Scanning Pens on BBC Radio Shropshire

Julia Clouter from Scanning Pens met "The DDC", The Dyslexic Dyslexia Consultant - Elizabeth Wilkinson, and talked about dyslexia, learning differences, assistive technology, and creativity at the Dyslexia Information Day the event generated a lot of local buzz and also became a feature for BBC Radio Shropshire.

Telford’s Brookside, is an area known for social challenge, resident led social re-generation, and high demand for learning support in nearby schools. The day was busy, with many dedicated professionals freely giving their time to talk to families in this immaculately kept, well equipped, and comfortable centre in the heart of the community. Over excellent coffee and cake we shared thoughts about ways to make living with dyslexia (both diagnosed and undiagnosed) a better experience. We talked about how assistive technology can make life-changing differences to people with reading difficulties. We talked about equality of access to learning, work and life opportunities. We listened to local people talk about self-esteem, reading difficulties, and employment challenges. It was a fantastic day enjoyed by all who attended.

At the helm, Elizabeth Wilkinson, (supported by her team of friends and family) has been behind more than a decade of 'not for profit' dyslexia events including Dyslexia Awards and Dyslexia Information Days like this one. Elizabeth thrives from seeing people get the support and information they need. Literally, thousands of people have benefited from her training, support, and determination to share solutions that make the world more dyslexia friendly. At this year's event, visitors were able to learn about dyslexia, receive advice, and discover services. There was guidance and information for all ages and an emphasis on music, poetry, and art that showcased dyslexia as creative asset, not just a disability.

Julia was delighted to attend with Scanning Pens and share information about ReaderPen technology. Paul Shuttleworth from BBC Radio Shropshire attended the event and spent some time talking with me about the "magic" that this little piece of assistive technology does by reading back printed words. And it really is “magic” if you are unable to decode when reading. They talked about self-esteem in school, behaviour, independence in learning and the work place. Paul is also dyslexic and they talked about the creative advantage that can be harnessed if you keep working on your self-esteem and find ways to support the challenges you face.

Not Just Surviving – But Thriving With Dyslexia

The Success Story of Arran Smith –Empowered by Assisted Technology

This month I had the pleasure of talking to Arran Smith who was diagnosed with dyslexia at the age of nine. Today, at the age of thirty-five, he is a very successful businessman and is part of the growing team of dyslexic high flyers who have been recruited by GCHQ, Google, Apple and NASA.

Arran’s own experience of growing up with dyslexia has given him a personal insight into overcoming its problems and he has made a career of explaining to teachers, learners, trainers and business people how a disadvantage can be transformed into something positive when given the right kind of support and with the use of 21st century technology.

His formula for success:

1.     Early Recognition

2.    Good Support

3.     Personal Determination

4.     Resilience

5.     Good Self-esteem

6.     Assistive Technology

Arran has a reading age of nine, a spelling age of eight and has no automatic reading capability. He also grapples with elements of ASD, ADHD,and dyspraxia which make coping with dyslexia more complex. Fortunately for Arran, he developed a keen interest in technology at an early age and realised that it had the potential to help him capitalise on his talents. These crucial discoveries, and an ambition to communicate his ideas, have fired his relentless drive to help others.

When Arran’s dyslexia was diagnosed his parents were very supportive and were determined to secure that help he needed. He eventually received a Statement of Special Educational Needs and benefited from many hours of support from a dedicated teaching assistant. It wasn’t all plain sailing though. Arran can recall feeling anxious about his diagnosis even though he was relieved that it provided an explanation for his reading difficulties. However, knowing that he had dyslexia didn’t help with his feelings for frustration, confusion and anger and sometimes emotional distress. On one occasion a support worker told him that he would never amount to anything because he couldn’t read.

The effect of this remark was so profound that Arran has edited his learning experiences from that period of his life from his memory. However, it did provide the spur for his determination to prove his self worth.

At his senior school in Leicestershire, Arran was supported by an excellent SENCo and teaching team and met many positive influencers who made a huge difference to the path he was able to take. He received additional help from the Leicestershire Dyslexia Association and in due course took on the responsibility for coaching his dyslexic peers. He received an achievers award from the British Dyslexia Association and Rotary Club in recognition of his commitment to youth and community work. Arran still has strong links with his local community and is now the Chairman of the Leicestershire Dyslexia Association where he continues to raise awareness of dyslexia and support young people. More than anything else, Arran says that it was his parent’s positive attitude and the affirming influence of the Dyslexia Association, plus his own determination, that laid the foundations for his success. He is a founder of two companies, is an international speaker and advisor, and is a dyslexia consultant to Microsoft. What holds him aloft is his deep curiosity about his own learning needs and how he can adapt and use the resources around him to realise his ideas. He sees opportunities for projects everywhere and has an unrelenting drive to make technology work for him. He knows that finding the right tools, and receiving the right training, is vital.

