How to teach an 18 y.o. with a slight down syndrome to read and write?

Question

I have my brother that they say have a slight down syndrome. Hes been at school since 5 y.o. and still doesn't know how to read. We enrolled him at a Special Education school but i think he doesn't learn anything from them. I saw his notebook onetime and they are studying taxes and still they don't know how to read and write.

Can you please give me techniques to teach him so that he can be a good citizen and not ignorant. He, by the way, already know math and can add and subtract and stuff about money but doesn't know anything about reading and writing . He recognize some letters and can teach him to read one syllable but the next day he forgets it when you teach him another syllable to read.

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

This is to the  monkie person. Most people with DS CAN read and write. My son is 7 and knows how to write his name and read quite a few words. There are 5 other kids with DS in his school at varying ages and all but one of them are close to if not at grade level in reading. monkie you must teach at a school in Louisiana. (not disrespecting La. born and raised there and am glad I finally got my son out of their "education" system)

To answer your question you first need to have him evaluated by a Speech Pathologist to see if he has any nuances of speech. My son has Apraxia of Speech. He was diagnosed with it a year ago and his whole plan of treatment and education changed after that. He has progressed so much this past year because of it. He couldn't read or write his name at the beginning of the school year and now he does.

Also your brother needs to learn his alphabet. I have found with my son doing things spontainiously works better for him than structured study. We have everything labeled at our home. Door, table, milk.. if he wants to use one of these things we have to go over the word first, we make a little game out of it. He enjoys it because he doesn't have to sit a t a desk and tell you what you are asking.

Kids with DS learn diferent that "typical." He CAN learn though.

Good luck!

Answer 2

The *SCHOOL* is suppose to be helping him with this, this is why he goes there!

Your parents have to write and request an IEP meeting with the school to change the IEP plan to somethign that DOES WORK to help him with his problems.

Answer 3

Try teaching him reading with the aid of symbols.

This will help him to retain more information as it is pictorial and written.

The symbols are assigned to each word.

Once he is able to read stuff with symbols you can try covering the symbols and see if he can read the word.

You need to start slow though try easier books.

This site also gives you information on software for symbols aswell as how to use symbols to support literacy.

I have seen this in action and it works. The school I did a placement at had all/or most of their readers like this - it was a special school.

Whatever method you use to teach him you need to do a lot of revision before you go onto the next step.

Answer 4

Your best bet would be to teach him through his environment. Many young children learn to read a familiar store name, like KMart, or any favorite products. It would be no different for your brother.

It is not to difficult to transfer this knowledge through rhymes or word families _at, _it, _ant, _ane, etc. Play word games similar to "I Spy" when traveling or reading the ad papers: "I spy Kmart - spelled K-M-A-R-T" Another word game to play is rhymes: "Do you know a word that rhymes with dog?" Then the other person says "fog" and the leader replies with "log" and so on. Or, name words that ends with _at (ending written on a notecard). A wipe-off slate or magic slate would make the writing/reading part more fun for the two of you.

Below is an example of a lesson plan that will further explain environmental print and how to carry out the process. The charts referred to are available by download from the website: http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/le...

I Know That Word! Teaching Reading With Environmental Print



Author:  Jennifer Prior, Gilbert, Arizona and Maureen Gerard, Phoenix, Arizona

Grade Band  K-2

Estimated Lesson Time  Three 30- to 45-minute sessions



Overview  

“I can read that!” A student who says these words may be talking about a stop sign or a McDonald’s logo. Capitalizing on this ability to recognize images and words in the world around them, this lesson has students read logos beginning in color, following with black and white, and finishing with the logo word without supporting graphics. Students then move from whole-word identification to alphabetic decoding by sorting the logos according to their initial letters. This lesson is aimed primarily at emerging readers in kindergarten and first grade, but it can also be used with older struggling readers.



From Theory to Practice  

Prior, J., & Gerard, M.R. (2004). Environmental print in the classroom: Meaningful connections for learning to read. Newark, DE: International Reading Association.

High-impact environmental print symbols are the first exposure young children have to the code system of written symbols.

Research indicates that children must construct a “cognitive anchor” for mapping sounds onto written code symbols. Environmental print can be this anchor.

Adult instruction is the key element to effectively using environmental print to teach beginning reading skills. When an adult draws attention to the letters and sounds in environmental print words, children are more likely to transfer this knowledge to decontextualized print (text without graphics).



Student Objectives; Students will

Develop word recognition and fluency by identifying and discussing familiar print in the environment, by taking note of individual letters in the words, and by segmenting the sounds of these letters

Develop word recognition, fluency, and early reading success by reading environmental print in different forms

Apply what they have learned and demonstrate comprehension by recalling the sounds of the letters they see in logos and sorting those logos according to their initial letter

Practice reading and sorting by placing the logos in additional categories

Resources  

Classroom resources: Environmental print materials

Google Image Search

Index cards

Chart paper

Tape or glue

T-Charts: Which Letter?, I Like/I Don’t Like, Which Is It? Food/Fun, Where Is It? In the Home/Not in the Home



Instructional Plan  

Preparation

1. You may choose to teach this lesson as part of a unit along with “Stop Signs, McDonald’s, and Cheerios: Writing with Environmental Print.” If you have already completed this lesson, you can use the environmental print materials you assembled for it and can skip Session 1 of this lesson, which is the same.



2. You will be using examples of signs, labels, and logos with your students and should have a collection available to share with them, to make cards for Session 2, and to use in the sorting activity in Session 3. These can come from product packaging (e.g., cereal boxes, soda cans), fast food containers, store bags, or magazines. Some of these images should come specifically from your immediate community (e.g., the sign in front of your school or street signs from main streets in town). You might consider taking photos of local signs with a digital camera or scanning in pictures that you cut out of local magazines or brochures. You will want to resize these images so that they fit onto index cards. You can do this by scanning the images and then using software or a photocopier to resize them. You want at least eight images and preferably more.



