How to Prevent Summer Reading Loss: Essential Strategies for Children with Dyslexia
Hey Mama, Summer is already flying by, and I know many parents are ready for a well-deserved break. The school year can be tough, not just for your child but for you too. Summer offers a nice breather. But for kids with dyslexia, it can bring its own set of challenges.
Have you ever heard of the “summer slide”? It’s the learning loss that happens when school’s out, and although it can impact all children to a certain degree, the summer slide is especially hard on children struggling with dyslexia.
So let’s dive into the risks of the summer slide for dyslexic children and the best strategies to keep them progressing.
What is the Summer Slide?
The summer slide is a well-documented issue where students lose some of the academic gains made during the school year. Research shows that students can lose up to two months of reading skills during the summer break. For children with dyslexia, who already face significant challenges in reading and writing, the summer slide can be even more detrimental. This loss of skills can set them back even further, making it difficult to catch up when school resumes.
The Impact of the Summer Slide
Children with dyslexia often require consistent practice and reinforcement to maintain and improve their reading and writing skills. The summer break, with its lack of structured learning, can lead to a regression in these areas. This regression can manifest in several ways:
- Skill Regression: Students often lose knowledge and skills in key areas such as reading and math. On average, students lose 1-2 months of learning over the summer.
- Reading Fluency Decline: Without regular practice, children may lose some of the reading fluency they developed during the school year, leading to slower reading speeds and reduced accuracy.
- Reduced Vocabulary Growth: The lack of exposure to new words and phrases over the summer can hinder vocabulary expansion, making it harder for children to comprehend more complex texts when they return to school.
- Decreased Reading Comprehension: Without continuous reading, children’s ability to understand and interpret text can decline, affecting their overall academic performance and confidence in reading.
- Lowered Writing Skills: Writing, a skill that requires regular practice, can degrade over the summer. Children may struggle with spelling, grammar, and organizing their thoughts effectively in writing.
- Cumulative Effect: The effects of the summer slide are cumulative. Each year, students may fall further behind, leading to a significant gap in achievement over time.
The Most Effective Dyslexia Intervention For Summer
To combat the summer slide, it is crucial to implement a targeted dyslexia intervention that is not only effective but doesn’t take hours a day to do. We know you don’t want to spend your summer struggling with workbooks and driving to tutoring session after tutoring session. That’s not fun for anyone.
There are three key factors that make a dyslexia treatment plan successful.
1. Short Daily Neurological Exercises
Studies have shown that practicing skills for a shorter time daily is more effective than longer sessions a few times per week. This is due to the brain’s neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change through growth and reorganization. When practicing a new skill, the brain needs to create new and/or strengthen neural pathways for the information to travel.
If you’re fascinated by the incredible ways our brains can change and adapt, you’ll definitely want to explore how these concepts specifically apply to helping children with dyslexia. Our in-depth blog article, “The Science Behind Dyslexia: How Neuroplasticity Can Make a Difference,” delves into the practical applications of neuroplasticity in overcoming reading challenges. Discover actionable strategies and insights that can make a real difference in your child’s learning journey. Read the full article here.
2. Growth Mindset
When our kids face challenges like dyslexia, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and unsure of the best way to help them. But let me tell you, having a growth mindset is absolutely crucial. It’s all about believing that with effort and the right strategies, your child can improve and thrive.
Embracing this mindset not only helps you stay positive and motivated, but it also sets a powerful example for your child. They’ll start to believe in their own ability to grow and learn, which is key to a successful dyslexia intervention plan. Together, you’ll celebrate small victories, adapt to setbacks, and keep pushing forward, knowing that progress is always possible.
With that in mind, here are some practical tips to help you foster a growth mindset in your child as they work to overcome their struggles with dyslexia.
- Celebrate Effort, Not Just Results: Praise your child for their hard work and determination, regardless of the outcome. This reinforces the idea that effort leads to improvement, which is at the heart of a growth mindset.
- Set Realistic and Achievable Goals: Break down larger tasks into smaller, manageable goals. This helps your child experience frequent successes, boosting their confidence and reinforcing the belief that they can overcome challenges with persistence.
- Encourage a Love for Learning: Show enthusiasm for learning new things together. When your child sees you excited about discovery and growth, they’re more likely to adopt the same attitude toward their own learning journey.
- Be Patient and Supportive: Understand that progress may be slow and that setbacks are part of the process. Offer consistent encouragement and remind your child that mistakes are opportunities to learn and grow.
- Use Positive Language: Frame challenges in a positive light. Instead of saying, “This is hard,” try saying, “This is a great chance to learn something new.” Positive language can help shift your child’s perspective and reinforce a growth mindset.
- Consider a Mindset Coach: A mindset coach can be incredibly beneficial for both you and your child. A coach can provide you with tailored strategies to support your child’s growth and help you maintain a positive and resilient outlook. They can guide you through the ups and downs, ensuring that you both stay motivated and focused on long-term progress.
3. Norm-Referenced Assessments
Regularly screening your child’s progress is a vital component of any dyslexia intervention plan. Monitoring areas such as reading, spelling, and phonological awareness allows us to gauge the effectiveness of the interventions and ensure that your child is making meaningful progress. Our program includes comprehensive, norm-referenced assessments at both the start and end of the intervention period, which means we measure your child’s performance compared to their peers.
By evaluating these key areas, we can tailor our approach to meet your child’s unique needs and make necessary adjustments along the way. This continuous feedback loop ensures that the treatment is not only effective but also provides the results your child needs to succeed.
Preventing summer reading loss in children with dyslexia requires a combination of daily practice, a growth mindset, and making learning enjoyable. By incorporating these strategies into your summer routine, you can help your child maintain and even improve their reading and writing skills over the break.
Remember, the goal is to make learning a fun and integral part of your summer. With the right approach, you can ensure that your child returns to school in the fall ready to succeed.
Stay positive and keep encouraging your child. Your support and dedication will make a significant difference in their learning journey.
If your child had a tough school year and their current intervention plan isn’t delivering the results you were hoping for, it might be time to explore other options. Sticking with a plan that isn’t working can be frustrating for both you and your child, and it’s important to find an intervention that truly supports your child’s well-being.
The Retrain The Dyslexic Brain program includes all the key factors a dyslexia intervention needs to be successful, and we’re here to support you every step of the way. We know how challenging this journey can be, but you don’t have to do it alone.
Our program is designed to help your child avoid the summer slide and be set up for success this fall when school is back in session.
Click here to learn more about our program.
