads what they want the words to say rather than what is actually written.

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Explain why the drafting stage is important for the solidification and mastery of writing skills.

How can a teacher use the drafting process without having students actually write something down?

Why is it important to not expect or demand perfect spelling at the drafting step of writing?

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Not every piece of writing needs to be a polished masterpiece. Students should use the drafting stage to practice and master putting the pieces together.

The use of sentence combining is a great way to solidify the drafting stage and still not be concerned with spelling and grammar.

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Introduction
If you don't have a first draft, then you can't have a second draft.
What happens during the drafting stage of the writing process? Why is drafting so important? During the drafting stage of writing, a student develops a more cohesive text and explores their topic, directed by purpose, audience, genre, and content. Drafting helps students expand upon, clarify, and modify their initial plans and ideas, and it helps them organize their content into a meaningful sequence or flow. Drafting is an iterative process that involves drafting and redrafting text again and again, and through this process students' writing improves, becoming stronger, clearer, and better organized.

To be college and career ready, students must be effective writers - that is, writers who are able to clearly communicate their ideas for a specific purpose. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English Language Arts (ELA) emphasize that it is important to teach students to write in all subjects, to use writing as a way to teach content, and to integrate technology into the process:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.5 Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.6 Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences.

Technology-enhanced teaching strategies

All students - and especially those who struggle with writing - benefit from using online and offline tools, such as those shown in this chart.

Integrate Online and Offline Tools into the Drafting Process

Using word processing and other technology tools for drafting is especially helpful for struggling students. The writing process is fluid and these tools recognize this, allowing students to easily change earlier decisions about purpose, audience, and genre, and addressing different learning styles. Show your students how to use technology tools to create, revise, and store their drafts in a digital writing portfolio. Model thinking aloud strategies on the interactive whiteboard.

It is also helpful to provide students with explicit instruction on how to transform ideas and notes into strong sentences and paragraphs. Strategies include color coding sample words and phrases that can be combined into sentences, modeling sentence combining, and teaching students to use transition words. Show students how to write different types of sentences, paragraphs, and other draft texts for diverse purposes and audiences. Use technology tools that support sharing examples of various paragraphs (such as introductions and conclusions) that can be used as models.

It is important to help students understand what it means to write for a variety of genres. By using a classroom blog, a podcast, a wiki, and/or a PowerPoint presentation, you can present and model ways to write, including:

An opening, also called a lead

Topic sentences

Main ideas and supporting details

Concluding statements

Students learn in different ways, so provide them with a variety of opportunities to reflect on their first draft. You could model reflecting on a piece of your own writing, for example, or you could have students use online graphic organizers. ( See UDL Checkpoint 9.3: Develop self-assessment and reflection). Create a rubric for students (or provide them with a published rubric) to use for self-reflection. Make sure the rubric includes the criteria students will be assessed on, and model how to use the rubric.

In the classroom

Mr. Bradford's fifth-grade students are creating a digital report about key women in the American Revolution, and during this class they will practice drafting openings or lead sentences to use in their report. Mr. Bradford recognizes that the reading and writing skills of his 25 students are quite varied, so he plans to offer differentiated support.

The students will participate in a variety of prewriting activities to prepare for drafting, including reading books, gathering information, taking notes, and watching videos. Students will access a report template, which Mr. Bradford has posted online, to help them write their first draft.

Mr. Bradford's specific lesson objective is to have his students draft possible leads to use in a report on women in the American Revolution. This objective aligns with the following Common Core State Standards:

Mr. Bradford uses technology throughout his curriculum. During this lesson, he will use an interactive whiteboard and a document camera to demonstrate and model how to draft leads. Students will use tablets to view online resources, create leads, and conference with one another. Digital portfolios will be used for ongoing formative evaluation and self-reflection.

Students will be assessed in several ways. Mr. Bradford will give them immediate feedback on their drafted leads, and students will peer edit using multimedia tools. They will also use online checklists and digital portfolios for self-reflection.

The lesson plan, which is outlined below, details what Mr. Bradford will do during the three phases of the lesson: before drafting, during drafting, and after drafting.

More teacher resources on prewriting

This article draws from the PowerUp WHAT WORKS website, particularly the Drafting Instructional Strategy Guide. PowerUp is a free, teacher-friendly website that requires no log-in or registration. The Instructional Strategy Guide includes a brief overview of context clues and an accompanying slide show; a list of the relevant ELA Common Core State Standards; evidence-based teaching strategies to differentiate instruction using technology; a case story; short videos; and links to resources that will help you use technology to support instruction in context clues. If you are responsible for professional development, the PD Support Materials provide helpful ideas and materials for using the drafting resources. Want more information? See www.PowerUpWhatWorks.org.

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If you don't have a first draft, then you can't have a second draft. What happens during the drafting stage of the writing process? Why is drafting so important? During the drafting stage of writing, a student develops a more cohesive text and explores their topic, directed by purpose, audience, genre, and content.

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Some of the research done that involves sentence combining comes from a whole language perspective. We"ve listed some of that research here. Our instructions for using sentence combining encourage a more explicit approach to using the strategy than what is included in some of the research listed below.

Graham, S., & Perin, D. (2007). Writing next: Effective strategies to improve writing of adolescents in middle and high schools - A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York. Washington, DC Alliance for Excellent Education.

Robinson, L. K., & Howell, K. W. (2008). Best practices in curriculum-based evaluation & written expression. In A. Thomas & J. Grimes (Eds.), Best Practices in School Psychology V (pp. 439-452). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists.

Saddler, B. (2005). Sentence combining: A sentence-level writing intervention. Reading Teacher, 58, 468-471.

Strong, W. (1986). Creative approaches to sentence combining. Urbana, IL: ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication Skills & National Council of Teachers of English.

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Combining sentences encourages students to take two or more short, choppy sentences and combine them into one effective sentence - to make their writing more readable and engaging. Sentence combining is a skill that develops over several short practice sessions.

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Additional resources to support the implementation of The Hochman Method Ⓡ

Book Resources

Free access to The Writing Revolution (Hochman & Wexler, 2017) Book Resources for all educators. Which includes:

Customizable Templates

Activities for Students

Tips with TWR Webinars

And more!

Resource Library

Access is only for TWR-trained educators. Includes everything in our free Book Resources and more! Check your eligibility for access.

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Online Resources - The Writing Revolution

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Additional resources to support the implementation of The Hochman Method Ⓡ Book Resources Free access to The Writing Revolution (Hochman & Wexler, 2017) Book Resources for all educators. Which includes: Customizable Templates Activities for Students Tips with TWR Webinars And more! Resource Library Access is only for TWR-trained educators.

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Prewriting is the act of brainstorming, imagining, and generating ideas that ultimately express the student’s thoughts and emotions.Learners with dyslexia require this step to feel comfortable with putting ideas on paper without the pressure of correct mechanics or the daunting feeling of filling a blank piece of paper.Using technology can create freedom, safety, and confidence in the writing process for a learner with dyslexia to use their strengths.

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Though it's sometimes seen as old-fashioned, dictation can be useful in teaching early elementary students to spell.

Despite the fact that the word dictation has negative connotations, I've found that the practice itself has benefits. It promotes the learning not only of spelling in context but also of correct sentence structure and punctuation. And it doesn't hurt that I hear whoops of excitement as I conduct my weekly dictation exercise with my students.

