20.5.22 Graphemes, Phonemes, Self Esteem and Training Sessions

Phonemes and Graphemes Do you know the difference?

I know I specialise in dyslexia, but what is helpful for the dyslexic learner is beneficial to ALL learners. A lot of the explicit teaching used in dyslexic programmes is needed in everyday reading and spelling programmes. There are, however, a lot of misunderstandings amongst children and adults about some of the phonological terms, including how to differentiate between graphemes and phonemes. Many individuals will mistakenly say a phoneme when they are actually referring to the letter rather than the sound and so when digraphs and alternative phonemes for a grapheme are being used this can cause confusion for the student. I have explained these terms on the ‘Alphabet’ page on this site, but Natasha ‘The Phonics Queen’ makes this really clear on her new video, which has been released this week on her youtube channel. Please take a look…..

Phonics Queen youtube channel

Self Esteem

An individual’s level of achievement and behaviour is influenced by how they feel about themselves. Learners with learning differences are more likely to have a lower self esteem, especially if they encounter many difficulties. PATOSS (Professional Association of Teachers of Students with Specific Learning Difficulties) is offering a free webinar entitled ‘Reflections on Enhancing Your Students’ Self-Esteem’ by Denis Lawrence. This on demand webinar is available free of charge to anyone, not just PATOSS members, but is especially useful for educators as it explains how the teacher can have a profound positive impact on their learner. The accompanying resources include a copy of a dyslexic student’s extended essay for Psychology entitled “What factors are important to ensure that students with dyslexia have a positive learning experience”. At the time of writing this essay the student was a 17-year-old from Australia, studying in Singapore. Today, he is a teacher in Australia. The essay expresses a dyslexic young person’s perspective with regards to the research. This is a brilliant piece of work which makes really interesting reading. It discusses how much influence parents, educators and peers have on a learner’s self esteem. To access this free webinar and the accompanying resources go to https://www.patoss-dyslexia.org/OnDemand/ondemand-reflections-on-enhancing-your-students-self-esteem-by-denis-lawrence/12202?OccId=17133.