Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a specific learning difficulty that mainly affects accurate and fluent word reading and spelling. The 2009 Rose report, which shaped how English schools think about it, describes it as a continuum rather than a category — there is no sharp line where difficulty becomes dyslexia — and identifies difficulties with phonological awareness, verbal memory and processing speed as commonly associated features.

Phonological awareness is the ability to hear and work with the sounds inside spoken words: hearing that "cat" starts with /k/, that "clap" has four sounds, that "brick" and "trick" rhyme. It is the skill that makes phonics usable, and for many children with dyslexia it is where the difficulty starts.

• It is not about seeing letters backwards. Reversing letters is common in young children generally, and is not the defining feature.
• It has nothing to do with intelligence. Children across the whole range of ability can have dyslexia.
• "Dyslexic children are visual learners" is not supported by evidence. Learning-styles theory has been repeatedly tested and not upheld.
• Coloured overlays and tinted lenses are not established as an effective treatment for dyslexia; the evidence is weak and mixed.
• There is no single font that works for everyone; "dyslexia fonts" have not been shown to reliably improve reading.
• It is not a "different learning style". It is a difficulty with specific skills, and those skills can be taught.
• It is not caused by lack of effort, lack of reading at home, or poor parenting.

• Reading that is slow, effortful or inaccurate, even after a lot of practice.
• Guessing at words from the first letter or the picture.
• Spelling the same word several different ways on one page.
• Difficulty hearing and playing with sounds in words — rhyme, syllables, first sounds.
• Learning letter sounds, then losing them again.
• Reading that improves in the short term and slips back over a holiday.
• Written work far below what they can tell you out loud.
• Avoidance: losing the book bag, needing the toilet at reading time, saying they are stupid.
• Exhaustion after school, out of proportion to the day.

Many children with dyslexia have strong spoken vocabulary, good reasoning, strong verbal comprehension, creativity and determination — sometimes considerable determination, because they have been working harder than everyone else for years. It is worth being honest here: research does not support the idea that dyslexia reliably confers special talents. What it does support is that these children are commonly underestimated.

The confidence damage often outlasts the reading difficulty. A child who concludes at seven that they are stupid can still be carrying it at seventeen, long after they can read. Protecting how a child sees themselves is not a soft extra; it is part of the intervention.

A formal assessment is usually carried out by an educational psychologist or a specialist assessor. It should produce a detailed profile of reading, spelling, phonological skills and related areas — and, crucially, what to teach next. The BPS report on dyslexia and psychological assessment argues exactly this: the purpose is a useful description, not simply awarding or withholding a label.

• A diagnosis can explain a pattern, and can support access arrangements later in schooling.
• It does not, by itself, change what good teaching looks like.
• Schools do not need a diagnosis to provide structured literacy support.
• Availability of NHS or local authority assessment varies; private assessment is common but should still be from an appropriately qualified assessor.
• If your child is not making progress despite good teaching, that is the trigger for a conversation — not the label.

1. NHSProfessional guidance
   Dyslexia in children

   Plain-English NHS information for families on what dyslexia is, what is commonly noticed, and where to go for help.

2. Sir Jim Rose / Department for Children, Schools and FamiliesProfessional guidance
   Identifying and Teaching Children and Young People with Dyslexia and Literacy Difficulties (2009)

   The independent report that shaped English practice: dyslexia as difficulties in accurate and fluent word reading and spelling, best understood as a continuum rather than a category with a clear cut-off.

3. British Psychological SocietyProfessional guidance
   Dyslexia, Literacy and Psychological Assessment (1999, updated 2005)

   The BPS working party report for educational psychologists. Important for why assessment should describe literacy difficulties and what to teach, rather than only award or withhold a label.

4. Education Endowment FoundationResearch summary
   Improving Literacy in Key Stage 1 — guidance report (2017, updated 2020)

   Recommendations on developing language, phonological awareness, systematic phonics, fluency and targeted support for struggling readers.

5. Education Endowment FoundationResearch summary
   Improving Literacy in Key Stage 2 — guidance report (2017, second edition 2021)

   Reading fluency, vocabulary, comprehension strategies, writing, and structured intervention for pupils who have fallen behind.

6. Education Endowment FoundationResearch summary
   Phonics — Teaching and Learning Toolkit

   Rated high impact for very low cost, based on very extensive evidence, with the largest effects for pupils who are struggling with early reading.

7. Education Endowment FoundationResearch summary
   Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools — guidance report (2020, updated 2021)

   High-quality teaching first, careful scaffolding, and cautious deployment of teaching assistants and technology.

8. Department for Education / University College LondonResearch summary
   Identifying and supporting children and young people with cognition and learning needs: a rapid evidence review (September 2025)

   DfE-commissioned UCL review. Carries an explicit disclaimer that it is not an endorsement and does not reflect government policy.

9. Department for EducationResearch summary
   Neurodivergence Task and Finish Group: report — recommendations for mainstream education (February 2026)

   Independent recommendations to DfE, including timely identification of strengths and needs in the setting rather than reliance on diagnostic queues.

10. Department for EducationStatutory guidance
    SEND Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years (2015)

    Current statutory guidance. Specific learning difficulties, including dyslexia, sit within cognition and learning; provision follows identified need.