106. Dyslexia: What Is It & How Special Education Teachers Can Help Struggling Readers with Melanie Brethour

Hey Special Ed Teacher,

In today’s episode, we have special guest Melanie Brethour. Melanie Brethour is a resource teacher from Montreal, Quebec, dedicated to dyslexia awareness and the science of reading. Her commitment was sparked by her son Benjamin's dyslexia diagnosis at age 9. To better support him and her students, she earned Orton-Gillingham associate-level certification and became a CERI structured literacy teacher.

Melanie founded Decoding Dyslexia Quebec and Soar With Dyslexia on social media to provide resources and support. She also volunteers for Dyslexia Canada, helping parents navigate dyslexia. Guided by the motto "when you know better, you do better," Melanie continues to advocate for dyslexia understanding and support for struggling students and their families.

In this interview, Melanie and I discuss the challenges and potential solutions for identifying and supporting students with dyslexia. Melanie shared her personal experiences and recommended structured literacy approaches for teaching reading skills to dyslexic students. They also discussed the importance of transparency in parent communication and the role of special education teachers in identifying learning difficulties. This is a very insightful conversation you don’t want to miss!

Take Care,

Michelle

Resources mentioned:

• Scholastic Science of Reading Teacher Resources
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Connect with Melanie Brethour:

• Soar with Dyslexia Resources
• Instagram: @soarwithdyslexia
• Facebook: Soar with Dyslexia
• Linkedin: Melanie Brethour

Connect with Michelle Vazquez:

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