3. You can also use the Internet to capture images of signs, logos, and product labels as follows:

a. Go to Google Image Search and type in the name of a sign, company, or product you would like to use (for example, type in the words stop sign).

b. On the page that opens with images, click on the image that is simplest and will copy most clearly; then click on the link that says See full-size image.

c. When this image opens, right-click on the image. A drop-down menu will appear. Click on the word Copy.

d. Using Microsoft Word or another word-processing program, open a blank document and paste the image in. You will want to resize the image so that it can fit onto an index card.



4. To prepare for Session 2, you will need to create three sets of environmental print cards as follows:

a. Select eight images from those you have collected in Steps 1 and 2, preferably ones that are familiar to your students (examples might include a stop sign and labels from Oreos, Play-Doh, Burger King food, Crest toothpaste, Barbie, BAND-AIDs, and LEGOs).

b. Make one copy of each image in color and another in black and white. If possible, when you create the black-and-white image, remove any graphics or illustrations that accompany the word in the logo or sign.



c. Type and print out each logo word or words in an enlarged standard font. Be sure to type just as the word is written. For example, OREO would be typed as it appears on the label using all uppercase letters. Play-Doh would be typed in both uppercase and lowercase letters.

d. You will now have eight logos in three different forms. Glue each one to an index card.

5. Choose at least two of the following four T-chart templates for the activity during Session 3:

Which Letter? (select two letters, such as S images and C images)

I Like/I Don’t Like

Which Is It? Food/Fun

Where Is It? In the Home/Not in the Home

Your choice should be based on how many appropriate images you collected for each category during Steps 2 and 3. You will complete one of the templates with your students and should copy it onto chart paper and make larger copies of the appropriate logos and images to accompany it.

Make one letter-sized copy of the second T-chart template you choose for each student in your class. Make smaller copies of the appropriate logos and images for your students to use when sorting.

6. Ask your students to bring in their own examples of packaging, labels, and logos to share during Session 1.



Instruction and Activities

Session 1

1. Display the items you have assembled to share and those that your students have brought in (see Preparation, Steps 1 and 6). Ask students to identify each of them. Ask how they know the name of the item and have student volunteers point to the words on the packaging.

2. Use the words on the items you have brought in to draw students’ attentions to the letters and sounds. For example:

How do you know this box says BAND-AID?

What letter do you see at the beginning?

What sounds does the letter b make?

Is that the sound you hear at the beginning of BAND-AID?

What is another word that begins with the same sound?



3. Slowly segment the sounds made by each environmental print word and have students call out the letter for each sound. Draw students’ attentions to the different sounds that the same letter can make. For example:

What other letters do you see in the word BAND-AID?

What are the sounds that you hear in BAND-AID?

Do you see the letter a here in BAND-AID says /ă/, but the letter a here says its name /ā/?

4. Proceed in this manner with each of the items. Draw students’ attentions to the fact that often a letter appears in different ways. For example, sometimes a letter might be written in cursive. Sometimes the same letter is big and red. The same letter can look different when it appears in different words.

Session 2

1. Using tape to attach the image cards you have prepared (see Preparation, Step 4), arrange them in three columns on a sheet of chart paper, with all of the colored cards together, all of the black-and-white logo cards together, and all of the typed cards together. Within each column, the cards should be placed in random order.

2. Say one of the logo names and ask students to identify it in the first column. Assist them by asking them to listen as you say the word and think about the beginning sound and the letter that represents that sound. For example: “Listen as I say the word BAND-AID. What sound do you hear at the beginning of the word? What letter makes that sound? Can you find the word BAND-AID in the first column?”

3. Next, ask students to locate the same logo in the second column. Explain that the logo will look a bit different because it will not have the color and graphics they just saw. Draw students’ attentions to the differences and similarities in the printed letters of the two logos. For example: “Now, you’re going to look for the word BAND-AID in the second column. What do you notice about the cards here? That’s right; they no longer have colorful letters or pictures. Can you find a word that begins with the  

Answer 5

i am sorry to inform you

but most downs cant read and write

if yoiu can get them to write there names you are doing good

depending on severity of course

i have done SE for a few years now

and worked with a couple of downs

and they cant and chances are never be able to

Answer 6

try SIGHT WORDS-instead of sound out words-

I got a good set of workbooks at Barnes and Nobles for $20

DOLCH Sight Words-

There is anotehr good series by Edmark-last I checked it was about $600

also look for Survival Reading skills-things that teach words you woudl see in your environment/on forms you need to fill out

Answer 7

I would try teaching him words in his environment and personal information first.  These are called "survival words."  I bet he's been at least exposed to this information in school - possibly since elementary school.  The teaching materials for this sort of thing are extremely expensive.  Last year, I ordered $1800 worth of reading materials and it did not cover all of my students' needs.  

Survival words would be like reading the signs at the mall, church, grocery store, etc.  It might even being able to read the words on the microwave or stove.   It would NOT be reading by sounding out.  Unfortunatley, I do not think he would ever be able to get to that point based on his developmental ability.  That's why it's not "sticking" with him from one day to the next. It is common for a word to take two years to master.  It sounds crazy but his brain is unlike ours.  It's just not hard-wired for understanding written words.

The tax information is for exposure purposes.  The No Child Left Behind Act and other influences have changed the curriculum (what we teach) drastically.  Some agree with it, others do not.  Either way we teachers are required to expose our students with mental retardation to the regular curriculum.  This means we teach about taxes, geometry, and  anatomy now.  

Good for you being a brother that cares!