Dictation can be a useful practice for many grade levels and subject areas. When I first started teaching 13 years ago, I used dictation with English language learners to develop their listening and writing skills, and later I used it with teenagers during mainstream English classes. If you're a middle or high school teacher, I'd highly recommend learning about the dictogloss activity, in which students take notes as a text is read aloud and then work in groups to reconstruct the original text.

Using Dictation in Spelling Instruction

I use dictation to engage younger students in spelling instruction. Every week I give my students a focus phoneme to explore, analyze, and practice. I provide them with a list of words that contain that phoneme, color-coded to represent beginner, medium, and advanced words. They see that there are different graphemes for the target phoneme.

Either they select or I assign a few words-the number depends on the ability or age of the student-to analyze in more depth through various games and activities, segmenting their chosen words into phonemes and graphemes. For instance, we play a game in which I think of a word from the class list and students must guess it. They use a chart and ask questions about the phonemes and graphemes within the word to help them guess correctly.

At the end of the week, I conduct my dictation. Depending on the age group I'm teaching, I use different rubrics and ways to provide feedback. At the third- and fourth-grade level, I provide my students with a three-level rubric they can use to assess their work. At the first- and second-grade level, I talk the students through an easier scoring system or print out a very basic three-level rubric.

Here's how I conduct dictation with first and second graders:

I construct three sentences. Each sentence includes three words from the list of words with the focus phoneme, and the sentences increase in spelling complexity. Each sentence also includes as many high frequency words as possible.

I read the first sentence fluently and with expression once, and then in smaller parts as many times as is necessary for all students to write it down. Once students have written the first sentence, I ask them to swap their normal pencil for a red one and get ready to correct their work. It's important to note that I do not collect their scores-therefore, students soon learn that there's no need to cheat as they correct their work.

I write the sentence clearly on the whiteboard and then get my red marker. I announce that students may give themselves a tick, or check mark, if they remembered the capital letter at the beginning of the sentence. (Cue the first whoops of success from students-and if they didn't remember the capital letter this first time, it's highly likely that they will on the next sentence.) I then ask them to give themselves a tick for the period at the end. There are occasions when the sentence will call for an exclamation or question mark, and we discuss and celebrate when students get this correct.

I then underline the three words that have our focus phoneme. Students give themselves a tick if they wrote the correct grapheme for the focus phoneme, even if they haven't spelled the whole word correctly. For instance, I might say, "Give yourself a tick if you used a 'kn' in the word knock." If you assign the words rather than letting students choose, it would be appropriate to expect that the entire word be spelled correctly rather than only the focus phoneme.

I then select a bonus word-one of our high frequency words-and students give themselves a tick if they have spelled this correctly too. For instance, I might say, "The bonus word is she-give yourself a tick if you have spelled she S-H-E."

The students then give themselves a score out of 6 for this sentence and we move on to the next, more challenging sentence.

There's no need for me to collect the scores from this weekly test as they do not inform my teaching of the next week's lessons-I have a separate diagnostic and summative spelling test that I do once a term for this purpose. I see the greatest value of this lesson in the immediate feedback it provides to students in a fun and non-stressful environment.

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How to Use Dictation in Spelling Instruction

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Though it's sometimes seen as old-fashioned, dictation can be useful in teaching early elementary students to spell. Despite the fact that the word dictation has negative connotations, I've found that the practice itself has benefits. It promotes the learning not only of spelling in context but also of correct sentence structure and punctuation.

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Brice, R., Connecting oral and written language through applied writing strategies. Intervention in School and Clinic, 2004. 40: p. 38-47.

Carlisle, J. and C.A. Stone, Exploring the role of morphemes in word reading. Reading Research Quarterly, 2005. 40: p. 428-447.

Carlisle, J., Morphological processes that influence learning to read, in Handbook of language and literacy: Development and disorders, C.A. Stone, et al., Editors. 2004, The Guilford Press: New York.

Green, L., et al., Morphological development in children's writing. Journal of Educational Psychology, 2003. 95: p. 752-761.

Henry, M., Spelling instruction in the upper grades: The etymology/morphology connection. Perspectives, 2005. 31: p. 30-32.

Joshi, R. and P. Aaron, Spelling: Its development, assessment, instruction, and the science of it. Perspectives, 2005. 31: p. 1-4.

Moats, L.C., When older kids can't read. Educational Leadership, 2001. 58(6): p. 36-40.

Nagy, W., V. Berninger, and R. Abbott, Contributions of morphology beyond phonological to literacy outcomes of upper elementary and middle-school students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 2006. 98: p. 134-147.

Tolman, C., Working smarter, not harder: What teachers of reading need to know and be able to teach. Perspectives, 2005. 21: p. 15-23.

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Morphology describes how words are formed from building blocks called morphemes, the smallest unit of meaning in a word. Students who don't understand this structure have trouble recognizing, understanding, and spelling words. Find out how proper instruction can help them learn this key skill.

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Guest blogger Becky Welsch, has a Master's degree in K-8 Education. Becky's certifications include the CEERI Tier I Qualification Exam (aligned with the International Dyslexia Association's Knowledge and Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading). She is a reading clinician at Reading Writing & Comprehension, RW&C, LLC; an online and traditional reading intervention clinic specializing in Structured Literacy methodology.

Learning to read is a complex process that requires children to perform multiple mental tasks simultaneously. When we discuss the roadblocks to learning to read and dyslexia, we often talk about phonics, phonological awareness, fluency, and comprehension. However, one critical but often overlooked component of the reading process is morphological awareness. A morpheme is the smallest meaningful unit of language. For example, the word "jumping" has two morphemes, "jump"

Understanding morphology is crucial in reading development, and morphological interventions must be included in effective reading programs. In their article "Morphological Awareness Intervention for Students Who Struggle with Language and Literacy," Julie A. Wolter and Ginger Collins examine the connection between reading performance and morphological interventions. The authors demonstrate that for students to be able to learn to read and comprehend text, they need to have an explicit awareness of morphological processes. That is, students need to be aware of word parts like base words, prefixes, and suffixes and have direct knowledge of their meaning. There is a direct link between morphological awareness and an increased ability to read and write proficiently.

The connect between morphological understanding, and reading skills were even more apparent in students with dyslexia and other specific learning disabilities. Students who received direct and explicit interventions related to morphological awareness had better reading skills and were more likely to be proficient readers. Direct morphological instruction has also been linked to an increased sight word reading speed as well as increased decoding abilities, both of which lead to increased reading fluency and comprehension.

If a child struggles to understand and manipulate morphemes, their reading will become labored, and comprehension will suffer, especially as they get older and the complexity of the texts they are reading increases. It is imperative that any intervention program has an explicit morphology component introduced in the initial lesson to help struggling readers enhance their skills.

In an effective intervention program, each and every lesson needs to include a morphology component, and parents need to practice morphological skills with their children. Wolter and Collins identified a few critical skills students need when it comes to morphology. The first key understanding each student must have is the ability to segment words into their respective morphemes. For example, when giving the word "coming" , they need to be able to identify that it is composed of "come" and "-ing" to form the new word "coming".

