Author: Matt

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Meet Roxanne Varzi, an Anthropologist, Artist, writer, Professor, filmmaker, playwright, and this episode’s guest on the Dyslexia Life Hacks Show!

Roxanne’s interest in anthropology started when she wanted to study something that would pay and still allow her to enjoy her passion for writing. What she found was that she had this huge passion for people and what made people tick.

Now a professor in Anthropology, Roxanne shares her passion with her students.

Alongside being  a full time Anthropologist, Roxanne also writes and publishes books with her Armchair Anthropology series Whodunit books.

Discovering Roxanne has dyslexia after her son was diagnosed, Roxanne shares with us that her dyslexia strength is visual thinking. Roxanne says that the more she leans into her strength by using visuals to present her research, it means that she can thrive because of her dyslexia.

Roxanne is incredibly passionate about lots of different topics and she shares how her way of wanting to do things, like writing a book series or making films doesn’t fit into ‘normal’ and so her mantra is ‘to do things in your own way’ a lessons we can all take away from this episode.

Dyslexic Strength:

• Visual Thinking 

Dyslexic Hack:

• Ask lots of questions 

Key Topics:

• Anthology 
• Doing things your own way
• Dyslexia running families 
• Books and book writing

Selected Links – 

• Roxanne’s
  • Website
  • LinkedIn
• Death in a Nutshell: An Anthropology Whodunnit: An Anthropology Whodunit: ONE (Armchair Anthropologist)
• University of California, Irvine
• Dr. Chris Arnold
• GRE Score
• Dysgraphia
• Jack Horner
• Museum of the Rockies
• Hank Zipser book series

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In this episode of the podcast, we’re talking again about Assistive Technology, this time about mind mapping and how it can help people with dyslexia organise and make sense of all the ideas flowing through their heads. 

People with dyslexia typically have lots of great ideas and can sometimes link  seemingly unconnected topics or themes to one another. The challenge that we face is getting those ideas down in a coherent way which makes sense. 

Mind mapping those ideas can help get those thoughts down on paper and visualise how they link up so that you can then organise them into written text or a presentation.

A couple decades ago, developments in assistive technology meant that mind mapping could be undertaken on a PC. In its infant stages of development, it was great to help get things down quickly electronically, but it didn’t go much further! Today, with the power of AI (Artificial technology) there are no limits to how mind mapping can help get those ideas from head to paper!

In this episode, our host Matthew Head is joined by Chris Collier, an Assistive Technology and DSA (Disabled Students Allowance) Advisor and Director of Assistive Technology at OpenGenius

It wasn’t until Chris started his career as an English Secondary School Teacher in South Africa when he first started to learn about Dyslexia and other neurodiverse conditions. Chris became familiar with DSA and assistive technology for his students. From here, Chris grew his expertise in DSA and assistive technology and became a freelance advisor.

Chris is now Director of Assistive Technology at OpenGenius, the world’s leading experts in the application of Mind Mapping via there product Ayoa in real-world situations, where he got up close and personal with the power of mind mapping technology and AI, and the many applications it has in school/education and in the workplace for everyone.

Dyslexic Hack:

• Mind Mapping

Key Topics:

• What is Mind Mapping,
• How Mind Mapping can help people with Dyslexia,
• How to take mind maps to develop presentations, programmes, and even reports!

Selected Links –

• Open Genius 
• Ayoa
• Chris’s LinedIn 
• DSA
• Mind Map
• eQuality Solutions
• Chris Griffiths
• Gantt chart
• Boeing Dreamliner
• Irlen syndrome

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If you’re a person with dyslexia and had assistive technology you will have had at some point a scan pen. In this episode we meet the Founder and CEO of Scanning pens and Empowering Technology Group, Jack Churchill OBE.

Jack’s story is not unlike most people’s stories who have dyslexia. During the school years, Jack felt that dyslexia was holding him back from keeping up with his peers. It was a relief when, at 14 Years Old, Jack got assessed and diagnosed with Dyslexia so that he could access all the support to level the playing field so that he could start to flourish. 

After losing his first job during the dot.com bubble burst in the late 1990’s, Jack and his university friend Toby started what became the Scanning Pen business.

After first discovering a basic version of a text to audio pen, Jack instantly saw the benefits of this technology for people with Dyslexia. Today, after a lot of hard work, the technology has developed and there are many varieties of Scanning Pens including pens which have been approved to be used in exams in the UK. 

Scanning Pens is only a game changer for many people in the UK but it is exported across the world. In 2023, Jack and his business partner were presented with an OBE or ‘services to international trade, and to the dyslexia, and special educational needs and disabilities community’.

In this episode you get to hear how Scanning Pens started, how they’ve developed over the years, the variety of pens which are available, and what the future looks like for Assistive Tech.

