Clay Modelling for Dyslexia: The Three Parts of a Word

Ron Davis was working as a sculptor when, in 1980, he made the discoveries that

shaped the rest of his life. So perhaps it's fitting that one of the most effective tools he

left us involves the creativity and simplicity of modelling clay.

This is the last article in my October series for Dyslexia Awareness Month, drawing on

Ron's first book, 'The Gift of Dyslexia'. In the first article in this series, I shared Ron's

discovery that many dyslexic people are picture-thinkers. Earlier this month I looked

at why small words with no picture, like "the" and "was", cause them so much trouble.

In my last article, I explained how the confusion from those words can build until a

reader becomes disoriented and can't interpret text any longer.

This article is about how clay modelling of words helps cement the meaning and

recall of words for picture-thinkers.

Every word has three parts

Ron described every word as having three parts: what it sounds like, what it looks like,

and what it means.

A verbal-thinker can manage reasonably well with the sound and the look of words.

They hear the word in their head, recognise its shape on the page, and let the

meaning of the sentence carry them along.

For a picture-thinker, meaning is the part that matters most, because meaning is

what they think with. A word like "elephant" arrives with its meaning ready-made.

Seeing the picture is seeing the meaning

A word like "the" or "because" is different. A child may know exactly how it sounds and

what it looks like, and still have no picture for what it means. Two parts of the word

are there, but the third is missing, and the missing part is the one a picture-thinker

needs.

That's why sounds-based spelling drills so often fall short. They keep strengthening

the two parts of a word the child already has, and leave out the meaning part, which

gives the visual understanding and recall for a picture-thinker.

How clay modelling works for dyslexia

Davis clay modelling of non-picture words fills that visual-meaning gap.

The learner makes a model showing what the word means in clay. Then they make a

model of how the word is spelled, and place the two together. With the word "big", for

example, a child might model the letters b-i-g beside a big clay dog and a little one,

so the meaning sits right next to the word.

At that point all three parts come together: the sound they say aloud, the look of the

letters they've shaped, and the meaning they've created with their own hands. For a

picture-thinker, the word finally has a visual meaning.

The small, abstract words take more thought to model, and a facilitator or trained

parent guides that process. But the principle is the same. Rather than memorising a

word they can't picture, the child creates its meaning, and once a word has been

mastered this way, it tends to remain in their visual memory for the long term.

It's also why clay modelling and the mental tools I described in my last article work

so well together. The mental tools help a learner stay oriented and calm. Clay

modelling removes the source of the confusion, one word at a time.

Why mastering a word builds confidence

Something happens to children when they master a word they've stumbled over for

years. The word that once made them feel stupid becomes one they created and

mastered themselves, and that changes how they see their own mind and

capabilities. They develop pride in themselves and their work.

In my work, that shift in confidence comes first. Progress with reading and spelling

tends to rapidly follow, as the child sees, "I CAN do this after all."

Ron put it simply: "The gift is always there, even if it isn't recognised for what it is."

For the young ones coming through

This October began with Ron as a small boy in a classroom corner, praying not to be

sent there again. He spent the rest of his life making sure the "young ones coming

through" wouldn't have to sit in that corner.

The people best placed to carry that work forward are often the adults closest to a

child. That's why the Davis Parent Power - Dyslexia course exists: to put these tools

into the hands of parents and educators, so the child in front of them can be

understood and supported as a dyslexic learner, rather than corrected.

Over six live online sessions, you learn Davis mental tools for calm, steady focus, and

Davis clay modelling for mastering the words that keep tripping a child up. No prior

knowledge is needed, and session recordings are available if you miss one.

Six live sessions on Sundays: 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 November and 6 December

1-3pm NZT / 11am-1pm Sydney / 10am-12pm Brisbane, live on Zoom

Register by Sunday 25 October to receive a complimentary 45-minute Explore

Dyslexia Solutions consultation, and your course materials in time for session one.

Registration closes on Saturday 31 October.

Presented by Rachel Barwell, Claire Ashmore and Nikki Palamountain, Davis Dyslexia

Facilitators, on behalf of the Davis Pacific facilitator team.

➤ Register for the Davis Parent Power - Dyslexia course

Ngā mihi nui,

Rachel