Today’s post recognizes March as National Reading Month. We also salute two recent “reading days”: Read Across America Day (Dr. Seuss’ birthday, March 2) and World Read Aloud Day (the first Wednesday in February, or February 5 in 2025).
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, one in five U.S. adults is “functionally illiterate”—unable to decipher most written text. This may not be entirely accurate, as it covers only literacy in English.
Regardless, not everyone with poor reading skills has limited education, intellectual disability, or the challenges of learning a second language. Other factors include:
- ADHD
- Anxiety disorder
- Distractibility or sensory disorders
- Dyslexia
- Low vision
- And, often, low motivation. The first step toward improved reading skills may be to provide more interesting books.
Reading in a Different Sense
It’s always important, though, to recognize when accommodations are needed. Any child struggling with reading lessons should be evaluated for mental and sensory disabilities.
Sometimes, a disability precludes “reading” in the typical way—taking in the words with physical eyes, and immediately processing that input with the brain. In such cases, there are two other options.
#1: Tactile Reading
Tactile reading means discerning letters, words, and sentences by physical touch. Tactile assistive technology dates back over 200 years: braille, the best-known tactile alphabet, was invented in 1824. Today, keyboards and screen readers also “speak” braille.
#2: Audio Reading
Audiobooks have been around since the early 1930s, when they were first put on old-style phonograph records. Today, screen readers are also popular—and provided automatically with most personal devices. (Check your smartphone under Settings–Accessibility, for a feature called Spoken Content (iOS) or Text-to-Speech (Android).)
For those who want to hear and see text, there are various “hybrid” options, including the closed captioning now built into most video feeds.
And the List Goes On…
Other options for reading with impaired input-and-processing abilities:
- Large print
- Graphic novels and other illustrated stories
- Informational sidebars
- Footnotes/endnotes—or, with digital reading, notes that pop up when a cursor is hovered over a link.
And for people working to improve their skills, a tried-and-true option is old-fashioned reading aloud. Ideally, this is done to a supportive and patient listener, or in a supportive and patient group.
In closing, remember: what’s most important isn’t doing everything “by the book.” What matters is learning to absorb the right information—which lays the foundation for mental growth, managing essential tasks, and living an effective life.
Visit our App Search Tool section to find specific reading-related apps.