How can multi-sensory teaching help?

What is multi-sensory teaching?

Multi-sensory teaching is an instructional approach that uses multiple senses to help students learn. For dyslexic students, who often have difficulties with traditional reading and writing methods, this approach can be particularly beneficial. It involves engaging the visual, auditory, kinesthetic (movement), and tactile (touch) senses to enhance learning and memory.

Key Components of Multi-sensory Teaching

1. Visual Learning

Use of Visual Aids - Incorporating images, charts, diagrams, and videos to support understanding.

Text Highlights - Using different colours or underlining to emphasise important parts of a text.

Flashcards - To help with sight words and vocabulary.

2. Auditory Learning

Oral Instructions and Discussion - Explaining concepts aloud and engaging in discussions.

Phonemic Awareness - Practicing the sounds that letters and letter combinations make.

Listening Activities - Using audio books or recordings to support reading comprehension.

3. Kinesthetic Learning

Movement - Incorporating body movement to reinforce learning, like having students form letters with their bodies or move to different stations.

Role-playing - Acting out scenes from stories or concepts to reinforce comprehension.

Physical Manipulatives - Using blocks, letter tiles, or other physical objects to build words and sentences.

4. Tactile Learning

Hands-on Activities  - Engaging in activities like tracing letters in sand, clay, or using textured materials.

Touch and Feel - Using textured surfaces to help students feel letter shapes.

Writing Exercises - Using different mediums like sandpaper, gel bags, or raised-line paper to practice writing.

Benefits for Dyslexic Students

Reinforcement of Learning

Engaging multiple senses helps reinforce information, making it easier for students to remember and recall.

Increased Engagement

Multisensory activities are often more engaging and interactive, which can help maintain students' interest and motivation.

Development of Comprehensive Skills

This approach helps develop a range of skills, including phonological awareness, decoding, spelling, and comprehension.

Adaptability

The flexibility of multisensory teaching allows it to be adapted to suit the specific needs and learning styles of each student.

Overall, multisensory teaching is an effective way to support dyslexic students by making learning more accessible and engaging, helping them to overcome their specific challenges in reading and writing.