Overview of Dyslexia-An Informative Video

Dr. Timothy Odegard from Middle Tennessee State University created the video – Dyslexia Overview – which you can access here at Linguistic Foundations; the link is listed below. Dr. Odegard’s video provides the most practical and clear description of Dyslexia that I have seen. It is a short clip – only 9 minutes long – and he explains (in a user-friendly way) the areas of weakness in language and reading that can be present in a person with Dyslexia.
 
Please watch this video. In fact, try to watch it more than one time if you can. The diagram that Dr. Odegard puts together is very complete, and you may best understand all of the pieces after seeing the video and being able to absorb it a couple of times (I began to appreciate it more after the 2nd & 3rd times I viewed it).
 
As Dr. Odegard explains, Dyslexia is made up of a combination of language, reading and cognitive weaknesses. Dyslexia can be observed easily when you watch a child or adult struggle to read some text. Her reading will likely have many hesitations and/or errors, and she will expend a great deal of effort as she tries to read. Beyond poor reading fluency, some of the underlying causes of Dyslexia are a little more subtle and harder to see. We can’t always observe difficulties in language, phonological awareness, word reading, decoding, and rapid naming so easily. Testing needs to target all of these vulnerable areas that a person with Dyslexia may have.
 
Our testing at Linguistic Foundations targets each of the areas that Dr. Odegard discusses – language knowledge, phonological awareness, letter-sound knowledge, word reading, decoding, rapid automatized naming, reading fluency, and reading comprehension.
 
At Linguistic Foundations our purpose is to identify Dyslexia, other Language-based Learning disabilities, and speech-language issues. As Dr. Odegard explained, about 1 in 5 of all children (and adults) possess Dyslexia. If you are concerned that your child may be Dyslexic or have a language-based learning issue, we can uncover, pinpoint, and describe her strengths and weaknesses. We will also consult with you to build a teaching program that works for the needs of your child.
 
Once again, take the time to watch Dr. Odegard’s video, Dyslexia Overview. Then please contact us at Linguistic Foundations if you have any questions – about Dr. Odegard’s presentation or more specifically about your child. We will be happy to talk to you and even set up a schedule to consult and test.    Thank you very much!
​