Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew.
Reading is an essential skill kids need to learn. It is hard, though, when you have a child, in which reading doesn’t come easy. I don’t have struggling readers, but you can bet I worked with many as a former Special Education teacher. So over the past several weeks, I’ve been taking a look at Dyslexia Gold through the lens of a special education teacher. I found that Dyslexia Gold could be a huge help for kids who struggle with reading.
As part of the Homeschool Review Crew, I received a 12-month online subscription. I received the Homeschool option, which gives a Family License so multiple students can use the program. I spent time looking over the program and giving it a try. Let me share with you what Dyslexia Gold is and who would benefit the most from this program.
Table of Contents
Dyslexia Gold- What Is It?
Dyslexia Gold is an online membership program, but it isn’t just for students with dyslexia. It is also for any children that struggle with reading. The program includes:
- Dyslexia Screener
- Vision Training
- Reading- Reading Unlocked and Fluency Builder
- Spelling Tutor
- Times Table Tutor
Dyslexia Screener
I didn’t have anyone to screen for dyslexia, so I didn’t use Dyslexia Screener. However, it sounds like a great tool. In this online screening tool, kids can do it right at home. Parents receive a report on their child’s strengths and weaknesses once they complete it. I think this will be a huge help for parents. They can use this information to help them work with their child.
Vision Training
Often kids that have reading difficulty also have vision problems. For example, I often found that the students I worked with had trouble tracking across the page. These are the poor kiddos that keep losing their place while reading.
Dyslexia Gold has various games that help figure out and work on any vision problems that affect a kiddo’s reading. Students use 3-D glasses during this part of the program.
Dyslexia Gold- Reading Unlocked and Fluency Builder
There are two programs for reading. The first is Reading Unlocked, intended for kids up to age 7. In Reading Unlocked, kids work on phonics which is one of the beginning stages of reading. Here kids work on letter sounds.
The other reading program is Fluency Builder. In this program, kids work on phonological awareness and fluency. So basically, kids work on recognizing sounds and changing letters around to make new words. This program is broken into three levels: easy (4-7-year-olds), medium (7-9-year-olds), and hard (ages 9+).
Kids start with an assessment to figure out their reading level. Students are shown a word and four pictures. Then, the child reads the word aloud, and the parent clicks on the picture of the word the child reads read or marks that they didn’t know it. This helps determine your child’s level in the program. It measures up to 11 years and 6 months.
Spelling Tutor
The Spelling Tutor helps kids learn 1000 high-frequency words.
For the spelling assessment, the student is given the word, a sentence with the word, and the word is repeated. They continue until they get 5 words wrong.
Times Table Tutor
In this program, students learn their multiplication facts up through their 12s using the Singapore method. For those unfamiliar with the Singapore method, concepts are taught concretely and advance to more abstract concepts.
During the assessment, students keep answering multiplication facts until they get three wrong. For each question, kids have six seconds to answer.
What is Dyslexia Gold Like?
My kids and I explored the site. I had my kids go through the assessments to see what it was like for kids. They even tried the vision training because what kid doesn’t want to wear 3-D glasses?!
It should be noted that this is a company in the UK, so some of the words used are not ones we use in the US. But, overall, it shouldn’t impact your kids’ use of the program.
I found that my kids couldn’t really use the program since they are not struggling readers. However, my kids got things wrong purposely so that I could explore the program. That is when I discovered the program assesses kids’ reading levels up to 11 years and 6 months. My daughter received 100%, and this is what it stated as her reading level. She really is much higher, but the program isn’t designed for this.
So, in the end, I mainly explored the Fluency Builder, Spelling, and Times Tables Tutor on my own.
Exploring Fluency Builder by Dyslexia Gold
I will start by saying I was pretty impressed with the Fluency Builder. Most of the activities remind me of those I used with my own students while teaching.
In this program, kids work on phonological awareness. So, kids will slide tiles to change words helping students to recognize sounds. For example, the word may be HAT, and kids are asked to change it to HIT by sliding a letter tile to change it.
Another great feature is students need to slide words into the box, separating the words into short and long vowel sounds. Kids learn to hear the differences between letter sounds.
Once children practice letter sounds, they move into reading passages appropriate to their ability level. Next, kids read the passage and can click on a word if they need help.
After they read the passage, they answer some multiple-choice questions. This checks on their comprehension.
Reading Passage 
Quiz 
Report
In another activity, kids are asked to reread the passage. It tracks how long it takes them to read it. Later you can check the reports and see how many words per minute they read. Over time, you can see if their reading is getting faster.
The kids need to complete all the activities for one lesson, which takes maybe 15 minutes. One lesson I did had about 14 activities. I don’t see kids getting bored with the lessons. They switch things up enough.
I do believe these activities will significantly help kids with reading challenges. Kids slowly progress from basic letter sounds to applying them in passages. Over time, I think kids reading would improve.
Exploring Spelling Tutor
Unlike some spelling programs that focus on one letter sound or spelling pattern, Dyslexia Gold focuses on high-frequency words or most commonly used words. Struggling readers really need to focus on this area to build up their reading skills.
The Spelling Tutor used the Fluency Builder’s book level to determine words to work on for spelling. The program has kids get out some paper or a whiteboard to write out what is read. It works like dictation. Sentences are broken up into small chunks, kids write it down, and then they correct their work.
When kids check their work, they need to check off correct (or incorrect) punctuation and capitalization, too, not just spelling errors. The only problem I see with this is that a child might not accurately correct their work. A parent might want to be present for this.
Even though this program is too easy for my son, I may use the Spelling Tutor to improve his sentence capitalization and punctuation. This is one area in writing he struggles with.
Overall, I really like how the Spelling Tutor uses spelling in a meaningful way. It connects it to their reading. I have found this technique can really work well for struggling readers and writers.
Exploring Times Table Tutor
During the review, I also tried out the Times Table Tutor. I like the approach it uses. The problems start concrete with visuals and move into word problems and just the facts. There is a variety of problems and practice in one session.
More concrete. 
Getting kids to make their own multiplication sentences.
Overall Thoughts on Dyslexia Gold
I feel Dyslexia Gold could benefit struggling readers with Dyslexia and other reading difficulties. The methods they use in the program are very familiar to me because I used them, with success, with students when I was a special education teacher. With consistent use, I think kids will make progress over time.
I like that they offer a Dyslexia Screening because it will give parents a lot of information to help them work with their children.
Also, the vision training may help a lot of students. It can help children correct vision challenges that may interfere with their reading. I like how kids can get this assistance in their own homes.
Dyslexia Gold provides reading in manageable sessions for kids to complete each day. Each lesson is about 15-20 minutes.
Lastly, I like that Dyslexia Gold has reports to help parents see if their child is making progress. However, it only gives percent completed and an overall age level. I wish it gave a little more information, so parents know their child’s strengths and weaknesses better. You get a quick report after a child completes an assignment, but I haven’t found that you can access this same information later after you close out of the program.
Overall, I would use this program with struggling readers. In addition, I would have used this program with my students when I taught special education. If you want to find out what other families thought of the program, check out some great reviews by clicking the banner below!
Happy Homeschooling!
