Our homeschool is creative chaos, a constant series of ups and downs, highs and lows. And I love it. I love homeschooling ADHD, creating that specialized education plan that fits who they are. I love how homeschooling dyslexia allows me to progress at my child’s pace, to piece together resources that are the perfect combination. I love to see my children with learning differences LOVE learning. That’s not to say that it’s always easy. There are definite challenges. But what many people don’t realize is the vast amount of resources available both to help you understand ADHD & dyslexia and to help you succeed at homeschooling ADHD & Dyslexia.
From books and ecourses, blogs and printables, fidgets and curriculum options—here is your go-to list with over 100 resources for homeschooling ADHD/dyslexia, and everything that comes with it.
100+ resources for homeschooling ADHD, dyslexia
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Executive Function
Executive Function Skills Workbook
The best books for teaching about Executive Function Skills
Helping Your Kiddo with Executive Function Skills Struggles
Executive Functioning Activities for Small Children
Brain Training: FUN Ways to Build Stronger and Faster Brains
10 Games to Improve Executive Function
Free Worksheets for Strengthening Executive Function
Growth Mindset (pinterest ideas)
How to Teach Growth Mindset to Kids
Free Growth Mindset Printables : free worksheets to help teach growth mindset
Growth Mindset Journals (Big Life journal for kids) (Big Life Journal for teens)
Growth Mindset Activity Kit : multi-sensory activities, crafts, music, and more to help kids learn a growth mindset
Famous Failures Kit : a printable set of worksheets highlighting the failures and successes of famous people throughout history
Growth Mindset Privacy Folder : a lapbook that folds out to provide a private work space filled with positive messages
Books to teach Growth Mindset
There are tons of great books that illustrate a growth mindset, and my Pinterest boards are full of recommendations. But these are some of my personal favorites.
- The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds
- The Beautiful Oops by Barney Saltzberg
- What do you do with a Problem? by Kobi Yamada
- What do you do with an Idea? by Kobi Yamada
- The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires
Time Awareness
Time Timer (This clock is perfect for ADHD kids, or adults, to visualize time.)
Finish App (It’s a to-do list app for procrastinators, probably better for your older kids.)
Books & Courses about ADHD, Dyslexia
Superparenting for ADD by Dr. Ned Hallowell (My all-time favorite book on the subject, and my first recommendation to parents—this book presents all the positives of parenting our kids with ADHD superpowers. Rather than letting you know all the struggles ahead, this book helps you see the positive characteristic for each struggle.)
Self-Reg: How to Help your Child break the Stress Cycle and Successfully Engage with Life by Dr. Stuart Shanker (It rocked my world! It’s kind of a technical read, but totally worth it.)
Helping your Child with Language-Based Learning Disabilities by Daniel Franklin, PhD (This one is such an encouraging and empowering book that promotes a healthy relationship with your child as a key factor in his or her success.)
Self-Driven Child by William Stixrud (The ideas from this book transformed our homeschool this year, and I’m reaping the benefits. My daughter is doing so much better as a result of giving her more control over her homeschool.)
Gift of Dyslexia by Ronald D. Davis (I especially recommend the first half, which helps you see just what a superpower dyslexia truly is. The second half presents a really unique therapy idea that I’m not totally sold on. But the beginning is so good, it’s still worth recommending.)
Dyslexia Empowerment Plan by Ben Foss (Written by a dyslexic, I really appreciated the vulnerable insight he provided on the struggle, the realities, the limitations, and the benefits of assistive technology. One of my favorite parts is an excerpt he included of what his writing actually looks like without assistance. He shares the success that many adults with dyslexia have found, and their route to there.)
Explosive Child by Ross W. Green, PhD (A very practical book that provides ideas and insights for helping our children work past their emotions and overstimulation to find calm. And how we as parents stay calm in the process.)
Healing ADD by Daniel G. Amen, M.D. (Recommended by naturopath, this book is a great reference tool. It breaks down ADD into several different presentations, and then provides both medicine, diet, and supplement recommendations for each presentation. The title is misleading: it’s not a cure, and you are not healing it entirely. But having a tool to narrow your treatment options is super helpful.
Homeschooling with ADHD ebook
Dyslexia 101: Truth, Myths, and What Really Works (aff.)
Building Fluency and Comprehension in Dyslexic Readers ecourse (aff.)
Understanding Dyslexia ecourse (aff.)
Auditory Processing and how it affects learning ecourse (aff.)
Visual Processing and how it affects learning ecourse (aff.)
Websites about ADHD, Dyslexia
How to ADHD : a YouTube channel with tons of fun, helpful videos on everything to do with ADHD
SPEDhomeschool.com : resources on a range of topics related to homeschooling and parenting special needs
HomeschoolingwithDyslexia.com : a wealth of info on homeschooling dyslexia
Understood.org : resources from experts on both ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia
ADHD Screening Quiz (Keep in mind, a screening is not the same as a diagnosis but will help you know if you ought to look further.)
Dyslexia Quest (One of my favorite apps for screening for dyslexia. It’s game-based, and the kids don’t feel as though they are taking a test. As they play through the different levels on their way up Yeti Mountain, their skills are evaluated and assessed, giving you a pretty detailed report at the end. I also use it as a therapy to help my kids in areas where they test poorly.)
Dyslexia Test and Tips (Another favorite screening tool of mine, this app gives a very long list of questions in a variety of areas to help you assess your child’s likelihood of having dyslexia. Again, it’s not diagnostic, but very helpful.)