You can help your child become proficient in breaking apart words into morphemes. One method is to use a graphic organizer to help categorize the material, by asking your child to break words apart into prefixes, base words, and suffixes. Each morpheme can be color coded to help organize the information in a meaningful manner that will lead to an increase in reading skills.

A second skill the authors identify is the ability to combine base words and various prefixes and suffixes to make new words. In an effective program, students need to examine different prefixes and suffixes with a variety of base words to create new combinations with a variety of meanings. For example, using the base words "struc, struct" students can build and determine the meaning of a plethora of words like construct, construction, instruct, instructor, destruct, destruction, reconstruction and many, many, more. For the competitive child, take turns building words with the morphemes and see who has the most allowable words!

Finally, Wolter and Collins suggest that students must have explicit instruction in the meanings of a variety of base words and affixes. Once students know these meanings, they can use this knowledge as an anchor to learn new words. For example, knowing that "sect, sec, seg" means "to cut," and "bi-" means "two," students can determine that the meaning of bisect is "to cut into two." This has a clear link to increased vocabulary skills which aid in comprehension of higher level texts and is crucial for advanced reading comprehension.

Children who struggle with reading and spelling benefit from direct, explicit morphological instruction. For instance, during an effective morpheme lesson, students could work with the prefix "inter" and learn that it means "between, among." They would then asked to apply this knowledge to understand the meaning of words like interrupt, interstate, and interpersonal. In doing so, they have the opportunity to practice manipulating morphemes which will increase their vocabulary and their reading abilities.

Another way you could practice morphological skills with your child at home is to use index cards. Use one color to write a variety of base words. The words you choose would be dependent on your child's skill level. For emergent readers, you would want to stick with words like "jump" , "cat" , and other simple words. If your child is more advanced, you could use more difficult words like "struc" or "ject" . You can find a list of age-appropriate base word with a quick internet search. In another color, write affixes which can include prefixes and/or suffixes, depending on the skill level of your child. Have your child match the base words with affixes to form new words. Have them explain how the affix changes the meaning of the base word. This can be as simple as creating plurals to as complicated as adding both a prefix and a suffix.

You can also take advantage of technology to help your child with vocabulary words and morphology elements. One great app developed by Learning Ally can help your child annotate as they are reading. This allows them to find and identify unknown words and affixes. It can also help them highlight and remember other important information. It comes with a built in dictionary to help with unknown vocabulary words as well.

If your child struggles with new vocabulary words and morphological skills, it is not something they will learn on their own. They need direct, explicit instruction in morphology. Just like phonics, it is not something they will just pick up on their own. Morphological awareness is an essential part of the Structured Literacy Framework.

About Learning Ally

Learning Ally is a leading nonprofit ed-tech organization delivering a comprehensive learning solution for struggling readers in elementary, middle and high schools. Our proven solution includes the most extensive library of human-read audiobooks that students want and need to read both at home and at school. This reading experience helps accelerate learning, enables a new level of access to knowledge and powerfully increases confidence and self-belief. Learning Ally empowers over 370,000 students with improved comprehension, vocabulary, fluency, and critical thinking skills. For over 70 years, we have helped transform the lives of struggling readers by bridging the gap between their reading capability and their academic potential as they confidently become lifelong learners who thrive in school and beyond.

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Morphology: A Critical Component In Reading Development

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Guest blogger Becky Welsch, has a Master's degree in K-8 Education. Becky's certifications include the CEERI Tier I Qualification Exam (aligned with the International Dyslexia Association's Knowledge and Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading). She is a reading clinician at Reading Writing & Comprehension, RW&C, LLC; an online and traditional reading intervention clinic specializing in Structured Literacy methodology.

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By Terri Hessler

Do you feel like you have a pretty good grasp on all the -ologies involved in your child's academic evaluation and profile? How about morphology? If that one is iffy, rest assured, you're not alone (Nagy, Carlise, & Goodwin, 2013). Of all the topics in the area of dyslexia instruction, this one may be the least familiar to the most people. Perhaps you know it has something to do with vocabulary, but it also has to do with how words are spelled today, why they are spelled that way, and how they are built or structured, connecting them to their historical development.

This is important information for non-intuitive learners, like many students with dyslexia, who need to learn morphological constructs-such as prefixes, suffixes, and roots-in an explicit, systematic, and structured way. It is also important information for parents/family members to have a general understanding of morphology because inevitably, you will get questions such as, "Why does bicycle mean two wheels but biology doesn't mean two -ologies? The answer is because the prefix in biology is not bi- (two), it is bio- (life). (By the way, -ology means the study of something.) And this spelling stumper: "If I'm supposed to double the f, l, s, or z, at the end of short (that is, one syllable) words, after a short (that is, closed) vowel, why is bus spelled b- u- s and not b- u- s- s?" Answer? Because buss is a word that came into English around the mid-1500s and it means kiss; and bus entered our language 300-some years later, shortened from omnibus.

There are more spelling issues related to vocabulary, and when parents and family members are aware of the morphology of words, they can be both supportive and instructive. For example, a student may remember that chronology has something to do with time, but she may not remember it is a Greek root, but with that prompt from a parent, she would remember that the /k/ phoneme (or sound) should be spelled with the grapheme ch (a grapheme is a letter or letters that represent a phoneme).

If you would like a brief, but great, introduction to morphology-and its importance to non-intuitive and intuitive learners alike, follow the link to the International Dyslexia Association's new fact sheet Morphological Awareness: One Piece of the Literacy Pie.

Here are some other useful resources:

Words: Integrated Decoding and Spelling Instruction Based on Word Origin and Word Structure, . by Marcia Henry (Pro-Ed, Inc. 2010; www.proedinc.com). Although written for use with 3rd graders on up, it can be adapted for younger grades, and is also an excellent tutorial for anyone who could use a refresher, needs some gaps filled in, or who just did not get the literacy information needed to help support or instruct a student with dyslexia struggling to learn to read. Unit 1 covers letter-sound correspondence; Unit 2 covers syllable patterns; and Units 3 and 4 really get into the meat of morphology.

"Teaching Morphology: Enhancing Vocabulary Development and Reading Comprehension" by Mary Stowe, M.Ed.

Because morphology has so much to do with spelling, the spelling fact sheet available from the IDA web site may be helpful - https://dyslexiaida.org/spelling/

The Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity is an invaluable site where you can find "How Parents Can Build a Word Rich Life for Dyslexics."

If you are interested in how teachers are approaching morphology instruction for English language learners in relation to Common Core standards, check out this publication.

http://www.etymonline.com/ is an etymology site where you can find out a word's origin, the approximate time it first appeared in writing, and its meaning, as well as other dictionary-type information.

You could spend all day at wordworkskingston.com. This is a landing page from which you can branch out depending on what you are looking for. Information rich!

"Investigations" Forum is a compilation of words that are hot-linked to more information about the history and relatives of the words. It is compiled by the site founder, Pete Bowers, with help from other teachers and students at the Nuevo School. There are explanatory videos with word-print overlays, PDFs, and enrichment material (e.g., video and text of President Obama's eulogy for Reverend Pinckney in the study of <grace> and <subjugation>).

Have you seen a word mini-matrix like this?

These mini-matrices are great for depicting word building by showing prefixes, roots/bases, and suffixes. This interactive site allows you to build your own! http://www.neilramsden.co.uk/spelling/matrix/temp/index.html

References

Henry, M. K. (2010). Words: Integrated decoding and spelling instruction based on word origin and word structure (2 nd ed). Austin, TX: Pro-Ed., Inc.

