Better Reading Comprehension for Kids with Autism

Have you ever wondered how you can help your child become a better reader? Is your young child highly interested in letters, sounds and words? My daughter was. At age 17 months, she could already identify all letters and sounds. However, she was delayed in her fine and gross motor skills and had just started walking independently. This is when my suspicion of an Autism diagnosis began.
 
Many children with High-Functioning Autism develop reading decoding skills early, referred to as being “hyperlexic”. It was initially identified by Norman E. Silberberg and Margaret C. Silberberg (1967), who defined hyperlexia as the precocious ability to read words without prior training in learning to read, typically before the age of 5. My daughter began identifying sight words early on and was reading simple books by age 3 ½.  However, she continues to struggle with making meaning from what she reads and responding to more open-ended questions about grade level text.
 
How can you support children who struggle with reading comprehension? There are certain strategies that work and are truly beneficial for all kids as they mature as readers. Here are a few:
 

1. Stop and discuss the text with them from time to time, instead of reading to them or watching them read an entire book/article/chapter. Use this time to review key vocabulary and confirm that they understand the “main idea” of the text.
2.  Ask your child questions about the text that requires them to think deeply. WH questions (who, when, etc.) are a good start; however, more open-ended questions really help children to become more flexible in their thinking. Example: How do you think this character is feeling now? What do you think will happen next?
3. Model your thinking for your child. I often stop and ask my child questions as we read together. Then, I provide my response (Ex: I like your ideas. I think that the character is feeling sad because I see a tear on their cheek. Let’s keep reading to find out more).

 
Let’s support our children and help to prepare them to become life-long learners. Building good reading skills is one way to do that. Feel free to contact me for more information on this topic. 

References: Think and Speak Successfully by C. Dunaway (2012). Photo: Lee Live-Photographer (www.ourdreamphotography.com).
 

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