Helping an older reader
catch up.

A fifteen-to-thirty-minute session

1. Two minutes of sound work from the current lesson, out loud: take a sound away, swap a sound, count the sounds.
2. One lesson, or part of one, with its quick checks. Let the student drive; you are the listener.
3. Five long words from schoolwork, read with the long-word routine: word parts, vowels, split, read, blend, check.
4. Repeated reading: the same passage two or three times, out loud, with you following along.
5. Every two to four weeks, a one-minute cold read of a new passage for the fluency log.

When the student misreads a word

• Wait about three seconds. Many students fix the word themselves.
• If not, point to the part of the word that went wrong and ask them to look again: "Check the vowel." "Where does it split."
• If it is still stuck, say the word, have the student repeat it while looking at it, and reread the sentence.
• Do not prompt guessing: skip "What would make sense?" or "Look at the picture" for reading the word. Meaning is for checking a word after it is read.
• Keep the tone matter-of-fact. Older students know they are behind; what helps is a calm partner, not praise for every word or a sigh at every mistake.

Signs worth raising with the school

• Reading is still slow and effortful after a year or more of good, steady reading instruction.
• Long words are skipped, guessed from the first letters, or misread in ways that change the meaning.
• Spelling is far below what the student can say and understand, and the same words are misspelled different ways.
• Understanding is much stronger when the student listens than when the student reads the same text.
• Reading aloud is avoided, or homework that involves reading takes far longer than it should.
• A parent or sibling had similar trouble learning to read.

None of these is a diagnosis, and neither is the placement check in the course. A fluency log that stays flat after several weeks of steady practice is useful information to bring.

What federal law says, in general terms

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), every state and its school districts have a duty called Child Find: to identify, locate and evaluate children who may have a disability and need special education, including students in private schools and homeschooled students in many cases. Dyslexia is generally considered under the category of specific learning disability. The U.S. Department of Education has said that nothing in IDEA prevents schools from using the word dyslexia in evaluations and plans.

A parent can ask for an evaluation at any time; putting the request in writing and keeping a copy is wise. The school must either ask for your written consent to evaluate or explain in writing why it will not. Once you consent, federal rules set a 60-day timeline for the initial evaluation unless your state sets its own. Federal guidance also says a school cannot use a response-to-intervention process to delay or deny an evaluation when a disability is suspected.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act is a separate path that can provide accommodations, such as extended time or audio versions of texts, for a student whose disability substantially limits reading.

Bring to the meeting

• Your written request and the date you sent it.
• Work samples, especially spelling and writing.
• The fluency log, downloaded from the course record.
• What has been tried, for how long, and what changed.
• Any outside evaluations; the school must consider them, though it decides how.

Next steps from Caveat

The School letter writer drafts a clear evaluation request. Understanding Dyslexia: A Course for Parents explains evaluation, school rights and what effective intervention looks like. The free dyslexia checklist for parents lists common signs in grades 6 to 12.