Nagy, W. E., Carlise, J. F., & Goodwin, A. P. (2013). Morphological knowledge and literacy acquisition. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 47(1), 3-12.

Dr. Terri Hessler is an associate professor of special education at The Ohio State University at Newark. Her research interest involves interventions to improve academic performance for children with high incidence disabilities, especially those with dyslexia, as well as those considered at risk for being identified as having high incidence disabilities. Prior to her experience in higher education, she taught English/language arts to adolescents and was a resource teacher for adolescents with specific learning disabilities.
Copyright © 2017 International Dyslexia Association (IDA). Opinions expressed in The Dyslexia Connection and/or via links do not necessarily reflect those of IDA. We encourage sharing of Dyslexia Connection articles. If portions are cited, please make appropriate reference. Articles may not be reprinted for the purpose of resale. Permission to republish this article is available from info@dyslexiaida.org.

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Morphology 101 - International Dyslexia Association

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Morphological Awareness: One Piece of the Literacy Pie - International Dyslexia Association

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Multisensory Instruction | A Dyslexia Awareness Video

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Microsoft has made two important announcements on its Education blog this morning. First of all, Immersive Reader, the company's tool to improve reading and writing comprehension in apps like OneNote is now available as an Azure Cognitive Service . This means that third-party developers can integrate Immersive Reader in their apps, and Microsoft shared a list of 15 new parters today.

NEW! We are launching the public preview of Immersive Reader as an Azure Cognitive Service 🚀, which means any #EdTech app or publisher can integrate Immersive Reader! Early partners 👇 #edchat #accessibility #MIEExpert #MicrosoftEDU

Details: https://t.co/rPp0oLwIXS pic.twitter.com/kkKZtaGTP9

- Mike Tholfsen (@mtholfsen) June 20, 2019

Immersive is also coming to several Microsoft apps including Forms, Whiteboard, and even Minecraft: Education Edition. "We want to allow all students to engage in Minecraft: EE, and this includes reading signs, boards, in any form or any language," explained Mike Tholfsen, Product Manager on the Microsoft Education team.

In addition to expanding Immersive Reader to many more apps, Microsoft also announced major news for students and teachers with Google EDU accounts. Starting in the US, Microsoft will allow G Suite for Education users to sign in to Office 365 for free with their Google accounts, and access apps and experiences such as OneNote, Immersive Reader, and Microsoft Teams.

NEW! Teachers & Students will be able to login & use free @Office365 apps with their Google EDU account 😱

Use G-Suite & Google Classroom along with apps like #OneNote 💜, Immersive Reader, and @MicrosoftTeams #edtech #edchat #ISTE19 #MicrosoftEDU

👉 https://t.co/b0J9eSSxit pic.twitter.com/9goH3ugjPr

- Mike Tholfsen (@mtholfsen) June 20, 2019

The Customer preview of what Microsoft calls "simpler sign-on" will work with Chromebooks that have already been set up by IT admins, qs the solution will require a new version of Microsoft's Office Online extension for Google Chrome. "With simpler sign-on, once you sign in to your school's Chromebook, you can be automatically signed in to Office 365 in just two clicks, without retyping a username or password," the blog post reads.

Microsoft is acknowledging that Google Education tools are already popular in US classrooms, but the software will make it easy for teachers and students to transition to Microsoft apps. As an example, Microsoft has built a tool to import content from Google Classroom to a OneNote Class Notebook. "You'll be able to create and distribute assignments in OneNote and push the grades back to Classroom, so you can view all your assignments and grades in one place," the company explained.

To join the Customer Preview of Office 365 for Google Education customers, Microsoft is inviting school districts and their IT admins to sign up on this page. Microsoft will provide free guidance to school districts and even help IT admins do all the configuration for free.

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Microsoft opens Immersive Reader to 3rd parties, brings Office 365 to Google Education customers in the US - OnMSFT.com

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Microsoft annouced today that it's making its Immersive Reader tool is now available as an Azure Cognitive Service, and the company is also allow G Suite for Education users to sign in to Office 365 for free with their Google accounts.

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Technology is a game-changer for any dyslexic learner.

Assistive technologies like spell check or speech to text provide a level playing field for a student to be able to communicate their full understanding and ideas.

Technology allows a learner with dyslexia to take ownership of their learning by customizing their experience. By changing the spacing and size of the font, distinguishing the syllables within a word, or having an unfamiliar word read aloud, students with dyslexia can access a text independently that they wouldn't be able to otherwise.

Tools like Immersive Reader read text aloud, helping dyslexic learners to avoid fatigue or overwhelm. This allows learners to focus on comprehension.

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Explain Everything & Keynote templates to support them
Book Creator
Visual Schedules can be recorded on an ipad
Take photo's of the whiteboard and prompts (flip charts etc) on an ipad or phone so that they have their prompts in front of them. A split screen on an ipad is invaluable.

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Chunking
Mind Maps
Visuals
Small steps - in sequence
Dyslexic brain takes longer to get from A to B
Details can be hard
Organisation, logic and systems are also tricky

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Dyslexics need more time to think, process and respond without pressure.

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Dyslexics need more time to think, process and respond without pressure.

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It's important for students with dyslexia to have positive role models that can speak openly and honestly about their own experiences with having dyslexia.

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It's important for students with dyslexia to have positive role models that can speak openly and honestly about their own experiences with having dyslexia.

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Research tells us that dyslexic thinking skills 100% match with the skills needed in the workplace today – and in the future (as identified by the World Economic Forum), which is why it’s more important than ever to spot the strengths and support the challenges.

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Research tells us that dyslexic thinking skills 100% match with the skills needed in the workplace today – and in the future (as identified by the World Economic Forum), which is why it’s more important than ever to spot the strengths and support the challenges.

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How might you encourage your students to develop a positive attitude towards their strengths and their struggles?

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How might you encourage your students to develop a positive attitude towards their strengths and their struggles?

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What things can you embed into a class climate that will develop a learning environment that is inclusive for all, including those with dyslexia?

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What things can you embed into a class climate that will develop a learning environment that is inclusive for all, including those with dyslexia?

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Lesson planning with Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

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Understood.org is the resource that helps the 70 million people with learning and thinking differences anticipate the challenges, barriers, or opportunities in life and confidently reach their potential.

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Empowering Educators

According to the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 report (Newman et al., 2011), the two predictors of long-term success for students with learning disabilities are (a) supportive teachers who understand their learning differences and (b) close relationships with mentors. We faciliate both.

NoticeAbility has designed an online instructor training program that prepares facilitators to deliver its enrichment curricula in schools, homeschool and afterschool settings. Instructors may be traditional educators, tutors, parents or caregivers. The only prerequisites are compassion, patience, and a desire to mentor. NoticeAbility will provide you with the rest: easy to follow lesson plans, classroom instructions and even teacher scripts!
↓ Download the organizational overview

Instructor Training

Our 2-hour online training program provides instructors with the tools they need to facilitate a NoticeAbility course. The self-paced course provides insights into the dyslexic experience, the correlation between social emotional learning interventions and academic performance, and the step-by-step instructions needed to facilitate a course. Upon successful completion of the training, Instructors will receive a course materials book.

