Decoding Dyslexia Oregon

Our Mission: We raise dyslexia awareness, empower families to support their children, and improve resources for students with dyslexia in Oregon public schools. What is dyslexia? Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability which makes reading unusually challenging. Students with dyslexia may exhibit unexpected difficulties with other skills such as spelling, writing, memorization, and pronouncing words. We focus on dyslexia because: Dyslexia is a affects an estimated 15 to 20% of children. (The National Institute of Health and The Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity) Dyslexia is the most common learning disability. Approximately 80% of children with learning disabilities have dys... read more Our Mission: We raise dyslexia awareness, empower families to support their children, and improve resources for students with dyslexia in Oregon public schools. What is dyslexia? Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability which makes reading unusually challenging. Students with dyslexia may exhibit unexpected difficulties with other skills such as spelling, writing, memorization, and pronouncing words. We focus on dyslexia because: Dyslexia is a affects an estimated 15 to 20% of children. (The National Institute of Health and The Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity) Dyslexia is the most common learning disability. Approximately 80% of children with learning disabilities have dyslexia. (National Center for Learning Disabilities) Literacy is a critical skill needed for educational success and students who do not read at grade level by third grade are four times more likely not to graduate from high school with a diploma. (Annie E. Casey Foundation) Teachers (including general education teachers, reading specialists and special education teachers) often receive no training on dyslexia. As a result, many Oregon families whose children demonstrate characteristics of dyslexia are struggling to secure effective reading instruction for their children within public schools. Many families that can afford to do so seek private tutoring. This is an equity issue. Our Vision: We envision a day when students with dyslexia are identified early in school and receive the appropriate evidence-based reading instruction and support that they need to succeed in school and beyond.