Specific Learning Disabilities/Dyslexia

The Orton-Gillingham Approach is a direct, explicit, multisensory, structured, sequential, diagnostic, and prescriptive way to teach literacy when reading, writing, and spelling does not come easily to individuals, such as those with dyslexia. this website provides accreditation and training opportunities for professionals, in addition to resources for parents about how the Orton-Gillingham approach can support their child and location of practitioners and organizations in their area that offer this approach. General resources introduce the approach and offer recommended further reading including books and DVDs.

CAST is a nonprofit education research and development organization that created the Universal Design for Learning framework and UDL Guidelines, now used the world over to make learning more inclusive. Find curated resources to accessible learning in the classroom and online along with UDL guidelines and more.

The Center for Parent Information and Resources (CPIR) serves as a central resource of information and products to the community of Parent Training Information (PTI) Centers and the Community Parent Resource Centers (CPRCs), so that they can focus their efforts on serving families of children with disabilities

For over two decades, the Scottish Rite Masons, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, have been national leaders in the effort to help children and their families overcome the painful obstacles of dyslexia. With more than 40 Dyslexia Centers in 13 states, the Children’s Dyslexia Centers tackle the challenge of dyslexia head-on, both by providing free tutoring for children with dyslexia and by training a growing cadre of highly skilled and dedicated tutors.

"We are a new branch that was established in September of 2018. Our Board is composed of a group of passionate parents and educators who are dedicated to helping people with Dyslexia. The International Dyslexia Association provides a forum where parents, educators, individuals with dyslexia, and researchers share their knowledge about a disorder that affects roughly 15 percent of the United States population (14.5 – 43.5 million children and adults).

Our mission is to provide parents and educators with the training and expertise to help identify and support individuals with Dyslexia. We provide parent roundtables, professional education, seminars, and other resources to increase public awareness and remediation of dyslexia. Our Branch is dedicated to providing the most up to date research, resources, and a voice in legislation to ensure an equitable education in public schools." - from website

For more than 30 years, TDF has been bringing together leading scientists from important fields in dyslexia research, while working to create a bridge between research and practice.

OUR MISSION: To facilitate and disseminate scientific breakthroughs and advances in dyslexia through collaboration among neuroscientists, cognitive scientists, geneticists, and practitioners.

DyslexiaHelp is designed to help you understand and learn about dyslexia and language disability. Housed within the School of Education at the University of Michigan, the development and continued support of DyslexiaHelp is made possible by the very generous donations to the website. We are very grateful for this financial support and the opportunity to help those of you with a need for information and an interest in dyslexia and related language-based learning disabilities.

Our goal is to help individuals with dyslexia, as well as parents, employers, and professionals of all kinds who have the privilege to work with dyslexics gain new understandings about dyslexia and language disability, including current research findings and how to design intervention contexts based on best practices.

Since 2003, the Dyslexia Society of Connecticut has been a nonprofit corporation and operated as part of a multinational organization. Now it continues as an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit and focuses on dyslexia, particularly reading proficiency, in Connecticut. This corporation works diligently to encourage diagnosis, improve reading skills, and all components of dyslexia, which impact academic, social, and economic issues for dyslexics and all who struggle with reading proficiency.

Website started by Marianne Sunderland and provides resources and best practices to teach your dyslexic learners at home. Seven of Marianne’s eight children have dyslexia, and she has had extensive training in the best methods to reach these children.

The International Dyslexia Association, Inc. (IDA) is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) charity, organized and operated to provide advocacy, resources and services to teaching professionals, advocates and individuals and families impacted by dyslexia and other related learning differences. Find factsheets, toolkits, resource guides and handbooks for professionals and parents.

The IDA also provides access to The Dyslexia Digital Library, which houses an extensive collection of IDA’s most informative articles, fact sheets, infographics, and videos organized in a searchable, user-friendly site that also includes frequently asked questions and trending topics. Families can learn strategies to help them advocate for their child with dyslexia, reading teachers can find guidance on applying the principles of Structured Literacy in their classrooms, researchers can review the work of their peers—these are just a few examples of how to use the library.