Curricula Implementation

Each NoticeAbility course introduces students to professions that highlight the neurological strengths of the dyslexic mind (entrepreneurship, engineering, architecture, and art). Our curricula are implemented through multiple modalities (video instruction, graphics, illustrated aids & audio presentations). Students participate in project-based exersizes that foster social-emotional learning and executive functioning skills.

Class A: Online Learning

Students have secure, individualized access to NoticeAbility's online learning platform. Each module housed on the platform contains 2-3 videos of (approximately) 20 minutes of learning content. During each module, students explore the course content of the week, the corresponding strengths of dyslexia, and the social-emotional skills required to succeed in the team-based exercises.

Instructors are encouraged to facilitate Class A in a location where students have access to their own desktop computer, laptop, or tablet which enables students to learn at their own pace. The course materials book includes clarifying questions that instructors can use to ensure that students have understood the content and concepts.

Class B: Collaborative Team Learning

Students apply the knowledge they have acquired during Class A to a team-based, experiential learning projects. In NoticeAbility's Entrepreneurs & Innovators curriculum, students work in teams to ideate a unique product that addresses a common problem. In our Engineering & Architecture course, students work use a 3D computer rendering program to create residential homes, landscape architecture and civil engineering for inhabitants of a unique biome. In our Consenses Arts, students engage in a game of 'telephone' using studio and performance art to communicate.

Throughout all of NoticeAbility courses, instructors provide students with guidance on using active listening, conflict resolution, and negotiation techniques to ensure the success of group work.

The most important thing gained from the session is being given the opportunity to start to make a positive difference in a students life.
- Instructor Training Participant

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Empowering Educators According to the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 report (Newman et al., 2011), the two predictors of long-term success for students with learning disabilities are (a) supportive teachers who understand their learning differences and (b) close relationships with mentors. We faciliate both.

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Rote learning, memorization, and teaching math in isolation aren't effective strategies for learners with dyslexia. Learners with dyslexia tend to be big picture thinkers who benefit from tackling real-world problems and exploring larger math concepts.

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Speed doesn't directly correlate with intelligence. How do you ensure that all your students have an opportunity to share what they know without penalizing them for the time it may take them to finish?

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Tend to be out-of-the-box thinkers and good problem solvers. Yet they might also struggle to organize and recall details and procedures.

Need time to process and organize their thoughts.

Benefit from instructions that are broken down into parts with visual reminders.

Benefit from organizational tools to assist with abstract processes, such as writing.

Find success with using graphic organizers, mind maps, speech to text apps, and visual outlines to express themselves.

Can flourish in a classroom with a consistent schedule and an explicit organizational system.

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Understood - For Learning and Thinking Differences

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Counting and Comparing Difficulties
Subitizing is the ability to recognize a number of briefly presented items without actually counting.
A common response to students who are having counting problems is to simply have them do daily counting practice; however, students with counting and comparing difficulties also benefit from practice that utilizes patterns and relationships. These strategies improve their ability to conceptualize and compare numbers without counting. Data in a study of dyslexic students who had difficulty with basic arithmetic skills (Fischer B., Kongeter A., Hartnegg K., 2008) showed that dyslexic children could also improve subitizing and visual counting through daily practice. It is important to distinguish the whole-to part process involved with this training. Not all daily counting practice is created equal. These dyslexic students did not achieve their gains in arithmetic merely through the process of counting. They were taught counting strategies for many years to add and subtract numbers with little benefit to their overall concept of number. Students made their gains because they were supplied with a whole- or gestalt then they combined subordinate parts to reconstruct the image. Over time they improved their ability to match quantity with successively larger patterns.

(See the example strategy below.)

Example Strategy: Using Icons of Quantity To Teach Whole-to-Part Relationships

Woodin: The ability to identify a subordinate quantity in relation to a whole enables these quantities to be seen in a relational context that fosters comparison without employing the inefficient and often inaccurate process of counting. The following exercise explains a whole-to-part procedure that is driven by a concrete visual model. Using a whole-to-part model, place five pieces of cereal on a table in a canonical ": * : " pattern. Model a subtraction event by removing pieces. Label the process by making a subtraction sentence, then let the student replace the pieces, and label this action with a related addition fact:

Teacher: "How many are you starting with?"

Student: "Five."

-The teacher removes the center piece of cereal to leave a square arrangement.

Teacher: "Tell me what happened."

Student: "We had five, you took away one and four are left."

Teacher: "Say the same thing with a number sentence."

Student: "5 - 1 = 4."

-The teacher hands the piece of cereal to the student.

Teacher: "Put this back and make a number sentence." (: : + * = : * :).

Student: "4 + 1 = 5."

Example Strategy: Using Patterns To Support Number Comparisons

Woodin has seen impressive results from instruction that incorporates visual patterning. Consistent graphic organizers that relate quantities to both five and ten provide the structure necessary to develop cardinality with numbers one through ten, and then extend this knowledge to the base-ten system. Consider the following patterns that relate to the gestalts of five and ten.

Each of these icons of quantity is subordinate to the gestalt of the Ten Icon (Woodin, 1995). Using the Ten Icon as a reference, the other icons represent a quantity of items that are visible, as well as an identifiable void that is the missing addend to make 10. Additional shading allows comparison to 5. For example, the Six Icon is made with a blue component of 5 and one red block: (6 = 5 + 1). In reference to the Ten Icon, the 6 is missing a square arrangement of 4 red blocks: (10 = 6 + 4). All of the missing addends to 10 may be driven by flashing an Icon card, asking the name of the card and the missing shape or number needed to make ten. See an example of this technique by viewing the video below.

Strategy Demonstration: Prompt the Missing Addends to 10

Quantities that are presented in concrete form, or represented by a diagram, are not subject to reversals. With the circles/dots at the left, there's no change of misreading the quantity they represent. Consider an Arabic "4," which can be incorrectly written in its mirrored form, versus a square pattern with an identical mirror image. These patterns can be used to diagram addition or subtraction problems. An "X" is used as an efficient way of producing a group of five in the following to make icons of 6 and 7. When addition problems are diagramed with Icon patterns, the sum emerges from the two addends. The following video clip illustrates the Icon addition process:

Patterning Should Be Extended to the Multiplication Process

Generate the 2x facts by stamping finger patterns on a template like the one pictured above. The teacher should write the number of fingers to be stamped in the top circle. The student then holds out that number of fingers, dips them in paint, and stamps this quantity onto the template "two times." The student should first stamp his fingers at the top of the template, then duplicate the same pattern again below it. From this student-centered location the student produces a concrete diagram of multiplication from his primary frame of reference. The process of stamping the quantity "two times" provides the student with a concrete definition of the "times: X" multiplication operation and sign.

Example Strategies: Finger Stamping the 2x Facts

Strategy I: Stamp 3 two times

Use the student's right hand to produce patterns of two times: one, two, three, or four fingers. Have the student dip his right-hand fingers in red paint, then "stamp" the pattern twice on the red portion of the template. The example shown above depicts stamping 2 x 3 = 6. Dip three fingers on the right hand in red paint and stamp them twice.

The six red dots can be smeared into an Arabic "6" when done.

