Books for
 Dyslexic Children

  Dyslexia Parents Resource

Books for Parents

Children Coming to Terms with Dyslexia

Dyslexia Software

• Dyslexia Wonders
  Written by 12-year-old Jennifer Smith, Dyslexia Wonders reveals the daily struggles of a child plagued by dyslexia.
  Happy-go-lucky until she entered Kindergarten, Jennifer seemed like the other bright children her age. She was energetic, curious and talkative. But when it came time to learn the ABCs, to read or to tie her shoes, Jennifer couldn’t comprehend and her world began to slowly collapse.
  As time passed, it became clear to her that she was indeed different from her classmates. She felt alone, afraid and stupid; but most of all, she was ashamed of herself for not being able to learn.
  USA | UK
  
  
  
• The Cat in the Hat
  The kids slumped in their chairs
  Too glum to complain.
  And to make matters worse,
  It started to rain . . .
  The Cat has arrived, and he's got a hat full of fun to save Conrad and Sally from a boring rainy afternoon. Written in buoyant easy-to-read prose (with more than a few hilarious asides from the pesky Fish), this official movie storybook is packed with full-color photos from the film!
  USA | UK
  
  
  
• Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief
  At first sight, the young hero of this book doesn't have much going for him. 12-year-old Percy Jackson is dyslexic, has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, keeps getting thrown out of schools and hasn't seen his father for years.
  He has a nasty, sneering stepfather. The good news is that he is a Greek demi-god, with supernatural powers...
  USA | UK
  
  

• Hooked on Phonics - If your child needs practice sounding out words or stumbles over words like bring, skate, and crowd when s/he reads aloud, this program can help develop reading fluency and challenge him/her with progressive reading improvement. (Recommended by Jay, Texas - 'Who would be without them?')

   

• Jolly Phonics - This systematic phonics program uses a multi-sensory approach and delightful characters (Inky Mouse, Snake, Bee, and Phonic) to teach the letter sounds and how they blend to form words. The program is effective with older children and adults who need special reading and writing help also. (UK)
  'An excellent scheme for teaching phonics to younger children is called ‘Jolly Phonics’. This is a visual, practical and fun approach to letter and sound recognition. Each letter is associated with an ‘action sound’; for example the letter ‘a’ is taught by running the fingers up and down the arm simulating lots of ants running about tickling the arm. The children are encouraged to say the sound that ‘a’ makes at the same time. ‘S’ is taught by simulating the weaving motion of a snake and at the same time hissing the ‘s’ sound. This visual and practical work is interesting and exciting for the pupils and is reinforced and supported with flash cards of each letter in bold with a picture of the corresponding action. Each letter is reinforced and consolidated with practice of correct letter formation in the air, in sand, on colored handwriting paper, mini white boards and on each other’s backs as well as by games trying to find the letter in a feely bag by touch alone. Once the letter has been mastered it is placed in a pot labeled ‘letters we know’. Another pot contains ‘letters we are going to learn’; the pupils enjoy seeing the transfer of letters to the ‘know’ box as they successfully learn them.' (J.D., Bexhill-on-Sea, UK)'
  
  

• Go Phonics - Teacher-developed to provide struggling and natural beginning readers with a strong foundation for decoding the English language. Skills are taught sequentially, one step at a time. With over 70 components, Go Phonics features 48 games that integrate with its workbooks and decodable storybooks.
  
  

• Toe by Toe - The name Toe by Toe was chosen to signify that a student makes progress by the tiniest steps - one toe at a time. However, even though the steps taken are small, the student can clearly measure his or her progress right from the first page. You do not have to be trained in any field of Education to use Toe by Toe. 'A friend recommended “Toe by Toe” to me, and we are slowly working our way through it. It is a chore to him, but he is definitely starting to see the benefits because he is able to break down larger words into syllables now.' (N.A., Kent, UK)
  USA | UK
  
  
• Beacon Street Girls - Random House Audio's Listening Library has secured the audio rights to the 22 books in the tween phenomenon, the Beacon Street Girls, and has released audiobooks for the series. The publisher's goal is to empower pre-teen girls through positive media and strong role models. The Beacon Street Girls was also one of the first series for tweens to include a main character with dyslexia, Maeve Kaplan-Taylor. Maeve plays an important role in helping girls who have difficulty in school see themselves as a Beacon Street Girl.
  USA | UK
  
  
  

• Better Books - UK bookshop specializing in books on dyslexia or for dyslexic children. Supply books worldwide and also undertake displays of books for UK dyslexia associations, etc.
  
  
  
• The Alphabet War: a Story About Dyslexia - a story book for children about Adam, a young dyslexic boy learning to read. Adam represents the creative, talented and imaginative spirit in all of us and the author expertly describes Adam's frustration and near defeat as he learns to overcome his shortcomings with the help of his mother and tutor. Its impossible not to cheer him on as he learns to stop pretending and feeling behind and breaks the "code" to win the war against words. The confidence he gains in himself is emphasized by the colorful, life-like illustrations. Recommended for anyone with a child struggling with dyslexia.
  UK | USA
  
  
• Barrington Stoke (recommended by John Bradford, Dyslexia Parents Resource - 'pocket-sized story books printed on off-white paper, well-spaced out, with many illustrations and good subject-matter, these books are highly recommended for 9- to 14-year old dyslexic readers.'
  
  
• Lacewing Multimedia - educational resources for 7-13 year old dyslexic children, using colorful and original stories and poems which reinforce the teaching points. The website also features fully illustrated children's fiction with sample pages which can be downloaded.
  
  
• Learning Staircase (New Zealand) - Ros Lugg is a specialist teacher and assessor, specializing in learning disabilities (including dyslexia). She and several colleagues set up a resource company to provide resources and support for both children and adults. The resources are designed to be used by specialist teachers, speech/language therapists, tutors, or parents who wish to work with their own children. Most of the materials are game-based and detailed instructions are provided. The resources concentrate on developing the pre-literacy and early literacy skills and there is a teaching manual which can teach parents how to teach alphabet knowledge and spelling and reading skills. Individual advice is available by e-mail. The Learning Staircase also retails leading international software for literacy and numeracy. Ros’s company are particularly proud that many New Zealand schools, speech language therapists, SPELD tutors and parents are now using these materials with great success.
  
  
  
• Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (USA), a nonprofit volunteer organization, is the nation's educational library serving people who cannot effectively read standard print because of visual impairment, dyslexia, or other physical disability. Our mission is to create opportunities for individual success by providing, and promoting the effective use of, accessible educational materials. 'Amy has signed up for Talking Books program through the national Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (which will get any book for the student, even if they have to record it, but charges a small fee).' (C.W., Texas).
  
  
• Reading A-Z - Low cost downloadable materials to teach guided reading, phonics, phonemic awareness, fluency, and comprehension. 'Reading AZ is affordable and the material is excellent. My kids loves it - both my kids fight over who is going to read first.' (S.W., Coventry, UK)
  
  
  
  
  
• AudibleKids - website exclusively dedicated to downloadable children's audiobooks. AudibleKids represents a fun way to help children enjoy great stories and learn to read better. A website where parents, children, authors and educators come together to discover and share great audiobooks.
  
  
  

More books for Parents

Children Coming to Terms with Dyslexia

Dyslexia Software