How Is Dyslexia Tutoring Different From Regular Reading Tutoring?
If your child is struggling with reading, you may have started looking for a reading tutor. But if your child has dyslexia—or you suspect dyslexia—you may be wondering whether regular reading tutoring is enough.
While any additional reading practice can be helpful, dyslexia tutoring is different from traditional reading tutoring. Children with dyslexia often need reading instruction that is explicit, systematic, structured, and designed around the way they learn.
Why Doesn’t More Reading Practice Always Help?
When a child struggles to read, a common recommendation is simply to read more.
For some children, additional practice is exactly what they need. For a child with dyslexia, however, more practice with difficult text may not address the underlying skills causing the struggle.
A child may need direct instruction in skills such as:
Phonemic awareness
Letter-sound relationships
Decoding unfamiliar words
Spelling patterns
Syllable types and division
Reading fluency
Instead of simply practicing reading, effective intervention identifies the skills a child is missing and teaches those skills directly.
What Is Structured Literacy?
Structured Literacy is an approach to reading instruction that is particularly beneficial for students with dyslexia and other reading difficulties.
Instruction is explicit and systematic, meaning skills are directly taught in a carefully planned sequence rather than expecting children to discover patterns on their own.
Students learn how spoken and written language work together. As they develop stronger foundational skills, they can become more accurate and confident readers.
What Makes Dyslexia Tutoring Different?
Traditional tutoring may focus primarily on helping a student complete assignments, practice grade-level reading, or improve comprehension.
Dyslexia tutoring goes deeper.
During specialized reading intervention, instruction may focus on the individual skills that are making reading difficult. New concepts are introduced systematically, practiced repeatedly, and reviewed until they become more automatic.
The goal isn’t simply to help a child get through tonight’s reading assignment. The goal is to build the skills they need to become a stronger, more independent reader.
What Is the Barton Reading & Spelling System?
I use the Barton Reading & Spelling System with many of my students with dyslexia.
Barton is an Orton-Gillingham influenced, structured literacy program designed for students who struggle with reading and spelling. Lessons are systematic and cumulative, so students build new skills on a strong foundation of previously learned concepts.
Students aren’t expected to guess at unfamiliar words. Instead, they are taught strategies for understanding how words work.
For many struggling readers, this can make reading feel much more manageable.
Does My Child Need Dyslexia Tutoring?
Not every struggling reader has dyslexia. However, specialized reading intervention may be worth considering if your child:
Continues to struggle despite regular reading instruction
Has difficulty sounding out unfamiliar words
Frequently guesses at words
Struggles with spelling
Reads slowly or with significant effort
Avoids reading whenever possible
Has difficulty remembering previously taught phonics patterns
Seems bright and capable but reading remains unusually difficult
The most important thing is figuring out why your child is struggling so instruction can target the right skills.
Online Dyslexia and Reading Tutoring
I provide individualized online reading and dyslexia tutoring for students who need additional support developing foundational literacy skills.
My tutoring is tailored to each student’s needs and may include structured literacy instruction, Barton Reading & Spelling, phonemic awareness, decoding, spelling, fluency, and other targeted reading skills.
Most importantly, I want students to experience something many struggling readers desperately need: the feeling that they can do this.
When instruction matches a child’s needs, reading can begin to feel less frustrating and confidence can start to grow along with their skills.
Looking for a Dyslexia or Reading Tutor?
If your child is struggling with reading and you’re unsure what kind of support they need, I’d be happy to talk with you about whether individualized tutoring may be a good fit.
Tutoring with Cassi Riggs provides online dyslexia tutoring, structured literacy intervention, Barton tutoring, and individualized reading support for struggling readers.
