benrogerswpg's review against another edition
3.0
It was a good reference.
More for parents than anything though.
2.8/5
More for parents than anything though.
2.8/5
slelswick's review against another edition
1.0
No. Just no. Sally Shaywitz goes to great length to detail how a person actually learns to read, which was interesting. Then she adds in a hefty dose of the history of dyslexia, meticulously citing sources. Great. However. Shaywitz does not actually include any concrete methods a parent / teacher can use to teach a struggling child to read. Although she devotes a good amount of page space to listing a bunch of different phonic based reading programs that you can buy. And if you just practice phonics over and over again, the child will eventually learn. No. Just no. Been there done that with school administrators and my child still struggles to read and feels lousy as a result.
The only redeeming chapter in this book was the very last one where Shaywitz offers sage advice on how to explain to your child what dyslexia actually is. Here she uses age appropriate explanations to share with your child that were actually really helpful.
If you are like me, a parent with a ten year old child still reading on a first grade level despite interventions at school, an IEP, and private tutors...well, skip this book. Just don't bother. My search continues, but this book didn't offer anything that wasn't already apparant and already being done.
The only redeeming chapter in this book was the very last one where Shaywitz offers sage advice on how to explain to your child what dyslexia actually is. Here she uses age appropriate explanations to share with your child that were actually really helpful.
If you are like me, a parent with a ten year old child still reading on a first grade level despite interventions at school, an IEP, and private tutors...well, skip this book. Just don't bother. My search continues, but this book didn't offer anything that wasn't already apparant and already being done.
bibliomaniac33's review against another edition
2.0
For all of the hype over this book, I’ve found several websites and videos to be more helpful. Perhaps due to the age of this edition. It was written when NCLB was a shining light of hope instead of the relic it’s now seen as. As a parent, the first 1/4 was helpful, but the rest clearly put a tremendous amount of faith in school system reading programs. The moral of the remaining 3/4 seemed to be: If you simply screen the children early enough and teach them systemic phonics instruction from an early enough age, you won’t have a dyslexia issue. This seems counterintuitive to the earlier point that it’s a processing issue, and therefore reading is going to be more difficult for these kids, full stop. Perhaps I misread, but my overall impression was the author saying that kids who struggle are doing so because they simply didn’t receive early enough intervention. However just because someone is taught phonics, doesn’t mean that the depth or the pacing is correct, especially since dyslexia occurs on a continuum.
In short, this book left me wanting a LOT more info- it did not teach me anything I didn’t already know. I feel like it’s a good general book to hand a parent with no teaching experience, who wants someone else to solve their child’s dyslexia issue in a relatively hands off fashion and simply wants an overview. It’s not a great book for parents who are already familiar with phonics instruction, OG methods, and wants to be the primary driver in addressing and teaching their dyslexic child. It’s clear the author does not believe the parent is in the best position to be their child’s instructor (which is ironic considering how little faith is given to public school dyslexia resources in the same book). I’ll be seeking out additional resources.
If you are reading this review and want to read this book I suggest buying the newer version. Hopefully its been significantly revised.
In short, this book left me wanting a LOT more info- it did not teach me anything I didn’t already know. I feel like it’s a good general book to hand a parent with no teaching experience, who wants someone else to solve their child’s dyslexia issue in a relatively hands off fashion and simply wants an overview. It’s not a great book for parents who are already familiar with phonics instruction, OG methods, and wants to be the primary driver in addressing and teaching their dyslexic child. It’s clear the author does not believe the parent is in the best position to be their child’s instructor (which is ironic considering how little faith is given to public school dyslexia resources in the same book). I’ll be seeking out additional resources.
If you are reading this review and want to read this book I suggest buying the newer version. Hopefully its been significantly revised.
connieaw's review against another edition
4.0
Even though this book is out of date (initially published in 2003), it still has excellent information for parents that suspect that their child has a learning disability and/or dyslexia.
indywonder05's review against another edition
3.0
This is a very techincal book, but exactly what I needed. I did not purchase it but I think I will to have to as a reference. My favorite quote from the book is the following: "The encapsulated weakness [of dyslexia] is often surrounded by a sea of strength: reasoning, problem solving, comprehension, concept formation, critical thinking, general knowledge and vocabulary." Pretty much describes my child to a T :)
shereadsalot's review against another edition
4.0
As someone who works with kids with dyslexia as my job, I feel like this should be mandatory reading. Nobody could ever explain to me exactly why children with dyslexia couldn't pick up on these rules, I just knew they couldn't, and this book made it clear as day what's going on. Very informative and enlightening.
danyell919's review against another edition
5.0
It may have taken me over a year to finish this book, but it was the best book I’ve ever read about dyslexia. It gave me so much encouragement and hope for my son. It also provided so many tips and helpful accommodations that I can be prepared to ask and/or fight for. I highly recommend this book to all educators and any parent who has a child struggling with reading, writing, and/or spelling.
jenlisy's review against another edition
5.0
A must read for any teacher, administrator, or parent of a dyslexic child!