More About “Y”

In my last post, I mentioned how dyslexia tutoring addresses difficulties with “w” and “y”. Today, I will discuss how a dyslexia tutor helps a student master “y” in more detail.

Dyslexia tutors tend to devote special attention to the letter “y”, because it can be rather problematic for dyslexics. This is partly due to the nature of the letter;  “y” can be a consonant or a vowel. Often, students don’t know the rules regarding when “y” is a consonant and when it is a vowel. The rule is that “y” at the beginning of a word is always a consonant, and it says its consonant sound. If a “y” is anywhere else except in the beginning of the word, it is a vowel. This is one of the rules that we cover in dyslexia tutoring that help make more sense of the language for students with dyslexia.

In addition, a dyslexia tutor usually teaches a student the other rules regarding “y”, the ones that tell what “y” says in certain positions. In the middle of a word or a syllable, “y” acts just like “i” does; so it says a long “i” sound or a short “i” sound. At the end of a word, it says long “i” or long “e”. Dyslexia tutors have students work with these rules through reading, spelling and writing, and eventually, they begin to master this letter.

Peter