Dyslexic Strength:

• Big Picture Thinking
• Connecting the Dots

Dyslexic Hack:

• Using AI Chatbot for reading and drafting emails

Key Topics:

• Struggling with dyslexia at school
• Finding support when diagnosed 
• The beginnings of the Scanning Pen 
• The Development of Scanning Pens and
• The future for Scanning Pens

Selected Links –

• Jack’s LinkedIn
• Scanning Pens
• Empowering Tech Group

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There’s no Money in the NHS for Adult ADHD!

These are the words which our guest, Sarah Templeton, heard for NHS GPs time and time again before having to go private to prove that she did in fact have ADHD!

That diagnosis of ADHD then kicked off the diagnosis of other conditions for Sarah, such as Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia and sensory processing disorder! And all this in her 50’s!

Looking back, Sarah shares with us that the turning point in her life was when the un-diagnosed ADHD and Dyscalculia changed the course of her education throughout her teenage years. Not having had accommodations for ADHD and Dyscalculia she failed her 12+ exam and missed the opportunity to go to Grammar School and spent her teenage years in a Secondary State School which could not support her gifts. 

Decades later, Sarah was shocked to find that the school system has not improved in screening children for these conditions which otherwise could change the course of their lives. 

Diven to make sure that others do not have to go through her experience, Sarah is a recognised specialist in neurodiversity awareness and a passionate advocate for screening for ADHD in the criminal justice system.

Today, Sarah has over 9 years of experience in counselling, education, and community support. Sarah is the founder of ADHD LIBERTY – Charity, a non-profit organisation that provides free and confidential screening for ADHD and related conditions to adolescents and adults involved in the justice system.

To add to all her amazing work in this field, Sarah has authored three best-selling books on parenting and teaching ADHD kids, and a frequent keynote speaker, court and media expert, and campaigner on neurodiversity issues. 

Working closely with the police, prisons, probation, youth offending services, and other agencies, Sarah ensures that each offender has their conditions identified and the correct support put in place to enable them to engage fully in education and employment. I believe that screening for ADHD can reduce reoffending, improve mental health, and unlock the potential of neurodiverse individuals.

Dyslexic Hack:

• Lists, post-it notes, and a blooming good diary! 

Key Topics:

•  Finding out Sarah has ADHD and other neurodiversity in her 50’s
• Impact on non-diagnosis in her childhood, 
•  Screening for ADHD and other neurodiversities in the CJS.

Keywords:

• Criminal Justice System
• Dyspraxia
• ADHD
• Dyscalculia

Selected Links

• Sarah’s LinkedIn 
• ADHD Liberty
• Sarah’s Books

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This story starts when I turned 18 years old, it was 2002, I was riding a Honda – CB400 Super 4, mid-length hair, at College doing Automotive Engineering, and Dyslexia was not something I talked about.

At this point in my life career advisors would push university on you. But I WAS DONE! I poured everything I had into my College course. 

And this is where I took my life in a Direction I didn’t think I would (or could). 

I started working as a mechanic servicing Trucks for Volo and as time ticked by I lost interest and I wanted more for myself. 

I saw an amazing job opportunity to test engines to destruction, essentially BLOWING engines up! But the employer wanted an Engineering Degree. So that’s what I did, but not before Imposter Syndrome hit. Feeling not capable and not in the right place.

But I managed to complete the degree as a mature student and pursue my dream career, starting on a graduate scheme at age 30.

But one thing that has stuck around since that start of this story is Dyslexia. It’s not something I had talked about until I was well in to my 30’s but I had never let it hold me back. I gave it all I had with all the grit and determination I could muster.

In this episode, I share my story of my life with Dyslexia, going to college and university, and pursuing my dream career.

Dyslexic Hack:

• Grit

Key Topics:

• Motorbikes,
• Going to college,
• Going to University as a mature Student 
• Discovering my dream career 

Selected Links:

• Honda – CB400 Super 4
• Carl Fogarty
• Honda – RC45
• Triumph Tiger 900
• Book – Grit by Angela Duckworth

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What’s the BIGGEST misconception about Dyslexia?

People with Dyslexia can’t learn to read or write. 

Well in this episode of the Podcast, we hear from Kait Feriante from Chicago to share with us why she is on a mission to help everyone struggling with literacy realise their potential and grow confidence to achieve their dreams and aspirations.

Growing up in Albania and travelling the world with her parents, Kait was exposed to a wide variety of different educational models from country to country. From this experience, she found that there are many routes to learning.

Kait shares that she believes everyone thinks differently therefore everyone’s education, especially those who are neurodiverse, should have a tailored education to meet their way of learning.

Kait shares that each teacher needs a big educational tool box to enable them to select the right tools to fit the situation of the student. Even in Dyslexia, there is no ‘one- size fits all’!

