Dyslexia and spelling, punctuation, and grammar
Learn more about how technology can support learners with dyslexia with strengthening fundamental skills.
Understand strengths and challenges
Learners with dyslexia often have great ideas but struggle to get them down on paper and apply the rules of spelling, punctuation, and grammar. They may also experience challenges when editing punctuation and grammar in their work.
To be good at spelling, punctuation, and grammar many learners must memorize a series of information, skills, and rules. Challenges with memory systems can make it difficult for learners with dyslexia to learn and apply these rules since they rely on memorization. Despite the challenges with spelling, punctuation, and grammar, communication is a Dyslexic Thinking skill. Over 71% of people with dyslexia are above average at communicating and go on to excel in careers such as journalism, teaching, and politics.
Provide solutions
To support learners with dyslexia, it's important to focus on the content of their work, not the spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Remember:
- Analysis over criticism
- Content over mechanics
- Process over product
- Growth over perfection
Assistive technologies can aid learners with dyslexia who often struggle to read and recognize what is written accurately and fluently. The best part is that many of these technologies are built into tools learners are already using.
Provide support for fundamentals with Immersive Reader
Immersive Reader, available across Microsoft solutions, offers learners text-decoding solutions that they can use to strengthen spelling and grammar skills. Features and grammar options allow learners to:
- Split words into syllables
- Focus one line at a time
- Highlight specific parts of speech
- Hear any text read aloud to them in over 100 languages
This video shows the power of Immersive Reader in action.
Explore more ways learners can use Immersive Reader.
- Second grader Karrick explains how Immersive Reader has helped overcome challenges of dyslexia.
- Experience how easy-to-use Immersive Reader is with this demonstration.
- Explore how learners can use Immersive Reader in Teams for Education.
- Find out how to use Immersive Reader in Microsoft Edge.
- Learn how to use Immersive Reader in Minecraft: Education Edition.
Build confidence with Microsoft Editor
Microsoft Editor is an intelligent editing tool built into Microsoft 365. It helps learners catch misspellings and check for grammar, capitalization, and punctuation errors. Real-time learning tips provide background and suggestions on things such as vocabulary and punctuation and highlight issues like sentence fragments, missing words, capitalization, and commonly confused words.
Read more to explore how Microsoft Editor can support learners with dyslexia.
Reflection
- How might your learners benefit from using assistive technologies that are built in across tools used for teaching and learning?
- What opportunities do tools like Immersive Reader and Microsoft Editor provide to help learners build confidence in their spelling and grammar skills?