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Oftentimes when I receive my daily email from AMLE, I just glance at the articles and delete them shortly thereafter. However, when this article came through on Monday I immediately knew I was going to keep it around for awhile. Dyslexia has always been really interesting to me for multiple reasons. One of those reasons is that I've loved reading from a very young age and hope that everyone can find enjoyment in reading. Another reason I'm interested in dyslexia is because reading is important to development in so many ways, and now that I'm going to be an educator I'm even more of an advocate for reading daily. If a student is not able to read well or be confident in their reading ability then how are they going to do in school? Answer: The student isn't going to do well; they aren't going to be able to reach their full potential. When the student doesn't do well in school, they are not going to be motivated to learn or do their best. The last reason that dyslexia interests me is that during peer teaching I was given the identity of being a student with dyslexia. I didn't feel like the teaching groups did a great job at addressing my given disability, and I want to know how to be able to best help my students who have dyslexia in the future. This article was a good place for me to start with my knowledge of how to help students with dyslexia. This article taught me more about what dyslexia actually is and how it impacts the lives of students that have this disability. I think it's really important that students go through screening very early on in their schooling. Just like the article says, if dyslexia isn't diagnosed until 3rd grade, then we're already three years behind with that student. Even though there is a lot of focus on helping students with dyslexia in elementary school, those same students don't reach high school age and not need assistance anymore. It's just as important to provide support in secondary education to students with this disability as it is when they are young. Just like we talked about in class, one student is just as important as the the next, and as an educator I need to give each and every student the means necessary to be successful.

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Educators know that most dyslexic students will need interventions and accommodations throughout school, but best practices continue to evolve as more is learned about this reading disability.

Addressing dyslexia should start with universal screening in kindergarten or first grade, if not sooner, says Marilyn Zecher, a language therapist who provides PD with the Atlantic Seaboard Dyslexia Education Center in Maryland.

"If we use a wait-to-fail model and we don't flag students until third grade, they're already three years behind," Zecher says.

Sidebar: Laws and guidelines

When help isn't provided, gaps in vocabulary and background knowledge grow because a student does little reading, which results in a need for intensive and explicit instruction in the structure of language as the student ages, says Louisa Moats, a consultant who's chairing the rewrite of the International Dyslexia Association's Knowledge and Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading.

"In kindergarten, if you do a half-hour a day of intensive instruction, that can have a very beneficial effect," Moats says. "In first grade, it might be 45 minutes but in second and third grade, it's more like an hour. Beyond third grade, it's an hour and a half to two hours."

In the general classroom, some schools are providing accommodations, such as extra time for completing assignments or tests, opportunities to demonstrate knowledge orally, and practice using assistive technology such as audiobooks.

Some students are placed in small groups where they receive explicit and systematic instruction on the structure of language.

A delay in getting help has long-range consequences beyond reading success, says Sally Shaywitz, a professor of learning development at the Yale University School of Medicine and co-director of the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity.

"What happens if you're in school and you're called to read aloud and you can't? The kids start teasing you and the teacher will say, 'How do you not know this?'" Shaywitz says. "Kids get turned off. They begin to think they're stupid, and they begin not to see school as a place for them."
Sidebar: It's never too late to address dyslexia
A look at 'structured literacy'

Dyslexia is the most common developmental reading disability, is lifelong and can range from mild to severe. Estimates of its prevalence range from about 5 percent to 20 percent of all students.

Effective instruction

To reach dyslexic students, many reading experts recommend a structured literacy approach, which is an explicit and systematic way of helping students take apart the sounds of words. Effective instruction includes:

Phonology: Study of the sound structure of spoken words, which includes rhyming.

Sound-symbol association: Connecting sounds with letters or groups of letters. Often called phonics.

Syllable instruction: Helping readers divide unfamiliar words.

Morphology: Study of the smallest units of meaning, such as base words, roots, prefixes and suffixes.

Syntax: Grammar, sentence variation and the mechanics of language.

Semantics: Meaning of words and reading comprehension. Source: International Dyslexia Association

Contrary to what some believe, though, dyslexia is not a problem that causes a reader to reverse letters or read backward. It is a language-based disorder resulting from how the brain processes sounds.

"It's a difficulty in getting to the individual sounds of spoken words-in order to read, you have to be able to connect the letter on the page to the sound it represents," says Shaywitz.

