Understand Learning Difficulties

Understanding Reading Challenges

By 3rd grade students should be “reading to learn” and no longer “learning to read”. It’s important to keep in mind that fluency is different from comprehension and both skills need to improve over time. Here are some signs that your student might be struggling with reading comprehension or reading fluency.

Can’t explain the main idea of what they read

Forgets key details

Re-reads 2 or 3 times to fully understand concepts and details, including fiction

Reads very slowly, often using finger to read or mouthing words

Avoids reading and/or refuses to read aloud

Often reverses letters and numbers after 2nd grade

Understands challenging concepts when they are explained but not when they are read

Reading Strategies

Given the complex inter-dependency of skills that drive reading comprehension and fluency, it is key to understand the root cause of reading difficulties before choosing reading strategies. While parents can provide key support and positive reinforcement, struggling readers will benefit from an experienced teacher to help them use reading strategies effectively.

Structured phonics

Self check-ins or providing books of higher interest to ensure engagement. 

Annotate while reading 

Create mind movies to help them visualize the storyline and remember key details

Find plenty of evidence-based strategies that can help develop your emerging reader.

Signs of Writing Problems

By 7^th grade, students should be writing as fluently as they speak. Writing problems can be broadly broken down into writing mechanics (grammar, vocabulary, structure) and content (ideas, flow, and cohesiveness). You also want to consider difficulties with with a student’s ability to write or type efficiently so they don’t resist the physical effort of writing. 

Writing Strategies

As with reading, the best way to improve writing skills is to write more. But students need the right supports to ensure their effective progress.

Memory or Executive Functions, postpone grammar corrections until after the first draft. Have a dictionary or thesaurus readily accessible.

Flexible Thinking, provide help with brainstorming.

Reasoning, provide a structured outline.

Motor skills, use digital tools such as voice recordings and typing help that can make expressing ideas easier.

Effective and efficient writing is essential for all subjects. Writing skills are important for homework, note taking and test taking. Good written communication is one of the most valued skills by employers, so helping a student early on can reap enormous lifelong benefits.

Understanding Memory

Memory can be a bit confusing, because many of us think of ourselves as having a good memory or bad memory. However, memory is not a single skill. Most students have one memory skill that is much stronger than another. Here are common signs of memory difficulties or a student who has high variability in memory skills:

Struggles to remember conversations or instructions

Knows math facts and concepts but struggles with mental math

Remembers the details of what they read but has difficulty remembering math facts, formulas, etc.

Understands what they learn but doesn’t remember when it comes time for homework or a test

Struggles with spelling or vocabulary words despite good comprehension

Often forgets what they just read or can’t remember key details

While it might appear that students are not listening, uninterested or not trying, it could be that they simply cannot remember what they read, saw or heard.

Memory strategies

Fortunately, even if a student has a weaker memory skill you can use strategies around their stronger skills to help them learn more efficiently. Just be sure you accurately understand their strengths and needs so  you are sure to use the strategies that will be most helpful rather than try to use all of them.

Allow students with weaker working memory to use calculators, formulas and other reference materials when solving problems or writing a paper.

Use visual reminders or notes to keep them on track throughout an assignment or multi-step task

Provide pictures and other hands-on reinforcement for students with weaker verbal memory

Teach students with weaker visual memory to verbalize diagrams, charts and images to help their recall

All students will benefit from spacing out their studying and using retrieval practice

Every student benefits from a better understanding of their memory. Memory drives efficiency in school and in life. Better efficiency almost always translates into better grades, more enthusiastic learning, and more time for sleep and extracurriculars.