Learning through Audio
Something that frustrates me is seeing someone ask a dyslexic child to do something, like homework, and then giving them a printed list of instructions! They have magnified the difficulty of the task and made it less achievable before they even start.
For someone with dyslexia, the effort of reading and understanding the instructions may be more difficult than the task itself and they will find themselves exhausted before they are finished. This is something that needs to change if we want to be able to assess their abilities in the task itself. I have found that many of my students are great at a variety of tasks when provided with verbal instructions but falter with a written list.
When having our tutoring sessions, I explain things clearly and give them time to process before completing the task. Each instruction is given in a simple form, and if I am introducing a new term, I will go over that first so they know what it means.
When setting homework, I use a combination of an audio recording and written instructions. I write the instructions first and then record myself saying them, exactly as they are written. This is important as some of the students will listen first and then try to read the written words after they know what to expect, so having the sentences match makes it easier to match the sounds to written words.
Some students only listen to the audio recording at this point and then complete the task that I have set. In this way, I can assess their understanding of the task itself. When recording I pause between each sentence to give them time to pause their recording while they complete that instruction. This has shown to be a very successful method with each student being able to complete more tasks to a higher level than before when provided with written instructions from a teacher.
There are a number of ways in which I can make these audio recordings. On my MacBook, I use Quicktime player but if I need to send a file while out and about I can use voice memos on my phone. If you want to see if this works for your child, try making a short recording and allow them to play it back as often as needed.
I know some parents use this for their daily routine, as a reminder of what is going to happen throughout the day. This is especially useful for a child with a low working memory. It also helps anyone with autistic tendencies to know their schedule ahead of time and can be beneficial to hear it from the voice of someone they trust.
Audio recordings can also be used by a dyslexic person to record their thoughts about a project before they have to try and write it down. Often the worry over whether they are writing something correctly means that they cannot focus on the meaning of their writing, so this helps them to stay on point.
There are many uses for audio recordings and these are just some of them. It is worth trying out to see if it works for you or your child and I hope you will be pleased with the result.