Dyslexic students struggle with decoding, a key literacy skill in which the reader matches letters to their sounds and recognizes patterns that make syllables and words. Dyslexic students can have trouble rhyming, sounding out words, reading fluently and spelling.

They also may struggle with some aspects of math, such word problems or other assignments that rely on word retrieval skills.

To reach dyslexic students, many reading experts recommend the structured literacy approach, which is an explicit and systematic way of helping students take apart the sounds of words.

Along with structured literacy, multisensory instruction can create learning memories in various parts of the brain, Zecher says. This approach uses manipulatives, such as pipe cleaners, beads and paper cut in sections, to teach numeracy and fractions.

A multisensory approach works for young children as well as for middle and high school students who, for example, can use linking cubes to model linear functions in algebra, Zecher says.

Increasing confidence

Districts are seeing success from early identification and intervention. Fort Worth ISD in Texas provides intensive help for about 1,400 students in elementary and middle school, says Sara Arispe, associate superintendent for accountability and data quality.

The district is in its second year of offering students two years of structured literacy instruction for one hour per day, five days per week, in groups no larger than six. The district hired 60 teachers last school year and another 60 this year and provided extensive PD.

Students can also receive accommodations in their regular classroom, such as extra time on assignments or the chance to demonstrate knowledge orally.

As one example of success, Arispe recalls a child who started school eagerly and loved stories but struggled to read, becoming unhappy and resistant to reading. After repeating first grade, he entered the district's intensive program at the beginning of second grade. The child's demeanor and progress improved dramatically by winter break.

Arispe says the child's parent put it this way: "'He looks forward to going to school. He feels confident in himself again and his ability to learn. He's making progress by leaps and bounds.'"

In East Brunswick Public Schools in New Jersey, dyslexic students can read and listen to a wide array of audiobooks.

Adjusting the speed and presentation of the audio enables struggling readers to access books at higher comprehension levels, to build vocabulary and fluency, and to develop a love of literature, says Patricia LaDuca, supervisor of language arts and primary education.

The district added audiobooks and other literacy supports after New Jersey passed new dyslexia education laws a few years ago.

All K3 students in East Brunswick also get more phonics-oriented instruction through a multisensory, structured literacy program offered for about 25 minutes per day. Some of the activities include tapping the sounds of words and building words by manipulating letters.
Eleanor Chute is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
"We've certainly seen some great progress," LaDuca says. "We've seen fewer kids struggling because we're meeting their needs sooner. Kids like to read more, and are reading more at home."

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Educators know that most dyslexic students will need interventions and accommodations throughout school, but best practices continue to evolve as more is learned about this reading disability. Addressing dyslexia should start with universal screening in kindergarten or first grade, if not sooner, says Marilyn Zecher, a language therapist who provides PD with the Atlantic Seaboard Dyslexia Education Center in Maryland.

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This image truly encompasses what I believe about students and their behaviors. As stated earlier, students come from endless different types of backgrounds, and every student has gone and will continue to go through life in different ways and under different circumstances. Establishing a caring relationship based on trust and respect with students in the classroom will be vital to the success of them and me. Setting up class norms and standard operating procedures will also be imperative to the routine of the class in order to use our time effectively. If strong relationships are built and there is no time for students to cause trouble, then class-time will be beneficial to all.

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I chose this image for two reasons. One: Plain and simple it's hilarious. A vast majority of the time teaching is a very serious profession. After all, we are educating the future. But in order to find enjoyment from the job and to not burn out, humor needs to be found just as often. Two: It's a great example of how to put a historical event into context for students. It's important for a teacher to be able to explain situations in more than one way and to find metaphors for situations as well.

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Planning, instruction, and assessment is necessary for teachers to excel at in order to find their students guilty of learning. There has to be an intention behind everything I do as an educator. Following these three important pieces will help me check that my intentions align all the way through a unit. Planning includes unit planning and lesson planning. Based on standards and objectives, making a plan of what is going to be covered in a unit, what the focus of that unit will be, and what information will be covered in each individual lesson throughout that unit is necessary to make sure that I know what I will be teaching and what students will be learning. Figuring out goals of the unit for my students before I plan out instructional methods and forms of assessment is something that will take practice but will benefit me and the students in the long-run. With instruction, including essential questions will be crucial for students' deeper understanding of the material. Essential questions need to be planned out carefully in order to stimulate thought and foster higher order thinking skills. The question needs to have enough scaffolding around it for a student to be able to answer it, but it also can't have just one correct answer. Another vital part of instruction is including academic language. There is language, oral and written, that is used specifically for academic purposes and even more so in content based areas. Students need to learn academic language in order for them to fully understand content within it's context. Syntax, discourse, and vocabulary are all parts of academic language that provide students a way to articulate what they can do and what they know. After instruction, assessment needs to occur in order to be able to find students guilty of learning and give the instructor feedback on what was effective during instruction. The summative assessment that comes at the end of the unit and should have an authentic aspect to it. During instruction, formative assessments, formal and informal, should be taken all the time. Personally, I like thumbs up or down for simple checks of understanding and exit cards for more in-depth checks of understanding. This portion of the class has taught me the most. Before this class I did not know how much time, detail, and thought went into each piece of teaching. There is an extensive amount of planning that goes into each and everyday of instruction and assessment that I will now be more prepared to do and do well.