To stamp numbers 5 and larger "two times," the left-hand fingers will be needed. Dip the left-hand fingers in blue paint, then extend additional right (red) fingers necessary to match the number. The stamped quantities of fingerprints display a chunked depiction of the product that aligns with base ten place value. A blue pattern of ten will be produced on the left in the ten's place. Additional red prints will be produced on the right.

Strategy II: Stamp 8 Two Times

Extend all left-hand fingers and dip them in blue finger paint. Extend three right-hand fingers and dip them in red paint. Stamp both hands (two times) on the paper. By stamping all eight fingers two times, the student will create the product: 1 group of ten blue fingerprints on the left-in the ten's place, and six red prints on the right-in the ones place: "2 x 8 = 16." The following movie demonstrates the process of creating the 2x products with the finger-stamping technique.

Using a Clock Face To Chunk and Organize Information

Download the Graphic Organizer for this Exercise. Click here.
Chris Woodin has graciously allowed us to offer PDFs of some of the graphic organizers he uses in his classroom. To see more organizers and information, click here.

The 12 clock positions of the analog clock may be used to learn and compare the 5x facts. This is accomplished through a series of gross motor kinesthetic activities that initially place the student at the center of a large clock dial, facing the 12 position. From this student-centered location the student internalizes the relative number locations from his primary reference frame. Minute values are then associated with these positions. Clock positions are merged with minute values to create 5x multiplication facts in a relational context. As the student points to the 3 position of the clock, both the number 3 and minute value of 15 may be simultaneously held in memory. The internalized structure of the clock also provides a student with the ability to simultaneously access several facts so they may be compared. This ability is particularly useful when dividing. For instance, if a student were able to visualize 37 between the benchmark minute values of 35 and 40, he would be able to determine that 37 cents would be made with 7, not 8, nickels.

In the following video, students will use the familiar structure of the clock to learn about the 5x fact family within a relational context. Students learn to interact with the analog clock dial from within their primary reference frame, and then externalize this structure to a paper-and-pencil task. Ultimately, they are empowered to create and compare 5x facts.
Tell us if you have your own strategies for your students. Click here.
One educator in Connecticut suggested this for learning the 9 facts: When multiplying the numbers 2 - 9 by 9, the two digits in the resulting answer will add up to nine. So, for instance, 5 x 9 = 45 (4 plus 5 adds up to 9). It's a good way to check your answers.

About Chris Woodin:

Christopher Woodin is a specialist in the field of mathematics and learning disabilities. A graduate of Middlebury College and Harvard Graduate School of Education, he has taught extensively at Landmark School in Massachusetts. At Landmark School's Elementary/Middle School Campus, he holds the Ammerman Chair of Mathematics. Christopher served on the Massachusetts Department of Education's Mathematics 2011 Curriculum Framework Panel, and teaches graduate-level professional development courses during the summer through Landmark's Outreach Program. Chris was the 1997 Massachusetts Learning Disabilities Association (LDA) Samuel Kirk Educator of the Year. He has presented at numerous international LDA and International Dyslexia Association (IDA) conferences, and has led math workshops to audiences across the country.

Christopher has published The Landmark Method of Teaching Arithmetic ©1995 and several journal articles. His latest project, Multiplication and Division Facts for the Whole-to-Part, Visual Learner: An Activity-Based Guide to Developing Fluency with Math Facts, is currently in press and due to be released in 2012. This comprehensive text features the methodologies and many of the activities that are described on The Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity's website. To learn more about Mr. Woodin and his work, please visit his page on the Landmark School website and his own website.

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Math: Counting & Comparing - Yale Dyslexia

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Subitizing is the ability to recognize a number of briefly presented items without actually counting. A common response to students who are having counting problems is to simply have them do daily counting practice; however, students with counting and comparing difficulties also benefit from practice that utilizes patterns and relationships.

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Illuminations Home - National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

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Steve Wyborney's Blog: I'm on a Learning Mission.

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20 Days of Number Sense & Rich Math Talk - for all grades from K-12. That is the goal of this series. Entirely new, exclusive content fills this post in a ready-to-use format that will allow you to deeply explore 4 rich math routines.

By downloading each day, you can have a clear pathway to presenting rich number sense and math discourse opportunities to your students.

Additionally, each day contains multiple levels, so that a 2nd grade teacher, a 5th grade teacher, and a high school teacher can all be using the same file - and can all have access to other grade levels. The opportunities to differentiate across levels abound in this series as well as the opportunities to see into other grade levels from K-12.

Days 1-5
I've opened the series with a brand new set of Estimation Clipboards. The Estimation Clipboard strategy is a very invitational way to draw students into rich number sense discussions as it layers in more and more context and continues to provide students with estimation opportunities. The Estimation Clipboard strategy is also where a very important math instructional reality becomes abundantly clear: Writing is a powerful springboard into math discourse. As students WRITE their estimates (particularly for images 3 & 4) the math talk in your classroom will become very rich. You'll find the power in the pattern of (1) students estimating (2) writing their estimate (3) explaining what their estimate is, and why they chose it. Then right before each reveal, your classroom will become very quite in anticipation of the reveal. Don't be surprised if there is a lot cheering as the answers are revealed.

Days 1-5 have set the stage with The Estimation Clipboard. Not only have the 20 Days of Number Sense and Rich Math Talk begun, but both students and teachers have detected the power of invitations, estimation, writing, sharing their ideas aloud, and experiencing the joy and wonder of math.

Day 1 - The Estimation Clipboard
Day 2 - The Estimation Clipboard
Day 3 - The Estimation Clipboard

Day 4 - The Estimation Clipboard
Day 5 - The Estimation Clipboard Days 6-10
After the highly invitational nature of the Estimation Clipboard, opportunities to richly explore numbers continue in the Splat! images which are all brand new - and are all designed to work in both PowerPoint and Google Slides (just like everything else in this series - so feel free to use either one).

Ranging from Splats through 10 through Fraction Splats! and now including 10 of the most challenging Splats! that I have ever publicly released, your students will have very rich opportunities to lean into number sense and richly discuss their mathematical thinking while also hearing from other students. They will be able to see and explore multiple strategies for decomposing numbers, adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, and connecting many concepts together.

Since every day includes materials across a wide range of grade levels, there is also a really good opportunity to take a look at content from other grade levels and offer even more challenges to your students.

Let's take a closer look at each of the Splat! levels include in 20 Days of Number Sense and Rich Math Talk.

Splat! Level A includes numbers through 10 and is ideal for grades K-1. In these sequences the dots appear so that students can count them. Then, when you click, the total number appears in the corner. On the next click, the SPLAT appears and covers some of the dots. The immediate question is, "How many dots are under the Splat?" You will be amazed at how many different ways students see this, solve this, and even how they mentally move the dots around to decompose and make sense of the numbers. If you look at the images below, you'll see that some of the Splats separate the visible numbers and create a Part-Part-Part-Whole scenario. Splat Level A appears in all 5 days.

Splat! Level B includes numbers through 10 and is ideal for grades 1-2. It also provides the first example of a grade level (kindergarten) that may recognize the opportunity to venture to higher levels. Just like in Level A, the first click introduces the dots, the next click brings in the Splat and the question, and then the Number Sense and Rich Math Talk begins. When I use numbers through 20 in the classroom, I sometimes quickly move through the counting step by saying, "Here are some dots. There are 19 of them. This is the Splat!" I find that counting so many dots can slow down the opportunities that the Splat introduces. Of course, counting is critical, and so is finding many different ways to count, so at other times I spend more time on a variety of grouping and counting methods. The reality is that there are so many opportunities in these slides that you have many opportunities to focus on a wide range of concepts.

