Cognition and Learning

The following information is for parents and those working in education to help support any children or young people with Cognition & learning difficulties.

Reading comprehension is the ability to read, process and understand the meaning of text. It is based on two key elements: word recognition (decoding words) and listening comprehension (understanding the meaning of language).

Reading comprehension is important because it helps the reader to engage with, learn from, and enjoy what they are reading. This is more than simply remembering the exact words we have read - it allows the reader to form a mental model of a text into something meaningful - it gives purpose to reading.

What does it look like?

Someone who struggles with reading comprehension might find it difficult to ‘read between the lines’, for example, answering a question about how a character might be feeling, based on a description of their behaviour.

Difficulties with reading comprehension might impact ability to:

• understand and draw conclusions from a text, especially when they have no prior knowledge of the topic
• follow instructions, either written or spoken
• read fluently
• stay focussed during reading activities
• vary their tone, inflection and pace when reading aloud
• remember key aspects of a text they have just read

This can be a common area of difficulty for neurodivergent learners, like those with Autism Spectrum Conditions

What can you do to support it?

1. When reading a text, encourage the young person to think about ‘I know... I think... and I wonder…’.
   • ‘I know…’ refers to what the text is explicitly saying
   • ‘I think…’ refers to things that can be inferred, “I think it’s sunny because they put on sunglasses”
   • ‘I wonder…’ refers to what is missing and/or what the reader would like to know more about
2. Make sure that they know enough about the subject matter of the text, so they are able to “fill the gaps” in a text. This should include an understanding of key words or phrases.

Dyslexia affects the way someone processes and learns how to read and spell and would be noticeable when compared to others the same age. Some learners may have a formal diagnosis of dyslexia, whilst others will have their needs well-managed at school support levels. 

Other conditions often come with Dyslexia, such as ADHD, developmental language disorder, or dyscalculia, but everyone can be different in how this affects them. 

What does it look like? 

Dyslexia may present as: 

• difficulty with reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension 
• struggles with spelling, even of familiar words
• trouble following multi-step instructions or remembering sequences
• avoidance of reading or writing tasks
• strengths in oral communication, creativity, or problem-solving may mask difficulties

What can the school do to support it? 

Teachers and school staff can: 

• provide extra time for reading and writing tasks
• offer assistive technology (e.g., text-to-speech, audiobooks)
• break tasks into manageable steps and using visual aids
• create a supportive, inclusive environment that values effort and progress
• collaborate with SENCOs, specialists, and families to tailor support

They can also:

• implement regular, short breaks during reading and writing tasks to prevent fatigue
• encourage the use of graphic organizers to help structure thoughts and ideas
• provide clear, concise instructions and checking for understanding
• use peer tutoring and cooperative learning strategies
• offer positive reinforcement and celebrating small successes
• ensure that classroom materials are accessible and dyslexia-friendly
• encourage learners to freely express their needs. 
• regularly review and adjusting support strategies based on how the child or young person is progressing

This is the ability to hear, isolate, identify and manipulate the sounds in words - It is not the same as phonics, which is more about the order and sounds of the alphabet. Phonological Awareness looks at the sound in parts of words – these skills include: 

• alliteration - such as ‘Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.’
• rhyme – hearing and producing words that rhyme
• syllables – breaking down the units of a word, like ‘com-pu-ter’
• phonemic awareness – for example, understanding that ‘cat’ has 3 sounds (phonemes) c - a – t – these are the smallest units of speech sounds and there are 44 ‘phonemes’ in the English language

Phonological Awareness usually develops once children have learnt to talk, but before they start learning to read. Children who have speech difficulties beyond the age of 6 are more likely to experience difficulties with reading and spelling – even if any speech difficulties appear to have been resolved, it may still have an impact on future reading and writing skills. 

What does it look like? 

Younger learners may:

• struggle to isolate or identify the first sound of a word
• find it hard to think of and produce words using a specific letter sound
• have difficulty identifying rhyming words or creating rhyming words
• find blending sounds (syllables and / or phonemes) difficult
• find it hard to segment and ‘sound out’ words for spelling
• have difficulty pronouncing words or learning new words
• find it hard to tell the difference between similar sounds, for example ‘b’ and ‘p’

Older learners may still have issues with the above list, but may also:

• have difficulties with finding the right word when talking – ‘word-finding’
• find it hard to learn new words
• have difficulty with how quickly or fluently they read and spell 
• spell words ‘bizarrely’, even if they are regular words
• try to avoid reading or writing

What can the school do to support it? 

Phonological Awareness can usually be improved and developed with targeted intervention, which in turn can help to improve reading and spelling skills. 

