7. For students with dyslexia, some words and activities are harder than others. The words children with dyslexia find most confusing may not be the ones you’d think. Often it’s the short, common words that seem easy to most students—such as from, of, the, to, for, what, that, where, who, and how—that are tricky for students with dyslexia. Sometimes when students with dyslexia see a list of these seemingly basic words on a test, they just freeze up, says Nelson, so it’s helpful to teach them to pay attention to the letter-pattern cues that make these words different from one another. They also may need to be encouraged to try multiple pronunciations of long and complex words in later grades because they may have trouble initially putting the accent on the right syllable or saying the vowels correctly. In the classroom, also try to avoid putting a student with dyslexia on the spot to read aloud in a round-robin situation, which can be particularly embarrassing. A better option is to have the whole class read in unison, suggests Nelson. These choral readings model fluent reading and give students with dyslexia an opportunity to join their peers. While Nelson doesn’t advocate for old-fashioned, round-robin readings where individual students are put on the spot, she does say it’s important for teachers, especially those working with young children, to listen to their students read aloud on their own from time to time. Some children with dyslexia are very good at hiding their disability in a group setting, so it’s not until you sit down one-on-one to listen to your students read aloud that you’ll notice a problem. Nelson also recommends following up with a brainstorming activity after reading selected passages as a way to emphasize the importance of active comprehension and inferring meaning when its not explicitly stated. “If there is not just one right answer, more students may be actively involved,” says Nelson. “This develops critical-thinking skills, which may be a strength for students with dyslexia.”