Recognising a student’s individuality and building upon their strengths, rather than dwelling on their limitations, are key to building their self-esteem. Resilience is essential in order to cope with inevitable set-backs. Assistive Technology and Educational Technology tools are increasingly accessible, discreet, intuitive, and affordable. For example, Reading Pens that provides text-to-speech immediately.

Arran is a dyslexic adult who used a first generation Wizcom Reading Pen in school. He tells us that it has played an important part in building his self esteem, independence and positive learning outlook. Scanning Pen technology is now sleeker, smarter, more ergonomic, more accurate, and has much more functionality than when Arran was using it in school. These pens are supporting thousands of students towards greater self esteem and giving the opportunity for them to view themselves as capable learners who thrive with assistive technology. How brilliant is that!

Here are some great words of advice from Arran on assistive technology.

“Good technology should help learners to become independent. Matching the technology to a student’s difficulty and training them to use that technology is time well spent. Well-considered technology is empowering because it opens the door to independent learning and supports self-confidence. It should raise achievement and enlightenment - because it brings an understanding that you can actually do something you might have thought was beyond your capabilities.”

Ending on a really positive note, it is fantastic that, at last, we are seeing attitudes change towards recognising the unique strengths of visual, spatial, and lateral thinkers who also happen to have dyslexia.

Telling Stories – how a young reader masked his difficulties in my class

One of my previous students, let’s call him Stuart, loved telling stories. His imagination was fantastic, his language was rich, and he could tell me how people were feeling and what their motivations were without pausing for breath. In fact, he had a back story for everything. “You see”, he would say with eyes sparkling, “the reason that she is so sad, is because her auntie is on holiday, and she always makes the dinner, so mum has to cook, and she burns everything.” Stuart could make all the correct connections with good reasoning and flights of fantasy. He was in his element when describing and sharing ideas and looking at the pictures in his reading book.

I soon realised that Stuart was always chatting, and mostly avoiding getting to the business of reading aloud. During paired reading time he would look at the pictures, skip through the text, take a reasonably good guess at what was happening, and then, he would start talking as fast as he could.

The dynamic changed from enjoyment to frustration as soon as I started to unpick what he was doing. I pointed to the text and said, “Okay, let’s start with this line here and use a piece of paper to hide the words underneath.”  His reaction was to fidget and squirm. Then, when I hid the picture, Stuart ran out of the room. 

By the age of seven, Stuart had already constructed coping strategies to avoid reading, which were very effective. He was praised for his imagination and enthusiasm; he could explain what was happening by looking at the pictures and guessing the content. He could charm anyone into a conversation that would last for the whole of his paired reading time. At home his love of stories was supported with audio books. He was confident with the content of the whole class reading book because he had already listened to it at home and he could put his extensive vocabulary to good use.

As time went on Stuart developed a bladder problem. His mum had told us, “If he asks, he really needs to go!” Toilet breaks were frequent and often coincided with the challenge of reading.

I wonder if this story sounds familiar to you. If so, this is my advice. Keep sharing reading time and allow stories to be shared and imaginative journeys to happen. Make some notes about any avoidance tactics that you have observed.  Keep a close eye on self-esteem. This can be a time when self-defeating behaviours emerge, like negative self talk, hiding, perfectionism, quitting half way through a task, and aggression.

How can we help children like Stuart? Share what you are seeing with friends and professionals. Have you all noticed the same patterns of avoidance? A Google search for visual stress disorders will give you some indicators about how some people struggle to see printed words. You could try asking Stuart to compare sound patterns with letter patterns to see if he is making the connection between the letter and the sound.

For example,

-a as in apple           - o as in orange        - i as in ink         - u as in umbrella           - e as in egg

These short vowel sounds are important building blocks and may give you a clue as to whether Stuart has processed these properly or at all.

Try to keep learning activities fun for Stuart and ask for some advice from the school SENCo. We don’t want him to lose his self-esteem or confidence. He already delights in using language verbally. Continue to encourage him and consider using resources like cards that match pictures and sounds like Letterland Reading Flashcards and Letterland Phonics Touch and Spell Flashcards. I have had lots of success with these cards (and they are not expensive).

At a later stage, or if you can’t spare the time to make these smaller changes, you may want to investigate assistive technology like the user-friendly, discreet, Scanning Pens. They scan text and read individual words or sections aloud or through personal headphones.

The important thing is to recognise that Stuart has a reading difficulty, but that he can be helped. We don’t want his avoidance strategies to escalate or become a barrier to his learning. But we also don’t want to stifle his confidence and creativity. Keep your communication with him positive and start each learning episode by celebrating his strengths. You may have experienced a student just like him.