Process & Research of Dyslexia? A Book on the Demystification of Dyslexia for Students with Dyslexia

This paper focuses on the ways in which the demystification of dyslexia for diagnosed or pre- diagnosed students alters their ability to self-advocate. It examines effective ways of demystification and, specifically, how literature can be used to directly teach children how to talk about their difference. This review of research highlights positive and negative effects of providing students with learning disability labels. It also notes that the majority of studies on the subject show that providing students with a label for their learning variations positively impacts self-esteem and academic engagement. However, it is noted that a dearth of children’s literature is available that normalizes students with learning variations. With the intent to design a book that provides a resource for students that addresses social and academic concerns, this paper also explores ways in which design—text formatting, layout, visuals, and audio aids— can help students with dyslexia read independently