How to Increase Reading Skills for Elementary Students With Learning Disabilities

Help struggling students learn to read to promote future success.

Reading can be difficult for any student, but it's an even greater challenge for those with learning disabilities. These students are unable to acquire information as rapidly as their same-age peers and often require assistance. Because reading is such a vital skill, it's important that all students, learning-disabled or otherwise, master it in elementary school. Teachers can ensure that the learning-disabled students within their class develop this skill by using modified techniques and providing additional attention.

Things You'll Need

• Highlighter
• Cloze activities

Instructions

1. Give the student reading material at his grade level. If he becomes frustrated with the difficulty of the material, he will stop trying. To prevent this, provide the student with material that is appropriate to his ability level. As his skills increase, provide increasingly difficult reading material.

2. Ask the student to read aloud to gauge her fluency. Practice reading with the student one on one. While she reads, monitor her fluency and note any specific areas in which she struggles. If there is a pattern, give her extra practice in those areas.

3. Tell the student to highlight key points. Allow him to use a highlighter every time he reads. This will help him remain focused on the passage and allow him to mark important parts as he reads, so it will be easier to look back through the text to answer comprehension questions.

4. Avoid written tests, allowing her to answer questions orally instead. Many students who struggle with reading are also deficient in writing. If your goal is to determine whether or not he understands the material, oral answers will suffice.

5. Recommend books that may appeal to the student and encourage him to read on his own. The best way to improve reading ability is to read frequently. Enlist the help of his parents by asking them to set aside reading time at home and enforce silent reading during this period.

6. Complete Cloze activities. These help develop reading fluency and can contribute to the improvement of reading comprehension. Students are given a passage with words removed and must determine what words belong in the blanks through the use of context clues.

References

• Center on Reading Instruction: K-3 Resources
• Jim Wright Online: The Savvy Teacher's Guide -- Reading Interventions that Work