Posts about Homeschooling ADHD & Dyslexia
Finding the Right Homeschool Curriculum for ADHD
15 Reasons I love Homeschooling ADHD
Homeschooling a Child with ADHD (and everything that comes with it)
Homeschooling ADHD with Charlotte Mason
“I homeschool because my kids have dyslexia”: Homeschool Resource Room
Homeschooling with ADHD : Finding Joy in the Journey
What You Need to Know About Your ADHD Child : Grace Under Pressure
Motivating Your Creative Distracted Child
Motivating You When Your Child is Unmotivated
Using Lexile Scores to Find Books for your Struggling Reader : SPED Homeschool
Emotions and Meltdowns Resources
Limbic System: Your Child’s On/Off Switch for Emotional Grounding, Fight or Flight, and Meltdowns
When Feeling Overwhelm: How to Help
Motivating Your Child with Anxiety
Homeschooling through a Learning Anxiety
ADHD and Emotional Dysregulation: What You Need to Know
How to Homework: Top 10 Tips for ADHD success (While this is geared toward homework, these tips have really helped this year, especially with my daughter.)
Support and Community Resources
Homeschooling ADHD & dyslexia can feel lonely and isolating at times, but there is a growing community out there. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the support from these groups and made some good friends. Just because you are homeschooling, doesn’t mean you are doing it alone.
Homeschooling the ADHD Child Support Group
HELP! I’m Considering Homeschooling my Child with ADHD
Homeschooling Kids with Dyslexia and Other Special Needs
Assistive Technology Resources
Dyslexia Aid app (This is my all-time favorite app for my kids. It gave my daughter a huge boost of confidence and independence, allowing her to speak into the app and then copy the text it provided her. My youngest used it to “write” his stories before he could even read. It’s a fantastic app.)
Dragon Naturally Speaking software (Another speech-to-text option for those kids who are severely limited in their writing abilities.)
Bookshare (Bookshare has a huge inventory of ebooks with the unique advantage of downloading them in the Daisy font which has gradient color for each line. It makes a huge difference for kids with tracking issues and gives them more control over font size and how many lines per page.)
Learning Ally (This resource comes highly recommended from other dyslexia parents as the top spot to find audio books, plus the narrators are supposed to be very engaging.)
Grammarly (I have the free version downloaded on all my devices. It’s a great way for my kids to have independence and gain confidence as they are learning to combine their relatively new grammar skills with their relatively new writing skills. It’s like spell-check for your grammar.)
Sensory and Stimulation Resources
Fidgets:
Pocket Lap Pad (weighted for calming)
Wiggle Seat inflatable cushion
Wobble chairs (My kids have something similar to this in their cohort class, and they love them!)
Play-doh or silly putty (My daughter keeps a pack in her purse to help her calm down when she feels “rumbly.”)
Glitter bottles (We had so much fun making these together, and they are actually very calming.)
Ultimate Brain Breaks (This is one of my favorite ways to take short breaks throughout our homeschool day.)
Brain Training for Auditory Processing and Auditory Attention
Tutorial for Homemade Stretchy Sensory Sheet
80 Powerful Proprioceptive Activities that Calm, Focus, and Alert
Curriculum and Supplements for Homeschooling ADHD, Dyslexia
Barton’s Reading System (While pricey, this is still the top-recommended resource for teaching a child with dyslexia to read.)
Nessy Reading and Spelling (One of my personal favorites. I love the Nessy products and have great success using them with my kids. This year, both my struggling first grader and my dyslexic fifth grader are using this program. It’s online, engaging, and highly interactive with videos, fun characters, and game-based lessons.)
Reading Horizons (This one combines software and direct instruction to help beginning and struggling readers. It’s another highly recommended program for homeschooling dyslexia.)
Logic of English (I’ve used this program for years and love many elements about it. It’s very kinesthetic and great for kids who like to move. As an Orton-Gillingham program, it’s also high on the list of programs recommended for homeschooling dyslexic children. However, it combines reading, handwriting, grammar, and spelling in each level, which makes it difficult to use with kids whose skills are not synchronous.)
All About Reading and Spelling
Brain Integration Therapy Manual
Dyslexia Games and Funschooling Journals
A Reason for Spelling (I’ve had huge success with this multi-sensory approach to spelling. We love it! Read about how I use it with my daughter who has dyslexia, our update one year later, and a video interview I did telling more about our experience with A Reason for Spelling.)
Cursive Writing Wizard app (I have used this app for years! Not only can children practice writing individual letters, but you can also create your own word lists and even print them as handwriting worksheets. If you have a child who really struggles with writing, like my youngest, this app is a life-saver.)
True North Homeschool Academy (Live and pre-recorded classes, virtual classes for struggling learners, academic advising—it’s a great resource to look into.)
Consultation Services for Homeschooling ADHD, Dyslexia
Marianne Sunderland (dyslexia)
(ME!) I’d be glad to help with any support you need homeschooling both ADHD and dyslexia. Check out my page about Homeschool Coaching services for more information.
Honestly, this list is just scratching the surface. There are so many resources available to help you succeed at homeschooling ADHD, dyslexia, and other learning differences. Don’t see what you are looking for? Contact me, and I’ll do my best to help you find it. Have another resource you’d like to add? Leave a comment for other readers to see.
Hi Tracy. Loved this post! What do you guys use for math? Does your dyslexic child struggle with discalculia?
Yes, math is a struggle for us! She is very quick at mental math, but anything she has to show or demonstrate on paper is an incredible struggle. We have loved using RightStart Math, both last year and this year. Using the manipulatives gives her that mental image that she needs to be able to understand what’s happening on paper. I use RightStart for both my younger two and am trying out Thinkwell Math this year for my oldest.