Today's topic: New resource for people with dyslexia
Revolutionary new "Dyslexie" font:
I first heard about this amazing new resource while listening to NPR's The Story. Christian Boer, who suffers from dyslexia, was studying graphic design at Twente University in the Netherlands when he hit upon the inspiration to create a font for dyslexics.
The font makes simple changes to letters--lengthening the vertical line in the letter "h," slightly tilting the letter "j," putting capital letters and punctuation in boldface, etc.--to prevent them from being rotated or changed into other letters in the dyslexic reader's mind. The results have been astonishing, according to the NPR story. People who have struggled their whole lives with reading and writing are suddenly able to work with ease and enjoyment. The font is surprisingly pleasing to read, not at all strange-looking or difficult for non-dyslexics to process.
Fortunately, you can order the Dyslexie font for your own computer. The price for an individual is $69; the font is also available for purchase by schools, workplaces, and other institutions. For more information, and to see sample texts in Dyslexie, go to Christian Boer's website: http://www.studiostudio.nl/en/
To read or listen to the NPR story, go here: http://www.thestory.org/stories/2013-04/new-font-old-problem
Other Resources:
There are many other resources available for people with dyslexia. A quick Google search brought up a host of websites, including the following, which all look promising:
These sites offer information on dyslexia (including how to tell if you or someone you care about may have it), treatment regimens, helpful books and articles on dyslexia, and tips for reading and writing. The first two sites also offer intriguing perspectives on the positive side of dyslexia--a tendency toward creative, "outside the box" thinking, for example. Many, many people with dyslexia have become hugely successful, including actors Whoopi Goldberg and Jay Leno; writers Agatha Christie, Terry Goodkind, Fannie Flagg (who wrote one of my favorite books, Fried Green Tomatoes), Octavia Butler and John Irving; filmmaker Steven Spielberg; investment banking giant Charles Schwab; scientists Albert Einstein, Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Carol Greider; and many more. Note the bestselling writers on that list!
I know this week's post is aimed at a very specific audience, but a surprising number of people struggle with dyslexia, and few things make writing and reading more daunting. These resources could be life-changing. If you do not have dyslexia but know someone who does, please feel free to share this email.
I hope you found this week's post helpful. Happy scribbling!
Whitney Kurtz-Ogilvie, MFAW
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