The global charity Made By Dyslexia, in partnership with Microsoft Education and the world’s leading dyslexia-focused schools, has launched a free online training to help all educators support struggling readers, as schools and communities emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The initiative, supported by Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and developed with The Schenck School and Morningside Elementary School in Atlanta, Georgia, and Broadclyst in the UK, shares evidence-based teaching methods and insights that allow the one in five children who are dyslexic to focus on their strengths.
“In partnership with Microsoft, we launched Connect the Spots, a global campaign to get every teacher in the world trained in dyslexia awareness using our free online dyslexia training course,” said Kate Griggs, founder of Made By Dyslexia. “In this course, expert teachers take a deeper dive into teaching methods that support dyslexic children but actually help all children.”
“It’s my hope that schools across the world will join in training all their teachers so that we can empower every child and show that, no matter who you are, or where you come from, you can use your dyslexic strengths to dream big, because when you do, anything is possible,” said Keisha Lance Bottoms, mayor of Atlanta.
Made By Dyslexia launched two free online courses, supported by Microsoft Education and created with the support of expert teachers. Made By Dyslexia’s Connect the Spots campaign is committed to the goal of training every teacher in the world in the next five years to identify and support students with dyslexia. Schools, educators, and organizations can sign up to train with these free resources, available at https://education.microsoft.com/en-us/learningPath/939a69c9.
“Many teachers don’t know they have students with dyslexia in their classrooms or know how to support them, but the Made By Dyslexia resources gives educators the tools and confidence to understand how the dyslexic mind works,” said Josh Clark, head of The Schenck School and president of the International Dyslexia Association.
“This strikes to the core of our mission in education, to empower every student on the planet to achieve more,” said Barbara Holzapfel, general manager of Microsoft Education.
