by Margaret DeMarchi

Attention to the social and emotional well-being of children has come to the forefront of education in recent years with good reason. As a special education teacher for the first 25 years of my teaching career, one of the greatest challenges I faced each day was helping children with dyslexia to believe in themselves and, most importantly, their ability to learn. While there is now a wealth of information to support and inform adults and educational professionals about dyslexia, little is available to help children understand and cope with their disability. Quite simply, I wrote When You Write p I See d to fill that void and to provide young children a necessary foundation of confidence and create a positive self-image to help them overcome the social and emotional challenges they face every day due to dyslexia or other learning disabilities. In short, the goal of this book is to empower students with the knowledge that they are not ‘dumb’ or ‘stupid’, but simply need to learn in a way that is different than their peers, and that’s okay! So often, students, particularly those who are dyslexic, feel isolated and alone, that they are the only ones facing these challenges as they quietly watch their classmates quickly and easily decode a text or story and wonder why the same task seems so difficult or even impossible for them. With each passing grade level, feelings of insecurity and self-doubt grow until giving up or acting out seems the best choice.

This story works to empower young learners, giving them the confidence to believe in themselves and achieve academic success by showcasing a character they can relate to, someone who looks like them, and faces the same challenges dealing with dyslexia. The character doubts himself, but learns he is special, smart, and ultimately, successful, learning how to read and all the joy that accomplishment brings. A serious topic, dyslexia is shared in a kid-friendly story, with illustrations and a rhyming, engaging tone that children will enjoy. Learning about new things, reading stories filled with fun and imagination, is not out of reach for any student. Learning should be fun, and my story, When You Write, I See d, shows every student that it is possible to enjoy reading and be a successful student.