Can Speech Therapy help with Reading Disabilities?

By Stephanie Barry, M.S., CCC-SLP

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Can a Speech Pathologist help with Literacy?

YES! A speech pathologist has valuable knowledge of language and its subsystems that is highly relevant for the prevention, identification, assessment and intervention of reading disabilities.

Their knowledge allows them to design literacy programs that address difficulties involving phonological awareness (decoding), as well as memory and retrieval (comprehension).

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How Can Speech Therapy Help?The goal of speech therapy is to

target the specific aspects of reading and writing that are missing or difficult for the student.

The student is taught strategies and how to apply them to their reading and writing tasks.

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What Areas Can Be Addressed in Speech Therapy?

Here are a few examples of areas that can be addressed during speech therapy:◦ Expressing ideas clearly◦ Learning new vocabulary◦ Understanding written directions◦ Understanding and retaining details of a story◦ Comprehending written material◦ Phonological awareness◦ Spelling◦ Memory skills◦ Executive functioning

To learn more about any of these areas click on the area to be directed to the side. You may simply click next to go through them in order.

Please note, the items presented on these pages are samples of things that can be addressed and is not meant to be a comprehensive list. These are just some of the ways a speech pathologist can help a person experiencing a reading disability.

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Expressing Ideas ClearlyGoals in this area can address:

◦ word choice: using specific words (rather than “stuff”, “those”, etc.) and appropriate word choice for the intended meaning

◦ Sentence structure: making sure all the words are in the correct order and that there are no missing or extra words.

◦ Grammar: using appropriate grammatical markers such as past tense, pronouns and plurals

◦ Meaning: ensuring the sentence is relaying the intended message

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Learning New VocabularyGoals in this area can address:

◦ Learning how to identify vocabulary words in a reading passage

◦ Learning strategies to determine the meaning of the word in the sentence

◦ Learning strategies to remember the meaning when they come across the word in the future

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Understanding Written DirectionsGoals in this area can address:

◦ Accurately reading the directions ◦ Understanding the vocabulary in the directions◦ Breaking down the directions into manageable

parts

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Understanding and Retaining Details of a Story

Goals in this area can address:◦ Understanding the difference between the main

idea and the details.◦ Determining what details are important◦ Understanding vocabulary◦ Understanding sentence meanings◦ Learning strategies to help retain important

information

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Comprehending Written MaterialGoals in this area can address:

◦ Understanding vocabulary◦ Understanding sentence meanings◦ Learning how to break down written material into

manageable pieces◦ Making connections ◦ Understanding the intent of the material◦ Being able to summarize the material

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Phonological AwarenessGoals in this area can address:

◦ Decoding words (sounding out the word)◦ Rhyming◦ Learning about syllables ◦ Leaning how to blend letter sounds to form words◦ Learning how to manipulate words and letters

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SpellingGoals in this area can address:

◦ Learning how to associate letters and sounds◦ Learning strategies to remember the spelling of

sight words (Those not spelled how they sound)

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Memory SkillsGoals in this area can address:

◦ Remembering/retaining sight words◦ Remembering/retaining vocabulary words◦ Remembering/retaining sentence meanings◦ Remembering/retaining the main idea of a story◦ Remembering/retaining details of a story◦ Remembering/retaining strategies to help with

reading and writing tasks.

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Executive FunctioningGoals in this area can address:

◦ Strategies to help plan and organize reading and writing tasks

◦ How to break down large tasks◦ What things need to be accomplished in the

reading and/or writing task.◦ Overall organizational skills

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Disclaimer This presentation is meant to serve as an overview of

ways a speech pathologist can help in the area of literacy. It is not meant to be a comprehensive list or description of any of the areas listed. These are just some examples of ways and areas a speech pathologist can provide assistance to someone experiencing a reading disability.

If you have questions about how a speech pathologist can help you or someone you know who experiences a reading disability please contact a local speech pathologist or one of our speech pathologists either by

phone at 1-877-480-7913 e-mail at info@independentspeech.com

Or visit our website at www.independentspeech.comTo learn more about Online Speech Therapy