Learning English with dyslexia: what to look for in an app
English spelling is hard on a reader with dyslexia, and most language apps are built around reading and typing. This is a checklist of what to look for, what the research says about it, and an honest account of what the LangOrbit Reader has and does not have.
We build the Reader, so this page describes it too. The checklist applies to any app. Free to try, no card.
Why it is harder
Where English, and most apps, add to the load
Dyslexia is a difference in how the brain handles written words. It shows up in reading and spelling, and it has nothing to do with intelligence or effort.
-
English spelling is irregular
The same letters sound different in through, though and tough, so a reader cannot lean on rules alone. The words have to be met many times.
-
Many apps are built on reading and typing
Small fixed type, long lists of words to read, and exercises that ask you to type a word from memory. Each of these is the hard part of the task.
-
A mistake in spelling is not a mistake in knowing
You can know a word, say it, and understand it in a sentence, and still misspell it. An app that scores only the spelling will call that a failure.
The checklist
Seven things to check before you commit to an app
For each: why it matters, and what the LangOrbit Reader does. The status says whether it has the feature, has it in part, or does not.
-
Text you can reshape
Has itSize, line height and column width decide how much of a page you take in at once. Small fixed type is the first thing that makes a text hard to follow.
In the LangOrbit Reader: Size from 12 to 30 px, font weight, line height, column width, left or justified alignment, four themes (cool, paper, night and true black) and your own text and background colours. The settings stay for every book.
-
Space between letters and words
Has itLetters that sit too close together are a known difficulty for many readers with dyslexia, and extra spacing is the one typographic change with published evidence behind it (see Research below).
In the LangOrbit Reader: Letter spacing and word spacing are sliders in the same Text settings. Set them wider and see whether a page reads more easily.
-
Fonts, with realistic expectations
Has itTypefaces made for dyslexia are popular, but controlled studies have not shown a reliable gain in reading speed or accuracy. Some readers still prefer one. Choose by trying, not by the label.
In the LangOrbit Reader: OpenDyslexic and Atkinson Hyperlegible, beside four ordinary fonts (Newsreader, Literata, Merriweather and a plain sans-serif). One tap to switch.
-
A way to keep your place
Has itOn a dense page, a marker for the line you are on saves you from finding it again every time your eyes jump.
In the LangOrbit Reader: A reading ruler: a band over the lines you are reading, with the rest of the page dimmed. Drag it down as you go, and put its handle on either side.
-
Audio that follows the text
Has itListening while you follow the words lets you check how a word sounds against how it is spelled, and gives your eyes a rest.
In the LangOrbit Reader: Press Listen and the chapter is read aloud with each word lit as it is spoken. Slow it down to 0.75×, or tap a word to start from there. The voice is synthesized, not a recording of a person. The card of any word also plays its pronunciation.
-
Looking words up without spelling them
Has itA dictionary that makes you type the word first asks for the very thing that is hard. Tapping the word asks for nothing.
In the LangOrbit Reader: Tap any word in the text for its meaning in that sentence, its pronunciation and its forms. Reading in the Reader asks you to type nothing.
-
No spelling pressure in the exercises
In partMany apps train vocabulary by making you type the word from memory. For a learner with dyslexia that is the hardest form of the task, and a slip in spelling counts as a wrong answer.
In the LangOrbit Reader: The Reader asks you to spell nothing. The lessons in the full app do: typing a word from its meaning, filling a gap and dictation are marked letter for letter. A Hint button writes the next letter, and “I don't remember” shows the answer and counts as not remembered, not as a misspelling. There is no setting that turns typing off.
What it looks like
The ruler and the fonts, one tap away
The ruler dims everything except the lines you are reading. Fonts, size, weight and spacing change live, on the book you have open.
- A reading ruler you can drag, with its handle on the left or the right.
- Letter, word and line spacing, size and weight, set once for every book.
- Day and night themes, and your own colours for text and background.
The little prince sat down on a stone and looked up
into the sky. “I wonder,” he said, “whether the stars
are lit up so that each of us can find his own again.”
He looked at the desert folds of sand before him.
“The stars are beautiful, because of a flower that
The ruler dims everything except the lines you're reading; fonts change with one tap.
Research
What the studies say, and how far they reach
Two studies bear on the choices above. Neither was about learning a second language, and both are small.
Dyslexia fonts
Wery and Diliberto (2017, Annals of Dyslexia) compared OpenDyslexic with Arial and Times New Roman in elementary-school students with dyslexia. They found no improvement in reading rate or accuracy, for the students one by one or as a group. It was a small single-subject study, and one study settles little, but it is why this page promises nothing from a font.
Letter spacing
Zorzi and colleagues (2012, PNAS) found that extra-large letter spacing improved reading in children with dyslexia, and linked it to crowding: trouble telling apart letters that sit close together. The readers were children reading Italian and French, not adults learning English, so take it as a reason to try wider spacing, not as a prescription.
Try it
Ten minutes with your own settings
You will know quickly whether a page reads more easily, and you can change every setting back at any time.
-
1
Open a short book at your level
A fable or a children's story makes a good test: short chapters and plain sentences. The library lists every book with its level.
-
2
Shape the text
Open the Text settings. Try a font, raise the size, widen the letter and word spacing, and switch the ruler on. Keep what feels easier and drop what does not.
-
3
Listen along, tap, do not type
Press Listen and follow the lit word. Tap any word you do not know to see what it means in that sentence.
Limits
What we have not done
- There is no dyslexia mode in the lessons. Typing exercises cannot be switched off.
- The voices are synthesized. There is no recording of a person.
- We have not run a study with learners who have dyslexia, so this page does not claim that the Reader helps. It lists what you can change and what is known.
- This is not medical or educational advice. For an assessment or a study plan, talk to a specialist.
FAQ
Questions about dyslexia and learning English
Which language apps work for people with dyslexia?
Few are built for it, and no app can promise it will help. What you can check is whether the text can be reshaped (size, spacing, fonts), whether there is audio that follows the text, whether you can avoid typing, and whether answers are timed. The checklist above goes through those questions. The LangOrbit Reader answers most of them; the lessons in the full app do not let you avoid typing.
Is the LangOrbit Reader good for dyslexia?
It has the settings above and asks you to type nothing, and some readers with dyslexia find long texts easier that way. Everyone is different, and we have no study of our own, so try it on a real chapter. It is free to try.
Should I use a dyslexia font such as OpenDyslexic?
You can try it, but do not expect much from it. The one controlled study we found, with elementary-school students, saw no gain in reading rate or accuracy. If a font feels better to you, use it. Wider letter spacing has better evidence behind it.
Can I learn English without spelling exercises?
Reading, listening and tapping words need no typing, and that is what the Reader is. The lessons in the full app include typing a word from memory and dictation, marked letter for letter. A Hint button writes the next letter and “I don't remember” shows the answer, but there is no setting that removes the typing.
Does the Reader read the books aloud?
Yes. Press Listen and the chapter is read aloud with each word lit as it is spoken. The voice is synthesized, not a recording of a person. More about the Reader
Try one chapter with your own settings
Open a short book, set the text the way you like, switch the ruler on and press Listen.
Open the ReaderFree to try, no card. Not sure which book? See the library.