Choosing Prevention Over Remediation

Children most at risk of reading and spelling difficulties, such as those with poor phonemic awareness and weak phonological working memory (Delphi Dyslexia Consensus, 2020), benefit when graphemes are shown together with their sound values: Mapped Words!
This dual presentation reduces reliance on memory and auditory processing alone, making the mapping between speech and print visible and concrete. By externalising both the letters and their associated sounds, the burden on working memory is lessened and children are supported to build stable connections that underpin accurate decoding and spelling.
When this approach is provided from the start, we not only strengthen learning but also prevent children from experiencing the anxiety so often reported by those who are later diagnosed with reading and spelling difficulties. Instead of waiting until repeated struggle leads to a dyslexia diagnosis, we can remove those barriers before they appear.