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Technology is so important in this day and age. It is also a big advantage for educators and students to have at their disposal. 21st Century Skills are good guidelines to follow and use in the classroom. These skills include collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and communication. The ability to work together even when students are not in the same location, the amount of innovation that can take place, the higher order thinking skills that can be tapped into, and the ability to stay in touch despite distance are things that never could have been done in education before now. Technology has changed the game for the better when it comes to education. There are many means of technology that students and teachers can use to further their knowledge. In high school, I didn't use technology much, and one of my biggest concerns about going into education was about my capabilities to use technology effectively. Some of the most useful technology tools I have gained from this class are Quizlet, Padlet, QR codes (I love these!), VoiceThread, and many others. In my future classroom, I would really like to use Google Classroom because it seems like a good resource for teachers to use in their classrooms. I am no longer as nervous about my abilities to use technology in my classroom because of all the resources and technological knowledge this class has provided me with.

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Each and every student is different from the next. Every student has a different identity. As an educator, I will need to take into consideration those identities. If students feel left out because their identity is not being recognized then they will not participate in class. I will need to affirm and empower each student through each individual identity. A huge part of a students identity lies in their culture. Multicultural education is an important piece in supporting students' cultures. This concept of teaching rejects racism, provides basic education, is pervasive, is education for social justice, is critical pedagogy, and is a process. Along with multicultural education, culturally relevant pedagogy is an important piece too. It is especially essential in social studies. Practicing culturally relevant pedagogy in the social studies classroom promotes civil engagement as well as understanding and acceptance of other cultures. One way to do this is to not only focus on important white men from Europe, but focus rather on a body of culturally diverse and notable people from history. This way, students from all types of cultures will be able to see themselves or someone that relates to them. Another way that students are different from one another is that they all have different abilities. Universal Design is an important tool to use in the classroom because it provides an accommodating curriculum that every student can use to their own advantage. By providing different means of representation, of action and expression, and of engagement for students, their learning will be differentiated. This differentiation will also provide the best way(s) of learning for all. For students that need more accommodations than others, services need to be provided to give all students the best chance at academic success, IEPs and 504s will need to be followed. My view on how to approach diverse learners has changed significantly since the beginning of this class. I have become much more informed on culturally diverse students, students with disabilities, students that are gifted, and how my own identity impacts the classroom atmosphere as well. I've been able to discover that I can use identities to my advantage in the classroom.

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Learning is a vulnerable endeavor. Students not only have to become comfortable with you as a teacher, but with their fellow classmates as well. Building community is the most important piece to creating an inviting classroom. If everyone feels comfortable and safe, knows what is expected of them and how to behave, and the routine of the classroom, class-time will be spent learning instead of worrying about logistics. Establishing classroom norms off the bat sets the tone for the rest of the year. One way this can be done is by creating a class charter that the class creates together and collectively agrees and commits to follow. Classroom management is another important piece to create an environment for learning. The number one way to do this is by building strong relationships based on care, respect, and trust. Standard Operating Procedures, including assignment policies, grading scales, attendance policies, leaving the classroom procedures, and materials that are needed daily, need to be put into place so students know exactly what is expected of them. However, when conflict with students regarding their behaviors do arise, using Choice Theory is an effective tool to use with the parties that are involved. The goal of this Theory is that everyone's needs get met through honest, open, and respectful discussion. My view on building community in my future classroom has not changed pre-say, but rather it has been strengthened and reinforced.  From my own experience I've always known that having good relationships with teachers produces a better experience for students. Now that I am the one that will have to be initiating those relationships I am thankful to have strategies in my tool-belt to help me create those connections.