Dyslexia Screening

Understanding Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a learning disorder that is neurological in origin and is characterized by unexpected difficulties with accurate or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities.

Dyslexia has nothing to do with a student’s intelligence, motivation and sensory capabilities.
In Washington, 15-20% of the population has a learning disability. Of the students with specific learning disabilities receiving special education services, 70-80% have deficits in reading.
Dyslexia is different for each student and across ages and stages.
It is common to struggle pronouncing words with two or more syllables.
It may make processing speech sounds difficult, specifically the ability to hear, substitute and change individual sounds in words.
Dyslexia can present challenges with reading and spelling, particularly with the connections between letters and sounds.
It may lead to problems learning and remembering vocabulary, understanding what is read and getting thoughts on paper.

Literacy Screening for Grades K-2

Beginning in the 2021-22 school year, students in grades K-2 will be screened for reading difficulties and dyslexia. Central Valley School District uses the FastBridge assessment to screen for many types of reading difficulties such as dyslexia. The scores and corresponding reports shed light on not only which students are struggling in reading, but also why they struggle.

Literacy & reading screening skills:

Phonemic awareness: the ability to hear, identify, delete and change the sounds of spoken words.
Phonological awareness: knowledge of speech sounds, such as rhyme, alliteration (words that start with the same sound), the number of words in a sentence, and syllables within words.
Letter sound knowledge: knowledge of the sounds represented by letters, including combinations of letters that represent speech sounds.
Rapid automatized naming: the ability to quickly name aloud a series of familiar items, including letters, numbers, colors and classroom objects.

Follow Up & Early Intervention

The information that teachers learn through screening will help them plan instruction and determine when additional help is needed. Students who demonstrate reading difficulties on the screener will receive additional interventions and their progress will be monitored.

Schools will communicate and collaborate with parents about student literacy development, screening results and potential literacy interventions. Central Valley School District is dedicated to early identification and early intervention to provide every student the best education possible, helping every child to succeed.

If you have questions about this screening or concerns about your child, you can contact your student’s teacher, counselor or principal.