The images in Splat! Level C are some of the most wide-ranging images I have ever worked with. It offers opportunities across so many grade levels. I've labeled it as primarily matching grades 2-5, but I've seen it used very effectively in many grade levels. Level C is where multiplication and division begin to play a much stronger role. While students in younger grades may access the image above (the one that shows 14) by adding, subtracting, grouping, counting on, repeatedly adding 3 to 5, or repeatedly subtracting 5 from 14, I've seen other strategies across grade levels. For example, fourth grade students sometimes view it as 14 ÷ 3 with a remainder of 5. Likewise, high school students have viewed is as 3x + 5 = 14. Imagine the power of the conversation among the students across those grade levels!

Splat! Level D

Splat! Level D

A very interesting option opens up in Splat! Level D. In the images above you are seeing the first of the reveal clicks. In the moment before this - when all of the Splats are opaque, and none of the dots beneath the can be seen - students approach a new question, which is "What could the total be?" In the first image above, before it is revealed that each Splat is covering 3 dots, students find themselves working with the concepts that the total must be 3 more than a multiple of 3, so the total must be a multiple of 3. However, in the second picture above (again before the first Splat is revealed like you see in the picture) students can see that the total is unknown, that there are 4 visible dots, and that there are 7 splats. By rule, each splat is covering the same number. So students can work with the concepts such as that total must be 4 more than a multiple of 7. As the identify possible totals, they can see that it could be 4, 11, 18, 25, ... Then when you choose to reveal the value of a Splat by clicking, you'll see a single Splat turn transparent (which is what you see in the images above) and the students can determine what the total number of dots is. You may expect the students to use multiplication to do so, and many will, but they will also surprise you with a wide number of strategies that you may never have expected. They are showcasing both Number Sense & Rich Math Talk!

Level E is a favorite of many teachers. In this level, all of the whole dots and all of the fractional parts of a dot can be seen. Then when you click, the Splat appears, and covers some of the whole dots and fractional parts. The immediate question becomes, "What is the value beneath the Splat?" I am amazed at how students approach these questions.

Level F is similar to the previous level with one exception. While, Level E allow the students to see all of the images before the Splat appeared, Level F simply presents the total, the Splat, and the visible parts of the total all at the same time. Students once again bring very impressive insights into the conversation. It's Number Sense and Rich Math Talk and the way that students contribute to one another's insights is eye-opening.

Level G allows the students to see the all of the whole numbers and all of the fractions on the screen and gives the students the opportunity to determine the total. When you click the total will appear. Then, with the next click, multiple Splats will appear on the screen. By rule, each of the Splats is covering the same number (the same value), although those numbers may be represented in different ways. The students task is to determine the value of the Splats (not the specific pieces) under each Splat.

Level H is similar Level G, accept in Level H the Splats all appear at the very beginning, so the first image the students see are just line the ones that are showing above. The question is, "What is the value of each Splat?" Within Level, H (on days 9 & 10), I have included 10 of the most challenging Splat questions I have ever publicly released.

Remember that I've written slides for ALL levels on EVERY day. Download the day you are on, find the level you want to work with, and let your students exercise their Number Sense and engage in Rich Math Talk.

Also, consider challenging your students by trying out 2-3 slides from another level.
Day 6 - Exclusive Splat Sequences
Day 7 - Exclusive Splat Sequences

Day 8 - Exclusive Splat Sequences

Day 9 - Exclusive Splat Sequences

Day 10 - Exclusive Splat Sequences
Days 11-15
Exclusive Esti-Mysteries

15 brand new Esti-Mysteries fill these 5 days, and each day includes 3 different levels, ranging from kindergarten to advanced math concepts. As a bonus, the first 3 Esti-Mysteries include appearing charts on the screen. Additionally, 2 of the Esti-Mysteries include multiple perspectives and hidden clues that can be found in the 2nd image.

Esti-Mysteries strongly call upon number sense and promote rich math talk while also giving students rich opportunities to COMBINE estimation with a range of math concepts in the context of rich math talk. Students will be discussing their estimates - much like in the first 5 days when the work with the Estimation Clipboard - but will also be looking carefully at math concepts and seeing how those concepts are interrelated.

Day 11 - Exclusive Esti-Mysteries

Day 12 - Exclusive Esti-Mysteries
Day 13 - Exclusive Esti-Mysteries Day 14 - Exclusive Esti-Mysteries Day 15 - Exclusive Esti-Mysteries Days 16-20
Exclusive Cube Conversations

The highly visual cube conversations strategy is used in the final 5 days to promote number sense and rich math talk. In addition to brand new Cube Conversations Images, the downloadable set of matching pages will give students clear opportunities to annotate and describe their insights to one another.

As with all other days in this series, there is a very good opportunity to see into other grade level bands, and this can be use to differentiate content, challenge students, and promote even deeper number sense and rich math talk.

At the end of each day there is also a challenging task, which is placed in the highest grade band. The printable PDF includes 2 different versions of each task. One version includes 4 copies so that students will have an opportunity to try out 4 different entry points into the task, while the other page simply offers a larger, easier-to-use version of the image.

The beginning level of Cube Conversations provides very good opportunities to visualize and decompose small numbers in a wide variety of ways. The middle image shown above is animated to showcase 3 different ways that students may see how to decompose the shape. Likely, they will find many more than the 3 examples, but the animated examples typically provide a nice momentum and a clear invitation to seek out many different ways to decompose the number. Then another image appears (like the third one shown above) with 4 additional copies below it so that ideas can be shared with the entire class. As with all levels, every image is also available on the downloadable PDF so that each student can decompose the images on their own and then share their ideas with one another.

Deepening Cube Conversations (grades 2-5) introduce some layers of complexity that allow students to work with additional concepts, such as visualizing sets in multiple ways, visualizing shapes that overlap (so the overlapping cubes may need to be subtracted), and shapes that appear to have holes in them.

The 2nd image above shows layers that will appear when you click (although on the slide you download the images will all be in a single location on the slide). If you look at the middle image closely, you will see how the image has been decomposed into 9 + 3 groups of 3, then 2 groups of 5 and a group of 3 and 5 groups of 1. Still focusing on the blue and yellow shape in the middle image above, you can see why students describe it many ways. For example, a student might say, "I see 3 groups of 5 in the blue and yellow image." If you look carefully, you'll also see 3 groups of 5.

Then moving the the last image in the center picture above (the image which is red, yellow, and blue in the bottom right corner) you can see how a student might say, "I see three groups of five plus three more - but I see it in a different way." Remember, that is just the example page and it is followed by the wide open opportunity presented on the next slide. When you look at the third picture above you can see how a student might describe two groups of 9, two groups of 8, or even 2 groups of 7 while other students describe groups of 2, 3, or 5. You may also hear that a student sees a 25 minus two groups of 4 and 2 groups of 1. The possibilities go on and on as your provide students with rich opportunities to explore Number Sense and to explore and describe their insights together.