For younger learners, it is best that:

• they work in a quiet space so that they can focus on hearing and processing the sounds in words
• we use a ‘little and often’ approach
• they play phonological games, such as sound lotto, rhyming pairs, counting syllables, and games that help the learner to hear, blend and break apart words

For older learners, they may need:

• a quiet space to develop literacy tasks including spelling
• additional time for reading and writing based tasks
• their progress in word reading, reading accuracy, rate, and spelling monitored
• to continue to develop sound blending
• to work on syllable awareness so they can read and spell longer words

Maths is often seen as a challenging subject for some children, and any support should be tailored to their individual needs. Sometimes, it’s just about being very clear about basic principles of moths, like in English, where reading goes from left to right, but in maths, addition goes from right to left: units, then tens, then hundreds, etc.

There are some key areas where support can be provided:

Memory 

• check understanding at regular, short intervals, to ensure instructions have not been forgotten 
• use clear and concise instructions – verbal, written, symbols, pictures 
• use memory aids, such as diagrams, or colours for different activities 
• use IT and calculators 
• provide checklists to assist with how problems should be worked through 
• teach rhymes, and songs to assist memory for facts 
• losing the place on a worksheet can be helped by using different colours for different lines or sections

Reading and writing (in maths) 

• make sure numbers are written the right way around before moving on to more complex things – stencils can help with this
• start numbering lines to develop the movement in counting to numbers 
• encourage talking through what is on the page or screen 
• use different coloured cards to highlight the differences between things like addition, subtraction, division and multiplication.
• help with drawing different shapes in 2 and 3 dimensions

Sequencing and Direction 

• identify ‘left’ and ‘right’ at the top of the page 
• use squared paper to assist with the lining up of numbers 
• provide examples of each step, so that correct strategies are practised and mistakes reduced, then practise without examples, one step at a time 

Organisation and Processing 

• ensure the right equipment us provided, for example, ruler, pencil, rubber, etc)
• use clear and simple layouts to ensure that worksheets are not cluttered 
• teach one number per square 
• provide extra time to complete work 
• when work, such as tests, has simpler tasks at the beginning and more difficult work towards the end, it is sometimes better start near or at the end, so they can see what they can achieve, and so they don’t run out of time or concentration before they have really been tested
• specifically help break down the actions involved in more complicated sums into ‘chunks’ 

Language and Comprehension 

• use the correct terms, words, and symbols, and explain what they mean 
• use clear and concise instructions 
• ask what they need to do using their own words, to prevent repetition without understanding 
• check understanding at frequent intervals, to ensure instructions haven’t been forgotten 
• use visual aids to help with memory, for example, concept maps, lists, etc.
• encourage talking through each step, to help clarify misunderstandings 

Motivation and Problem Solving

• use ICT, games, and activities to increase motivation and confidence 
• practice proofreading skills 
• show others what they have learned
• use ‘scaling’ to understand how confident they are, for example: 1=low, 10=high) and where applicable, find out what would improve that score 

This is the ability to hold information in your mind in the face of distraction. It also means being able to draw on past learning or experiences for a current situation. This is also known as executive functioning, which are the mental processes that enable us to plan, focus our attention, remember instructions, and carry out multiple tasks. 

Like an air traffic controller: At a busy airport the air traffic controller will safely manage the arrival and departure of planes on multiple runways. Imagine our tasks and goals are the planes in the sky, and our brains are the controller. Our brains need to use executive functioning skills to see which planes need to be landed and in which order to do this safely. To do this we need to filter distractions, prioritize tasks, set and achieve goals, and control impulses. 

What does it look like? 

If a young person has difficulties with their working memory they might: 

• forget instructions
• forget information they have just been given
• lose their train of thought halfway through a sentence
• appear to have not been listening to what someone was saying
• frequently lose their place in a task and may give up or move on

What can you do to support this? 

1. Reduce the amount of information the young person is given - break the information down into smaller chunks, for example: “Put your pencil down, book in your bag, and come and sit on the carpet” should be broken down into individual steps. 
2. Frequently repeat important information. For example, rules and expectations. 
3. Pre-teaching of vocabulary to help a young person understand words, terms, and phrases that may be used, so they understand process things more easily.
4. Use visual supports to help them retain information, for example, checklists, information sheets, whiteboards, pictures, dictionaries, wall displays. 
5. Use rhythm and song to group information together – a simple rhythmic structure improves memory by creating ‘chunks’ of information, which appear to be easier to recall than a non-rhythmic list.

Planning skills are needed to create a roadmap to reach a goal or to complete a task. We use these skills to decide what is important to focus on and what is not. 

