Rhode Island to light the State House red for dyslexia awareness

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — October is dyslexia awareness month, and Rhode Island is planning to bring awareness to the language-based learning disability.

Decoding Dyslexia Rhode Island teamed up with the Light Rhode Island Red for Dyslexia Campaign to host their third annual event to encourage those impacted by dyslexia to overcome hurdles impacted by the learning disability.

The event is on Friday at 5:30 p.m. inside of the State House due to the forecast.

“The most important message is that dyslexia is common and it can be addressed. I think we all need to come together to strengthen those systems of support so that way there is literacy for all students in Rhode Island,” explained Shannon Saglio, president of Decoding Dyslexia RI.

The State House will illuminate red from Oct. 20 through Oct. 27.

“The color red is typically known for the stereotype of the red ink and the mark-ups on the paper, but we are focusing on a community gathering and trying to raise awareness so that way there are solutions and then there is literacy for all students,” said Saglio.

Advocates explained that dyslexic students are bright and capable, but their challenges with phonological processing can make reading and writing difficult, which is why early detection is crucial.

“What parents might be seeing in early ages is difficulty sounding out the words, might be confusing the order of the sound of a word, sometimes when they are speaking, reading fluency, it might appear that they see common words that see over and over again and they are just not sticking,” said Saglio.