Use the IRIS Center's database to find more picture books featuring characters with specific learning disabilities.

The IRIS Center is a national center dedicated to improving education outcomes for all children, especially those with disabilities birth through age twenty-one, through the use of effective evidence-based practices and interventions.

LD OnLine seeks to help children and adults reach their full potential by providing accurate and up-to-date information and advice about learning disabilities and ADHD. The site features hundreds of helpful articles, multimedia, monthly columns by noted experts, first person essays, children’s writing and artwork, a comprehensive resource guide, very active forums, and a Yellow Pages referral directory of professionals, schools, and products.

LDA’s mission is to create opportunities for success for all individuals affected by learning disabilities through support, education, and advocacy.

The Connecticut Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped is a network library of the Library of Congress’ National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. We lend books and magazines in recorded formats along with the necessary playback equipment, and materials in braille, FOR FREE, to any Connecticut adult or child who is unable to read regular print due to a visual or physical disability.

The mission of NCLD is to improve the lives of the 1 in 5 children and adults nationwide with learning and attention issues—by empowering parents and young adults, transforming schools and advocating for equal rights and opportunities. We’re working to create a society in which every individual possesses the academic, social, and emotional skills needed to succeed in school, at work, and in life.

The AEM Center is funded by the Office of Special Education Programs at the U.S. Department of Education. We work with states and districts to build capacity for developing and sustaining robust systems for providing accessible materials and technologies for all learners who need them. To us, accessibility means that individuals with disabilities—from early childhood through the workforce—have equal access to materials and technologies for reaching educational outcomes and advancing in employment. Find free products and services on their website and collected on their resources page: free resources—including videos, policy briefs, articles, podcasts, and quick reads—are meant to support their goal of increasing the availability and use of accessible educational materials and technologies for learners with disabilities across the lifespan. Webinars and conference presentations are listed on their events page: AEM provides free technical assistance webinars and presentations at national convenings and conferences, with the goal of increasing the availability and use of accessible educational materials and technologies for learners with disabilities across the lifespan.

For Educators: Find Tools and resources to support general and special education teachers, interventionists, school psychologists, school counselors, and other school-based personnel working with students with intensive academic and behavioral needs.

NCII builds the capacity of state and local education agencies, universities, practitioners, and other stakeholders to support implementation of intensive intervention in literacy, mathematics, and behavior for students with severe and persistent learning and/or behavioral needs. NCII’s approach to intensive intervention is data-based individualization (DBI). DBI is a research-based process for individualizing and intensifying interventions through the systematic use of assessment data, validated interventions, and research-based adaptation strategies.

We are dedicated to helping parents realize their children’s significant gifts and talents, and demonstrating that with their love, guidance, and the right support, their children can live happy and productive lives. Our mission is to help children with learning and attention differences reach their full potential by inspiring, educating and empowering parents to help their children succeed. The Getting Help section of our website identifies the issues that impact your family, and provides the knowledge and skills to help manage them in school, on the playground, and at home.

Free New Online Resource for Parents! NCLD and 14 other nonprofits have been developing a new digital destination for parents of children with learning and attention issues—and it’s unlike anything available today. It’s called Understood.

The Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity (YCDC) is the preeminent source of cutting-edge research, informed advocacy and trustworthy resources to help those with dyslexia reach their full potential. The Center’s tools and resources are used widely by parents, educators and those with dyslexia to advocate for greater recognition and support for dyslexic children and adults. YCDC builds awareness in all communities and mobilizes grassroots efforts to close the reading achievement gap for all students, including low-income students of color, through policies that help dyslexic children succeed. The Center also showcases the remarkable success stories of adults with dyslexia, including writers, scientists, celebrities, and government and business leaders.