The Dyslexic Advantage is Real
I first encountered Brock and Fernette Eide’s ground-breaking research on dyslexia when they published the first edition of The Dyslexic Advantage, back around 2011. At least that’s when I found it. It changed my life and my career. That book explained how my daughter could be both brilliant and extremely dyslexic. It sent me on a mission to learn how to use dyslexic gifts to inform reading instruction for other dyslexic students.
Dyslexic Brains See Patterns Others Miss
The Eide’s proved that dyslexic brains actually have an advantage over neurotypical brains in pattern recognition. This allows them to spot anomalies in huge data sets, or find the fuzzy tumor in an MRI. It ALSO means that when exposed to large amounts of text they can absorb the patterns of written language despite struggling with letter sounds and syllables. I remembered how dyslexic daughter, Alta, had learned to read by watching the book while I read out loud to her for 10,000 hours!
So I asked my dyslexic students to use audiobooks paired with text. Normally, dyslexic students avoid reading. Audio + text allowed them to view massive amounts of text paired with meaning. It avoided the failure and frustration of trying to read without support.
Magic Happened!
As my students built the habit of looking at text while listening to audio, I noticed their reading comprehension levels soared! I was excited, and so were they! Audiobooks allowed them to keep up with classwork. Even better, audiobooks became a source of pleasure and delight. Reading skills improved dramatically without anxiety, avoidance, or shame.
Audiobooks Became Dyslexia Tools
In 2021, my daughter, now Dr. Alta Graham, and I published a handbook of easy tools for parents, teachers, and tutors working with dyslexic students. Audiobooks + text is the most important tool in Dyslexia Tool Kit Expanded Edition: What to do when phonics isn’t enough.
Talking with Fernette Eide Herself!
Imagine how wonderful it was to be interviewed by Dr. Fernette Eide for the Dyslexic Advantage Newsletter! What an honor, and what a wonderful conversation. We discussed the ways audiobooks improve vocabulary, comprehension and reading level for dyslexic students when used in tandem with text. You can listen to the 40 minute conversation here:
Yvonna Graham, M.Ed.
DYSLEXIA TOOL KIT
www.dyslexiakit.net
@GrahamYvonna
youtube.com/@yvonnagraham