Organisation skills are needed to create and maintain a system to keep track of information.

Both of these skills are part of our executive functioning, which are the mental processes that enable us to plan, focus our attention, remember instructions, and carry out multiple tasks. 

What does it look like? 

A young person might: 

• lose things frequently
• have a messy desk or work area
• have difficulty deciding what to do first
• get stuck on small details
• have difficulty deciding what is important
• have difficulty keeping track of upcoming events
• miss deadlines
• not finish tasks on time
• be resistant to having a go at new tasks
• appear unmotivated
• not be prepared with the equipment needed to complete a task

What can you do to support it? 

1. Set clear aims and objectives for each task 
2. Use a checklist or planner to complete tasks as a visual prompt. This could include a breakdown of expectations and what is required to complete a task. For example, what they need to do first, what is coming next, and what does ‘finished’ look like. They should be encouraged to tick off each part of the list as it is completed to encourage independence. 
3. Ask open questions at the start and end of a task to develop their planning skills, for example: 
   • How are you going to do this? 
   • What are you going to do first? 
   • Tell me how you did these. 
   • What seemed to work well for you before? 
   • What will you do differently next time? 

Orthographic skills are the skills needed to understand the visual patterns of letters and words in written language.

What does it look like? 

If a young person has difficulty with orthographic processing they might:

• have limited knowledge of conventional spelling patterns
• spell words how they sound, for example, sed for said 
• letter names to spell long vowels, for example, wek for week 
• deleted vowels in syllables where the consonant sound controls the word – e.g. opn for open 
• errors on inflectional endings, for example, walkt for walked 
• difficulties developing reading fluency 

What can you do to support it? 

Teach:

• common letter combinations and syllable patterns, like ’ight’  
• English syllable patterns – c-v-c (consonant-vowel-consonant) rimes ot, at etc 
• word families, such as  should / would / could 
• common words with double letters 
• spelling rules for adding prefixes and suffixes 
• how to break words into syllables

Vocabulary is the range of words that a person understands and can use. 

Vocabulary is very important as it enables  children and young people to understand instructions and information as well as to communicate their thoughts, ideas, knowledge and emotions. 

What does it look like? 

If a child is struggling with vocabulary they may:

• not always understand spoken instructions
• have difficulty answering questions
• have difficulty with reading comprehension
• use gestures or words like ‘thing’ or ‘thingy’ in their speech
• use a limited range of words in their writing
• have difficulty using words to say how they feel

 What you can do to support and develop vocabulary

 Give key information using straightforward vocabulary and support `spoken instructions with clear visuals.

• check children’s understanding of challenging vocabulary and explicitly teach unfamiliar words
• give children repeated opportunities to hear and use new words 
• introduce just a small number of words at a time

Children or young people that have a slow verbal processing speed may need longer to make sense of and respond to spoken or written language.

What does it look like? 

A young person who takes longer than their peers to process information may: 

• take a long time to speak and struggle to respond to questions/instructions
• find it difficult to find the right words when talking
• give an incorrect response or say ‘I’ve forgotten’ when trying to respond 
• struggle to interact with peers and to keep up in conversations 
• take longer to start and finish a task, or leave tasks unfinished 
• read and write slowly 
• find timed activities, such as mental maths, difficult. 
• struggle to keep information in their head and follow multi-step procedures 
• struggle to complete home-learning tasks 
• struggle to engage in learning 
• feel anxious or frustrated about learning 
• feel tired, especially towards the end of the day 

What can you do to support it?

Processing speed cannot be made faster. However, there are ways to help. You can:

• speak slowly and give instructions in clear, short chunks
• use visual resources and modelling as prompts
• make sure they understand a task
• give them extra time to respond to questions and complete tasks, or reduce the volume of work
• use multiple choice questions
• use text-to-speech software and books with audio so that they can see and hear the words at the same time
• reduce the need for handwriting, e.g. use laptop: dictate and speech to text functions
   

My child is not making progress in school compared to others in their class what can I do?

If you think that your child may have SEND, there is information that may help.

You can also check out what support you can get from your child’s school or setting.

How can I get a dyslexia assessment for my child?

Dyslexia affects the way someone processes and learns reading and spelling – and like a lot of SEND, schools or settings can put in the right support and adjustments. If these steps are still not enough, the SENDCo can request consent to discuss this with educational psychologists and Specialist Teachers, who can make recommendations around further support - in some cases, this may lead to a diagnosis of dyslexia.   

My child needs 1 to 1 support – do I need an EHCP for this?

An Educational Health Care Plan (EHCP) isn’t always needed to get a child or young person they help they may need.

Find out what to do if you still think that an EHCP may be needed.