How to Help Your Child with Dyslexia

At BetterCare, we understand how challenging it can be when a child struggles with reading, writing, or learning in the same way as their peers. If your child has recently been diagnosed with dyslexia, you might be wondering how best to support them.

In this blog, we’ll explain how to help your child with dyslexia by understanding their learning style, recognising their strengths, and providing practical strategies both at home and at school.

Talking about Dyslexia

When talking to your child about dyslexia, describe it as a different learning style that comes with many strengths. While written language may not be a dyslexic child’s strongest skill, many children with dyslexia are creative, big-picture thinkers who learn best through narrative and storytelling.

There are many famous, successful people with dyslexia, such as Jamie Oliver or Albert Einstein. You can mention people your child admires who might serve as role models, showing that dyslexia does not limit potential.

Because dyslexia is often hereditary, it’s likely that other family members may also learn differently, or may have related conditions such as dysgraphia, dyscalculia, or ADHD. Identifying others who learn differently can help your child feel understood and less singled out.

Use the diagnosis as an opportunity to increase your child’s self-understanding about how they learn and what challenges they face. You might sit down together and go through the assessment report, highlighting the different findings and explaining them in child-friendly language.

Even if this was done with the assessing professional, revisiting the report from time to time can be valuable — especially when your child asks questions or wants to better understand their learning style.

Encourage Multisensory Learning

To effectively help your child with dyslexia, incorporate multisensory approaches that reduce reliance on written language. Some approaches include:

  • Using flashcards and illustrated books

  • Listening to audiobooks, using text-to-speech, or reading aloud together

  • Creating visual lists or mind maps to organise ideas

  • Using rhymes and mnemonics to remember concepts

  • Incorporating movement and physical learning activities

Encourage Interactive Learning

Many children with dyslexia learn best through discussion and interaction. You can support your child by:

  • Talking through ideas together

  • Listening to and telling stories

  • Using quizzes or Q&A sessions

  • Working on projects

  • Giving presentations

  • Interviewing family members about the past

In addition to formal learning, you might find educational video series engaging, such as Horrible Histories or science and nature documentaries. Watch these together and use discussion to reinforce learning.

Be Organised

A supportive learning environment and consistent routine can make a big difference. This might include:

  • Providing a distraction-free space for learning

  • Using sensory supports, like background music or noise-cancelling headphones

  • Breaking tasks into small, manageable goals (e.g., five minutes of reading or writing practice)

  • Taking frequent breaks to maintain focus

Get Support

Work closely with your child’s school to understand how they are providing support. Many learning support teachers implement individual or group programmes for children with dyslexia. They can share strategies that you can also try at home, helping to reinforce learning and confidence.

There are also great resources on the Irish Dyslexia Association’s website (dyslexia.ie), and they run regular online courses for parents and for children.

 

 

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