‘The Right to Read’ takes a look at the US literacy crisis

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) - March is National Reading Month and for some who have dyslexia, reading can be a major challenge.

Nonprofit “Dyslexia Road” is serving families who have children with dyslexia in the Phoenix area. “This started because when we realized our kids were struggling, we reached out to friends that we had who had gone through similar issues. It was such a source of information for us that we realized, ‘Gosh, I wish we could do this for everybody,’ and we hope we can do that through this organization,” Christine Alm said.

Co-founder Christi Brink acknowledged how difficult it can be to get your child diagnosed and the help they need to read, besides support for parents. “There’s not a single place for moms to go and say, ‘this is the path you need to take,’” she said. “So I think the most important part was building the community.”

If you believe your child may have dyslexia, keep in mind that it can present differently for every individual. Alm said that a big hint to show that your child may be struggling with reading is to notice how well they pronounce nonsense words. “A lot of kids are great at using words or context to guess about what’s happening but as soon as they’re presented with nonsense words, you realize they don’t know how to pronounce the letters,” Alm said.

Alm said that if you’re a parent looking to learn more about dyslexia, click here.

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