Parenting with Dyslexia: One Father’s Creative Approach to Storytime

Abstract

Parents and caregivers of young children naturally want to set their kids up to succeed academically as best they can. However, how do caregivers who they themselves struggle with a learning disability approach supporting their children’s early literacy development?

Despite the fact that 15 to 20% of the population has a language-based learning disability, there is little research on how this condition impacts caregivers while their children develop their language skills. This case study begins to address this lack of research, by focusing on how a father with dyslexia supports his almost three-year-old as she grows up, how his dyslexia affects storytime, and his strategies for overcoming his reading challenges.