Through her experience as a teacher and tutor, she witnessed first-hand the discrepancy between different socio-economic backgrounds. She saw that the better access you have to resources, the more support you will have and the more likely the student is to succeed.

Not content with the inequality, Kait founded Redwood Literacy, with her partner, to see the evidence-based reading intervention they had seen change the course of many of their student’s lives become more widely available to any student who needed it, regardless of age, geographical location, or socio-economic background.

At Redwood, they do this by using a 50/50 model, whereby 50% of their services fund the opportunity for 50% of Redwood’s students to receive services for free. 

As of January 2021, Redwood is serving 290 students, with 160 of them having access to our services for free.

Dyslexic Hack:

• Use of Assistive Technology

Key Topics:

• Learning to read and write with dyslexia.
• Tailoring education to each person’s individual needs,
• Routes to Learning,
• Challenges with access to quality support dependant on socio-economic background.

Selected Links

• Redwood Literacy
• Kait’s LinkedIn
• Wilson Reading System

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When Emily Gee became that student at school who was left behind and forgotten, it was hard to see where she fitted into the world. Always having that sense at school that something wasn’t quite right when struggling with common challenges of dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia. Emily always found comfort and confidence in the performing arts. 

Being a talented performer, Emliy found her place in the world, and whilst she would always struggle with the challenges which come from dyslexia, dyscalculia and dyspraxia, performing not only brings her joy, but is also the area where she excels the most in. 

Surrounded by the right support and encouragement from some great teachers and her parents, Emily learnt to lean into her strengths in performing arts, share her talent with everyone, and not to overthink and dwell on what she found a challenge. 

The traditional school system would commonly ask students to stand up and read chapters of books and write on the blackboard (old school interactive white boards for those who didn’t go to school in the 1980s). But never do teachers ask students to stand up in front of the class and sing. In Emily’s experience, she had teachers which would celebrate her talents by welcoming her to sing at the front of class as opposed to reading. 

These early days of building confidence in your strengths as opposed to focusing on weaknesses are incredibly formative for most people with dyslexia. For Emily, with the support and encouragement she received, she studied performing arts at university and is now pursuing a career in that field. 

From Emily’s experience, support for dyslexia was plentiful. Most teachers are fully aware of the challenges people with dyslexia face, and how to support them. However, this was not (and still is not) the case for dyscalculia. 

Very little is known about dyscalculia, how to identify it at school, and to support people with dyscalculia. It is the reason and through Emily’s experience that she is an ambassador for the Dyscalculia Network. 

Emily is now on a mission to share her experience and help others get the support for dyscalculia that they need as early as possible. 

If you are a parent with a child who has early signs of either dyslexia, dyspraxia, or dyscalculia, this episode is for you. 

Strengths:

• Grit and Determination,
•  Emotional Intelligence,
• Creativity.

Dyslexic Hack:

• Being OVER organised. 

Key Topics:

• Surviving school with Dyscalculia, Dyslexia, and Dyspraxia.
• Leaning into her strengths through encouragement.
• Sharing experience to spread awareness. 

Selected Links:

• Emily’s LinkedIn
• LinkedIn Post on Dyscalculia day
• The Dyscalculia Network
• Dyscalculia Ambassador – Emily Gee
• BDA Article about Emily 

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When a life changing moment spawned a desire to understand herself more and figure out why she struggled with spelling and reading, our guest in this episode, Usha Patel, put aside all her years of training and experience as an Architect, and retrained as a Neurocognitive Therapist. 

After setting up her own therapy practice in London in 2008, Usha has helped countless children and parents with dyslexia, dyspraxia, and ADHD. Because everyone is different and each brain works differently, Usha introduces unique and bespoke solutions for each child.

In Usha’s therapy sessions, she discovers how each child learns through the process of play. Using play as an ice breaker and a way to connect with children on their level, Usha gains their trust and finds a much deeper understanding of how their brain works.

One method which is not widely used in the UK but has found much success with Usha is the Infinity walk Method. Developed in the 1980s by clinical psychologist Deborah Sunbeck. Infinity Walk is a therapeutic method for progressively developing coordination. It strives to improve the sensorimotor functioning of those who practise it. 

If you are a parent of a child with Dyslexia or ADHD, this episode is for you! 

Strengths:

• 3D Thinking/Visual Thinking 
• Problem Solving 
• Curiosity 

Dyslexic Hack:

• Don’t let a dyslexia diagnosis define who you are. Discover your strength and work to them.

Key Topics:

• What is Neurocognitive Therapy,
• How Neurocognitive Therapy could help you or your child,
• The Infinity Walk method, 
• Reading techniques, and
• Dyslexic challenges in the workplace.

Find Usha At:

• Website
• Case Studies

Selected Links:

• Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004
• Dr. Sunbeck’s Infinity Walk
• Alpha to Omega: The A-Z of Teaching Reading, Writing and Spelling
• Reflex integration