Dyslexia

Students identified as having dyslexia typically experience primary difficulties in phonological awareness, including phonemic awareness and manipulation, single-word reading, reading fluency, and spelling. Consequences may include difficulties in reading comprehension and/or written expression. These difficulties in phonological awareness are unexpected for the student’s age and educational level and are not primarily the result of language difference factors. Additionally, there is often a family history of similar difficulties.  

Primary reading and spelling characteristics of dyslexia:

• Difficulty reading real words in isolation

• Difficulty accurately decoding unfamiliar words

• Slow, inaccurate, or labored oral reading (lack of reading fluency)

• Difficulty with learning to spell

Texas Education Code 38.003

It is important to note that individuals demonstrate differences in degree of impairment and may not exhibit all the characteristics listed above. 

Associated reading and spelling characteristics of dyslexia:

• Segmenting, blending, and manipulating sounds in words (phonemic awareness) 

• Learning the names of letters and their associated sounds 

• Holding information about sounds and words in memory (phonological memory) 

• Rapidly recalling the names of familiar objects, colors, or letters of the alphabet (rapid naming) 

Consequences of dyslexia may include the following: 

• Variable difficulty with aspects of reading comprehension 

• Variable difficulty with aspects of written language 

• Limited vocabulary growth due to reduced reading experiences