I’ve previously discussed my son’s language disorder struggles that have an impact on his reading skills. He tends to skim through text, not read clearly from time to time. I am hence continually looking for resources that can help him. We just had the opportunity to review Dyslexia Gold‘s Dyslexia Gold Full Bundle. He loves it, and you can read on how immensely it helped our situation.
Dyslexia Gold Full Bundle includes:
Engaging Eyes, Reading unlocked, Fluency Builder, Spelling Tutor, and Times Table Tutor. I also received a pair of red/ cyan 3D glasses to use with the Engaging Eyes program. Phonics, Phonological Awareness, Eye Control and Vocabulary are the pillars of this program.
Engaging Eyes program recommends a monitor that is 13″ or larger. This game requires a computer or laptop to play. It will not work on tablets or iPads, so keep that in mind. This game requires red/cyan 3D glasses, which will be mailed to you after you purchase it. This is supposed to improve reading comprehension, speed, and accuracy.
My son could accomplish the engaging eyes targets with some practice. Eventually, he moved on to other areas. As indicated, this exercise made him tired. He cannot verbally express that so we moved on taking his cues.
Reading Unlocked :
Reading Unlocked introduces sounds, then easy words, and finally multi-syllable words in a plain and straightforward manner. It teaches kids to read instead of guessing from a picture or the first letter. It introduces new words to read without having to memorize them. There is a reading placement test before you can begin this module(see below). The child has to read and select the right picture alongside.
Reading Unlocked thus is a systematic phonics program that adjusts to your child’s learning style, revisiting errors and working at their own pace.
This module teaches phonetic reading and spelling. To help kids remember difficult terms, they are taught separately. Each day the child works incrementally with graphemes and spellings in repetition.
The program closes after you have done all those needed for a day, asking you to login next day.
Fluency Builder:
In the Fluency Builder section of the program the child first works on identifying the differences between two sounds to learning vocabulary. It builds on sentence level comprehension and gradually has a child read passages.
The child selects pictures that end with the same sounds as the words that are told orally. This does touch upon working memory which is a challenge area for kids with dyslexia diagnosis. For instance, the screenshot above the student is to select the picture of the “what rhymes with mouse”. I took my child’s lead and leaned in towards spelling tutor as well while circling back and forth with Reading Unlocked. He seemed to do well with the fluency builder though.
Here is a snapshot of my child’s progress with Fluency Builder. It is clearly helping him on fluency by working on one thing at a time.
Spelling Tutor:
Spelling Tutor determines a student’s spelling level by asking them to spell a series of words. The training is then tailored to the areas where your kid is having difficulty. The test placed my son in Level 2.
This section of Dyslexia Gold is one of my favorites since my child was very motivated to type and correct his own work. The program does mention to use paper, however due to fine motor delays that is not an option for my son. Just check how much he aced in a matter of few weeks(moved from Orange to Yellow level). This is not a teacher-intensive program and my son was able to listen and follow directions throughout.
A report like below is displayed each time showing the summary of what you have mastered and what you are still learning.
Below is an image of how a detailed report looks like. Each spelling is repeated 7 times per an algorithm to ensure spaced repetition and mastery! The program thus uses spaced repetition to incrementally teach frequently used words.
So far my son has been extremely motivated to complete this module daily. It is a miracle for us that he took to auditory input and started typing giving his best shot to writing complete sentences. This gives me a different view of his skills that he was not demonstrating any earlier. I am beyond pleased to see how he is persistent in learning new spellings(these reports say it all). Eversince, placement test he has completed Level 2 and moved on to Level 3.
Times Table Tutor:
The Times Table Tutor from Dyslexia Gold claims to make it simple for your child to learn their times tables. It uses Singapore Math approach and states that daily practice of 10 minutes could greatly strengthen a child’s grip with time tables.
- Like other modules repetition is used to help practice complex math problems.
- The idea is that the kid will remember more with this unique, multi-sensory strategy.
- Therefore, the daily 10 minute practice is recommended to build in structure and repetition for mastery.
We have not tried this module yet and I would definitely update my post as my son gains exposure to this.
Final Thoughts:
Dyslexia Gold recommends this to students who know how to read and should know their phonemes. We used this as a supplemental reading program. We will undoubtedly continue to use this in out homeschool curriculum as it nails down and works on the child’s reading deficits. The recommended age for this program is 5 to adult with the ability to read. The program has several games that should be appealing to several ages. This may be a good fit, if your child has diagnoses of dyslexia or you suspect it or maybe you want to use this with a child who is struggling with reading, like I did. You can also do an online test from Dyslexia Gold for a minimum cost. I have recapped the individual modules and the target audience below.
- Engaging Eyes is suitable for struggling readers aged 6-15.
- Fluency Builder is suitable for struggling readers aged 7+.
- Spelling Tutor and Times Tables Tutor are suitable for children aged 6+.
- Reading Unlocked is suitable for beginner and early readers aged 4-7.
I hope you now have an idea of what Dyslexia Gold programs offer. See what other homeschooling families have to say about this program.