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mental images, and cue cards. For tactile learners, use objects such as counting blocks.

The sixth guideline is to control the pacing of instruction, going slower and faster as the student needs.

The seventh guideline is to help students know when a certain strategy needs to be used and when they don't. Many children with learning disabilities learn a new strategy and try to apply it to everything. For example, they might learn the count-on strategy and try to apply it to all addition problems.

The eighth guideline is to give verbal prompts, which helps some children associate the prompts with specific facts.

The ninth guideline is to help children develop self-monitoring skills. Many children with learning disabilities need to learn skills that focus on how to learn, not just what to learn. When children learn to monitor themselves, they can see what works and what does not work with them and use strategies in other and new situations.

The tenth guideline is to help children overlearn. Again, children with learning disabilities often have problems remembering strategies. They can store them in short-term, but are not able to transfer facts into long-term memories. This is why teachers who teach children with disabilities often find themselves reteaching last year's lessons before proceeding to the current year's lessons. Drill activities, instructional games, computer instruction, peer teaching, and periodic reviews are some of the ways to help children store facts in long-term memory.

These ideas are not just for teachers alone. Parents with children with learning disabilities can use these strategies when helping children with homework or when helping children learn a new task. Occasionally sitting down with children over the summer and reminding them about lessons they learned last year will help greatly in succeeding the next year. Also, parents are encouraged to be involved in schools and to find out how the teachers are teaching. Ask your child's teachers about the strategies they are employing to help your child overcome problem areas. You have the right to know, and your child deserves the best.

Source:

Mercer, Cecil D. & Mercer, Ann R. (2005). Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities. (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Merrill Prentice Hall.

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