Helen Arkell | Page 24 of 25 | Specialist dyslexia support and advice

Lillian

Lillian is a busy girl; she loves dancing and is part of an invitation-only dance crew, she loves fashion, designing useful objects (rainbow toilet roll holder anyone?) and making animated movies. Her dad thinks her amazing problem-solving abilities could make her a great engineer one day.

Lillian goes to a very tiny school in Oxfordshire – there are just two other children in her year and they both seem particularly good at reading. This is something Lillian struggles with, as well as with spelling, organisation and remembering things at school, so she and her mum Kirstie came to see us here at Helen Arkell.

Lillian’s assessment was a revelation. She’s in the top 1% for two particular skills and this and the other feedback she was given have elevated her self-confidence enormously.

This gave Lillian the boost she needed so when World Book Day came around in March, Lillian set to work to educate everyone at school about dyslexia. She didn’t read in assembly and she didn’t write a report; Lillian wrote all her newly-discovered facts on her school shirt in multi-coloured pens!

Lillian received so many lovely comments and encouragement wearing her decorated shirt to school. One mum, whose son has dyslexia but who is not ready to let everyone know yet, told Lillian that she was very proud of her and that she’d made her son feel better about being dyslexic. The school thanked Lillian for being so brave and so open about her dyslexia. Thanks to Lillian, lots of people at school now understand dyslexia better and Lillian is really happy that they know about it.

Writing to us at Helen Arkell, Lillian’s mum said, ‘I just wanted to share my proud moment with you. Lillian’s diagnosis has brought her a great deal of comfort in why she struggles and has allowed her to identify areas that there are easy solutions too. She has embraced lots of coping mechanisms and is a much happier little girl – thank you.’

We’re very proud of you, Lillian!

By admin|2024-07-23T16:53:20+01:00August 6th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off

Fun ways to help your child spell tricky words

Here are some ways to help your child learn the spelling of tricky words at home

Most children have difficulty spelling some common words, such as ‘does’, ‘your’, ‘because’.

Top tip – whichever methods you use, try to get your child to say the letter name each time they write or select a letter, and then to say the whole word once it is complete.

Get your child to practise writing the word

With their finger in sand/flour/couscous
With a stick in the mud
Using an empty washing-up liquid bottle/shower gel bottle filled with water – write the word on the pavement/driveway/patio
On the window or on an old bathroom tile using a dry wipe pen (make doubly sure that it is a dry wipe pen!)

Build the word

Write the letters of the word (and some extra letters that are not in the word) on individual pieces of paper. Place them around the room/garden. Get your child to collect the letters in the correct order to spell the word.

Put the pieces of paper on the floor and ask your child to jump on them in the right order to spell the word – shouting out the letter name each time they jump on the letter and then shouting the word when they have finished.

Get your child to make the word in play-dough, plasticine, Wikki stix, Lego, spaghetti – anything you have in the house.

Build up automatic knowledge of the spelling
Time your child for 30 seconds and see how many times they can write the word correctly and legibly. Repeat and see if they can beat a previous record.

Have fun and if you’d like to learn more about helping your child with their learning, our course full of practical tips for parents is now available online – full details here.

Email enquiries@helenarkell.org.uk if you have any questions.

By Helen Arkell|2024-04-24T09:36:00+01:00July 8th, 2022|Team blog|Comments Off

Tips to get your child reading

When children are taught to read at school they all enjoy books, are always engaged, eager to read more and quickly grasp a wide vocabulary – if only!

Unfortunately, many children struggle to grasp reading and it can be challenging for parents to successfully read with their child who may be frustrated, upset and afraid to fail.

Try a few simple ways to get your family reading and loving books.

All Attempts Should Be Praised – Research has shown that when a child is praised specifically they are clearer as to what is expected of them, e.g. ‘Well done, you looked carefully at the beginning of that word and worked out what the word was.’