The routine continues - but at a deeper level - in Textured Cube Conversations. Remember, every level is available on every day in this blog post, and all content in 20 Days of Number Sense and Rich Math Talk is exclusive to this post.

The first image will present a structure, several examples of how the structure can be visually decomposed, and will finally reveal the number of unit cubes. Then a new image will appear with 4 opportunities on the bottom of the screen for students to show their thinking to each other.

All of the Cube Conversations images are available in PDF format so that you can provide each student with their own copy to annotate - and then to share their ideas with one another.

Advanced Cube Conversations will feel very much like a rich task. Two of the Advanced Cube Conversations are illustrated in the pictures above.

The thinking that comes from these tasks is tremendous!

On the downloadable PDF you will find a page with a large image of the structure an an additional page that provides 4 smaller versions of that picture so that students will have multiple opportunities to try out a variety of entry points.

In each case the question is, "This structure is composed of how many unit cubes?"
Day 16 - Exclusive Cube Conversations
Day 17 - Exclusive Cube Conversations

Day 18 - Exclusive Cube Conversations

Day 19 - Exclusive Cube Conversations
Day 20 - Exclusive Cube Conversations
I hope you enjoy 20 Days of Number Sense & Rich Math Talk. If you do, please leave a comment. You can even share who is using it. Perhaps we'll see some classrooms from around the world leaving comments like, "We are using #20DaysNS in Hunters, Washington!"

As always, you can find me on Twitter @stevewyborney

I'll be keeping an eye on #20DaysNS on Twitter.

I wish you well as you work with your students and give them opportunities to develop their numbers sense and engage in rich math talk.

All my best,

Steve

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20 Days of Number Sense & Rich Math Talk (K-12)

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20 Days of Number Sense & Rich Math Talk - for all grades from K-12. That is the goal of this series. Entirely new, exclusive content fills this post in a ready-to-use format that will allow you to deeply explore 4 rich math routines.

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Educational Math Games & Classroom Materials for Elementary Students | Greg Tang Math

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A revolutionary, online math program comprising games, animated books and downloadable materials.

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With the implementation of new standards, assessments, and (for some) new curriculum, teachers are feeling bogged down and yet left out on their own to make sense of it all.

Gain knowledge of how kids learn math so that you can confidently close your textbook and do fun lessons that meet your students where they are.

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Build Math Minds | Learn to LOVE Teaching Math

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With the implementation of new standards, assessments, and (for some) new curriculum, teachers are feeling bogged down and yet left out on their own to make sense of it all. Gain knowledge of how kids learn math so that you can confidently close your textbook and do fun lessons that meet your students where they are.

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I See Maths - be inspired by mathematics

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Providing the ideas, resources and training to deepen learning in primary mathematics. I See Maths makes learning practical, visual and exciting!

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By Brendan R. Hodnett, MAT

Multisensory instruction isn't just for reading. It can also help kids who have trouble with math. The use of sight, touch, hearing, and movement can make it easier to understand what numbers and symbols represent. These 10 multisensory techniques can help kids learn math.

Visualizing with beads or cereal

Using beads, dried beans, or cereal as manipulatives is a great way to have kids represent math operations. For instance, kids might solve an addition sentence by adding two sets of beads together. Or they might find out how much is left after subtracting some beads. Kids can also group together different amounts of the items for multiplication and division.

By moving these items around and seeing how the quantities change, kids have a concrete way of understanding how these math operations work. Manipulatives can also help kids develop number sense and understand amounts.

Building with colored cubes and tiles

Kids can use cubes or tiles to build shapes. This gives them a concrete idea of the measurement and properties of the figures they create.

Tiles and cubes also work great when teaching number patterns and operations. For instance, you can stack cubes in groups of 2, 4, 6, and 8. Then ask kids to build the next stacks in the pattern, adding two cubes each time (10, 12, and so on). After the pattern is complete, help kids make the connection between the stacks and the numbers they represent.

Drawing math problems is a good next step after working with hands-on materials like beads or colored tiles. It's a way for kids to show their thinking - and it takes them one step closer to writing number sentences with numerals and symbols.

For instance, ask kids to solve the multiplication problem 4 × 6 by drawing 6 groups of 4 apples. Or kids can color in 4 rows of 6 square units on graph paper. When they're finished, they'll see 4 groups of 6, or 24 square units colored in.

The act of tapping out numbers can help kids connect symbols to actual amounts, and "feel" the value. This is especially useful for working with multiples.

For instance, ask kids to list multiples of 4. They begin tapping sets of 4, counting as they go. Every fourth number gets a louder tap and is written down ("1, 2, 3, 4! 5, 6, 7, 8! 9, 10, 11, 12!"). In the end, kids have a list they can use to answer multiplication and division problems.

Making musical connections

There are many ways to connect math and music. Kids can use songs to help memorize math rules, for instance.

Playing musical notes can help kids learn grouping or fractional parts. You can play one note on a keyboard and hold it for a count of four. This is the "whole note." Next, you can ask, "How many quarter notes make a whole note?" After some discussion, kids can play four short notes that total the same length as the whole note.

Putting movement into math

Working movement into math practice is an engaging way to help kids retain what they've learned. There are many ways to do this. For instance, kids can demonstrate angles by rotating their body while standing in a hula-hoop.

Here's another example. Write numbers on the outside of a large ball. (These could be whole numbers, fractions, or decimals.) Pass the ball around. Each time someone catches it, they have to do a math operation with the two numbers their hands land on.

One way to introduce kids to regrouping and place value is to have them bundle craft sticks together in groups of 10. (You can also use coffee stirrers.)

For instance, ask kids to solve 45 - 9 using sticks. By collecting 4 bundles of ten and 5 single (or "ones") sticks, they can see how each place in the number 45 holds value. Then, to subtract 9, they need to break apart one of the bundles to make 15 individual sticks. After taking 9 out, this leaves 3 bundles and 6 sticks remaining, or 36.

Building with base 10 blocks

These blocks come in different sizes that represent 1000s (a "cube"), 100s (a "flat"), 10s (a "long"), and 1s (a "unit"). Kids can form numbers with them to identify place value. (They can also use them to perform operations, show regrouping, and find patterns.)

For example, give kids the number 145 and ask them to "build" it using the blocks. Kids need to select one 100-block, four 10-blocks, and five 1-blocks. Then ask, "Which digit has the greatest value: 1, 4, or 5?"

Creating a hundreds chart

A hundreds chart can help kids who struggle with math to see number relationships. For example, give kids a black-and-white 100s grid. (A grid is a large square broken into 100 smaller square units). Ask kids to shade in 1/4 of the whole grid. Then ask them to find the number of square units they colored in (25). The connection is that 1/4 is the same as 25 out of 100, or 25 percent.

Cutting a pizza into slices is a great way to help teach fractions. You can make several pizzas out of construction paper, then cut them into slices of different sizes. This way, kids can "see" fractions like 1/8 or 1/4 by selecting slices of pizza. Using different colors for different size slices lets kids match equivalent fractions like 2/8 and 1/4. Kids can also combine slices to make a "whole" pizza pie!

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Multisensory instruction isn't just for reading. It can also help kids who have trouble with math. The use of sight, touch, hearing, and movement can make it easier to understand what numbers and symbols represent. These 10 multisensory techniques can help kids learn math.

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NLVM manipulatives for Number & Operations