Your child's reading struggles may have started before they ever held a book. Learn what the research says about oral language — and what you can do today.

Your child can read the words on the page. You've watched them do it. But when you ask what it meant — blank. Or a half-answer that makes you wonder if they were really in there at all. If this is your daily reality, you're not dealing with a decoding problem. You might be dealing with an oral language gap. And one of the most effective reading comprehension strategies for ADHD and dyslexia families costs nothing and doesn't require a single worksheet. It requires five turns

Your child reads the passage. You ask what it was about. They stare at you. Not because they weren't paying attention — because their brain processes information differently, and passive reading doesn't give it anything to hold onto. Here are four visual annotation strategies that change that: text mapping, color-coded sticky notes, GIST summaries, and sketchnotes. No tutoring required.