Encouraging Reluctant Readers – Try audiobooks, graphic novels, comics and magazines. Read about anything they are interested in – football, recipes, superheroes, animals! Read with your child, taking turns to make it easier and more fun.

High-Frequency Words – Work on up to 6 words at a time, reading the words before asking your child to read them. Games such as snap and pairs can encourage your child to read high-frequency words at speed.

Discuss a book with your child – Ask open-ended questions that encourage your child to think more deeply about the content e.g: What do you think happens next? What is the story about? What do you like most about this story?

Finding Help – You can find more tips on reading, and other ways to help your child, here. The Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity specialises in providing expert support to dyslexic children. We offer 1:1 personalised tuition sessions. The sessions can include anything from reading, writing, spelling, numeracy, improving general organisation to revision techniques. To find out more email enquiries@helenarkell.org.uk

By Helen Arkell|2024-04-24T09:36:02+01:00June 8th, 2022|Team blog|Comments Off

Big Walk for Dyslexia – Thank you!

Thank you to all those who joined us for our Big Walk for Dyslexia!

The day dawned sunny and warm and stayed that way for the walkers who enjoyed the gorgeous scenery around Frensham Little Pond.

On their return we had well-earned tea and cakes at the ready.

Thank you to everyone who took part in the walk and to our volunteers who helped make it happen.

If you would like to join us next year, sign up to our e-newsletter where we will let you know the date.

By admin|2024-07-23T16:53:30+01:00June 6th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off

Saturday Morning Presentation with Dr Susie Nyman

Top Multi-Sensory Tips and Techniques for Supporting Dyslexic Students

Saturday 9 July 2022 ︱10.00am for 10.30 – 12.00

Farnham Memorial Hall, GU9 7EE

£25

Book here.

This seminar will be a lively interactive practical presentation that will help you inspire children with dyslexia to become grade risers and ultimately achieve stellar results.We are delighted that Dr Susie Nyman is giving our next Saturday presentation on Top Multi-Sensory Tips and Techniques for Supporting Dyslexic Students aimed at parents and education professionals.

Susie will showcase innovative, tried and tested, easy-to-replicate Multi-Sensory Techniques from her Multi-Sensory Toolkit that she uses with her students at The Sixth Form College, Farnborough.

Susie is passionate about discovering how children learn and supporting them in ways which enable them to succeed.

As an international speaker, exam board moderator and CPD trainer, she thoroughly enjoys sharing her knowledge and experiences about Multi-Sensory Teaching.

She has published articles for BBC Bitesize, the BDA and SEN Magazine. Her innovative methods have been published by Oaka Books in her ‘Multi-Sensory Toolkit’ as well as ‘How to Become a Grade Riser’.

Book here.

By admin|2024-07-23T16:53:37+01:00June 6th, 2022|Archive news|Comments Off

Catch-up learning over the summer holidays

We have one-to-one tuitions sessions to offer children in Key Stages 2 to 4 over the summer holidays. Book one session or several to help your child get ahead for the new school year.

All sessions are run by our qualified specialist teachers and will take place at the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Centre in West Street, Farnham, Surrey.

Find Out More

By admin|2024-07-23T16:53:58+01:00June 6th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off

Catch-up learning over Easter

We have one-to-one tuitions sessions to offer children in Key Stages 2 to 4 over the Easter holidays. Book one session or several to help your child get ahead for the new term.

All sessions are run by our qualified specialist teachers and will take place at the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Centre in Frensham, near Farnham, Surrey.

Find out more here.

By admin|2024-07-23T16:53:52+01:00May 25th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off

UCL’s Sleep and Dyslexia Research Survey

Our friends from University College London are researching sleep in children with dyslexia.

Do you know dyslexic children who take forever to go to sleep? Or others that zonk out in minutes? Either way, please help us understand more about whether dyslexia impacts sleep!

I am researching the connection between Dyslexia and Sleep at UCL London. Very little is currently known about it. We want to learn more about sleep in dyslexic children and provide ways that might help improve their sleep.

