What Parents Can Do

At the school:

talk to the teachers, and ask if they think there is a problem.
if the teachers tell you “Don’t worry, they will catch up”, ask how they can be helped to do so.
if the teachers tell you there are plenty of children worse than them, alarm bells should be ringing: if the teachers have so many problems to deal with, your child may not get help. Make sure that they do get help.
create good parent/teacher relationships.
set up a communications network at school and keep it going.
if a new teacher arrives, go and make yourself known (although this becomes more difficult when an older child has many subject teachers, or there are a number of relieving teachers).

Some schools may be reluctant to allow students to leave school for tutoring during normal school time.

Good Communication between the parent and the school is important.

If your child needs reader/writer support for assessments, tests, or examinations, ensure this support is provided.

At home, be patient and positive:

teach them to do things for themselves, such as tying shoe laces and telling the time.
give them aids to tell left from right.
avoid failure at home – they get enough at school.
don’t show your anxiety, and talk to them about their problems.
encourage them in the things they can do well.
don’t just tell them to try harder.
don’t make comparisons with others in the family or at school.
don’t allow other children to tease them about what they cannot do – tell them the things they can do.
read aloud to them as much as you can, no matter what their age.
encourage them to go slowly and take their time.
do not allow them to make dyslexia an excuse.
make time to play games with them, especially those using words. Home should be a “learning place” but not a “remedial teaching place”.
establish a routine for them and try to keep distractions to a minimum.
ask for their timetable and help them to be organised.