Carolyn,

I was very intrigued by your student's strategy.  If this approach worked, I
would say run with it.  But it seems that the right/left decoding method is
causing her substantial difficulties.  Using a phonics system for
instruction is going to require that she not approach the word from right to
left.  I don't want to diminish her perspective on her reading approach,
however her inability to discriminate vowel sounds and the pattern reversals
on some letters suggest sound symbol correlation difficulty more than visual
processing challenges.  There is no reason why a d should be more commonly
confused with b or P.  They're all circles with lines attached.  She seems
to have difficulty with directionality on both planes, and she might benefit
from multi-sensory practice in determining the connection to letter name and
shape orientation.  These are all things that can be taught.   I would start
with phonological awareness and segmentation exercises.  What she may be
looking for, and I say may, is common pattern clues using consonant endings
with the vowels.  Again, if this was efficient, there would be nothing
wrong, but you need to experiment with other methods.  Wilson is probably a
very good match, but she needs to replace strategies and hone her ability to
discriminate sounds.
I would also recommend that, if possible, she ensure that she has no sensory
problems, such as poor hearing or vision.  If she sees the page clearly head
on but blurry in the mirror, that would be the first things I'd want to
check out.

Good luck,

Josh

Joshua Hayes
Instructional Coordinator
SEARCH Homeless Project
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