If you care for a dyslexic child aged 7 to 13 in the UK, please fill in the 20-minute survey.

Click for survey

The survey will help us gain a better understanding about how daytime activities can impact sleep and mental health in dyslexic children.The more we learn about it, the better chances we have to develop further ways to help.

Katrin Jeffcock LLM MSc

At the end of the survey, you can apply to participate in an optional second part of the study in which we objectively measure sleep behaviour and cortisol levels of dyslexic children.

By admin|2024-07-23T16:54:13+01:00May 25th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off

Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity students graduate with flying colours

Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity held a very special graduation ceremony on Wednesday for students of its professional qualifications.

The 41 graduates now hold Level 5 Diplomas in Teaching Learners with Dyslexia/Specific Learning Difficulties or Level 7 Diplomas in Teaching and Assessing Learners with Dyslexia/Specific Learning Difficulties.

Both year-long courses are run from our Centre in Frensham and consist of weekly lectures as well as teaching practice in local primary and secondary schools. The teaching practice demands a level of creativity from the students, and they were congratulated on their inspiring and memorable teaching methods which included a pop-up pirate, funky glasses and dressing up hats!

Graduation certificates were presented by long-time friend of the Charity, Fintan O’Regan, an expert in the world of neurodivergence, and the ceremony was attended by families of the students, course tutors, charity trustees, and members of the Helen Arkell team.

The graduation was all the more special because some of these students had waited over a year to celebrate their graduation with their courses disrupted and their qualifications delayed by the pandemic. These students were delighted to be back at the Centre to hear all the news from the charity about how it has stepped up to support more children and adults with dyslexia than ever.

CEO Andy Cook said, ‘Congratulations to all our graduates. We are so proud of them. Being ‘Helen Arkell trained’ really means something in this field and these graduates are valued ambassadors and members of the Helen Arkell family.’

Find out more about our professional courses.

By admin|2024-07-23T16:54:06+01:00May 25th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off

We’ve moved to Farnham!

As you know, we have been supporting children and adults with dyslexia since 1971, and after 50 years based in Frensham village, we have now moved our Centre to 24 West Street in the heart of Farnham.

This is the beginning of an exciting new era for the charity; our in-person dyslexia services will be more accessible to those who don’t drive, and we will be more visible on busy West Street.

Our CEO Andy Cook says, ‘We are very excited to be moving to Farnham town centre and looking forward to helping even more people with dyslexia. We will be offering all our tried and tested services to individuals with dyslexia, as well as to schools, teachers and workplaces, and will very much enjoy being part of the Farnham community. This is an exciting new chapter for the charity as we embark on the next stage of our mission to remove barriers for people with dyslexia so that they can maximise the positive attributes that dyslexia brings.’

The new Centre is in a lovely Grade 2-listed Georgian house once lived in by the architect Harold Falkner who had a profound influence on the architecture of the town. You will find us between The Wheatsheaf pub and the Adult Education Centre, within walking distance of local bus routes and Farnham railway station.

We’ll be holding an Open Evening at 6pm on Wednesday 29 June, as an opportunity for anyone to pop in and see the charity’s new home. If you would like to come along, simply email events@helenarkell.org.uk to let us know.

By admin|2024-07-23T16:54:32+01:00May 25th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off

Top Multi-Sensory Tips and Techniques for Supporting Dyslexic Students Saturday 9 July 2022 ︱10.00am for 10.30 – 12.00 Farnham Memorial Hall, GU9 7EE £25

Our friends from University College London are researching sleep in children with dyslexia.

Katrin Jeffcock LLM MSc

Sign up to our newsletter

Top Multi-Sensory Tips and Techniques for Supporting Dyslexic Students

Saturday 9 July 2022 ︱10.00am for 10.30 – 12.00

Farnham Memorial Hall, GU9 7EE

£25