How to Help Middle School Students with Dyslexia Succeed

Starting middle school can be difficult for all students, but it is especially challenging for those with dyslexia. The demands of more advanced coursework and the responsibilities associated with greater independence can quickly become overwhelming. These students may experience heightened anxiety, feelings of failure, and frustration, particularly with the increased reading and writing demands of middle school across the curriculum. Middle schoolers are expected to engage in a significant volume of reading for independent learning, and writing requirements become greater as well. These literacy tasks require strong fluency, reading comprehension, and the ability to use academic language to convey one's ideas in writing.

Educators play a vital role in easing this transition by recognizing the unique challenges faced by students with dyslexia and implementing specific strategies to support them. Understanding and addressing these hurdles can lead to a smoother, more successful academic journey.

Key challenges that middle school students with dyslexia may face include:

• Increased writing expectations. Middle school students are often asked to compose longer, more complex writing assignments. In addition to drawing on written expression skills that include knowledge of academic language, such writing tasks also require organizational skills and the ability to sequence ideas, an additional set of challenges for some students with dyslexia. Apprehension about a writing assignment can lead to procrastination, fear of making mistakes, anxiety about proofreading, and rushed work that does not reflect a student's true abilities.
• More demanding reading expectations and more challenging materials. To be successful, middle school students must be able to engage in independent grade-level reading outside of class. Students with dyslexia may have lower fluency rates, and they may face reading comprehension challenges as well. In addition, middle school textbooks are often filled with dense text and complex layouts, which can be overwhelming for students with dyslexia. Multi-column formats, small fonts, and visual clutter like sidebars and charts may distract from the main text and disrupt reading comprehension.
• Specialized vocabulary in subjects like science and literature, which often introduce advanced, unfamiliar terminology in the form of complex, multisyllabic words, can challenge students with dyslexia to decode and retain new information. Without adequate support, this can lead to frustration and disengagement.
• Emotional barriers and feelings of inadequacy may cause students with dyslexia to withdraw from classroom activities. Fear of being asked to read aloud or anxiety over negative feedback can lead to avoidance, further diminishing their confidence and participation in class.

The middle school years are a pivotal time for academic and emotional development. Without effective interventions and social-emotional supports, the challenges faced by students with dyslexia can become barriers to their success. It is essential for educators to be proactive in recognizing these struggles and implementing strategies that offer meaningful support.

To help students with dyslexia navigate these academic challenges and succeed, educators can implement targeted strategies that address and support each student’s unique learning needs and help them overcome these challenges.

Understanding Students as Readers and Learners

At the start of a new school year, especially one that begins with the transition to a new middle school campus or building, it is crucial for teachers to understand individual students’ needs so that instruction, intervention, and other supports can be tailored effectively and appropriately. Diagnostic data that delivers a picture of a student’s strengths and challenges can help ensure that educators give each middle school student the accommodations, support, and services they need.

Students who have already been diagnosed with dyslexia typically have rich data and information available within their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), and this can be enormously informative and helpful for middle school teachers across the content areas.

If educators do not have sufficient data for every student who may have an undiagnosed learning and thinking difference such as dyslexia, they’ll require assessment tools that can efficiently give them comprehensive information about each student’s middle school reading skills. Such assessment tools should have the capacity to ascertain whether students have a sturdy base of foundational reading skills to support ongoing literacy development. Ideally, educators should use tools that also provide granular information about reading skills across multiple domains (overall reading mastery, oral reading fluency, phonological awareness, vocabulary, etc.) to enable tailored, targeted support.

Multisensory Approaches to Literacy Instruction

One of the most effective ways to support students with dyslexia in middle school is through identifying any specific gaps in reading, writing, and spelling abilities and then targeting intervention to address the needs. In addition, by incorporating multisensory teaching methods into all aspects of instruction. Traditional teaching approaches that emphasize auditory delivery of information with some visual support may not always meet the needs of students with dyslexia—multisensory instruction offers a proven way for these students to develop and strengthen literacy skills.

Use the Orton-Gillingham (OG) method, an evidence-based multisensory approach that integrates visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile elements to help students build essential literacy skills in an explicit, systematic, and cumulative manner. The OG method focuses on strengthening phonemic awareness, decoding, and comprehension, making it particularly effective for middle school students with dyslexia who have not yet established a solid reading foundation. Once students have learned foundational skills, OG-based approaches can be extremely effective in helping students build increasingly complex reading and writing skills.

• Engage multiple senses by incorporating sensory modalities such as sight, sound, and touch into all lessons. This allows students with dyslexia to access content through different channels, reinforcing their learning and making it more memorable while helping them connect more tangibly with the material.
• Interactive digital multisensory tools, like apps and software that combine auditory, visual, and tactile feedback, work to support reading and writing. Programs that allow middle school students with dyslexia to manipulate text or images can make literacy instruction more engaging and support their individual learning preferences.
• Color-coding systems and strategies help reduce confusion. Middle school students with dyslexia can benefit from the visual separation of ideas, which aids in understanding relationships between concepts, improving comprehension and retention.

Building Self-Advocacy and Communication Skills

In addition to multisensory instruction and other classroom accommodations, developing self-advocacy skills in middle school students with dyslexia is critical for their long-term success. Self-advocacy empowers students to identify and articulate their needs (both in the classroom and in other areas of their lives). Educators can strengthen this skill by encouraging students to ask for help when needed and by creating opportunities for them to communicate their challenges openly.

• Encouraging open communication and performing regular check-ins between middle school teachers and students with dyslexia can help create a comfortable environment where students feel safe discussing their difficulties. This ongoing dialogue allows teachers to adjust their strategies and reassures middle school students that their needs will be met.
• Promoting independence and encouraging students to take an active role in their learning builds important skills and leads to increased success. Over time, students with dyslexia will become more confident in advocating for themselves, which benefits their academic experience in middle school while preparing them for future challenges and successes in high school and beyond.
• Role-playing advocacy scenarios and activities allow individuals to practice advocating for themselves in different situations. Middle school students with dyslexia can rehearse speaking up for their needs in a supportive, low-stress environment, building their confidence in real-world interactions.
• Creating personalized advocacy plans involves educators working with students to create individualized advocacy plans that outline their specific needs and strategies for communicating those needs. Middle school students can use these plans as a guide to ensure they stay organized and feel prepared to voice their challenges during class discussions or meetings with teachers.
• Self-monitoring checklists help students reflect on their academic progress and identify areas where they need help. This practice promotes self-awareness and gives middle school students with dyslexia a concrete way to track their challenges and successes, which they can then communicate to teachers.
• Understanding their accommodations means students learn the rationale behind their specific accommodations and how these accommodations help them succeed. This knowledge empowers middle school students with dyslexia to confidently request the tools and adjustments they need, because they understand how each one supports their learning style.

Each student with dyslexia is unique, and what works for one student may not work for another. Flexibility in how educators approach each challenge is key to ensuring that every student receives the individualized support they need.

Middle school presents unique academic challenges for students with dyslexia, but with the right support, these students can thrive. By understanding the obstacles these students face, offering alternative assessments, and staying flexible with accommodations, educators can make a profound impact on their students' success. With the right tools and resources, students with dyslexia can overcome these hurdles to become more confident and capable.

Visit our Dyslexia Hub to discover more ways to support your students with dyslexia!