Different areas in our brain are activated when we read, with areas for language and meaning, speech sounds, letters and text. Typical readers have lots of activity in the regions for language and meaning, but much less so for speech sounds, letters and text. The important thing to remember is that we can identify risk factors in kindergarten or in early primary, and begin interventions to improve the child’s reading comprehension, spelling, writing and math!
Content and image credits to Dr. Joanna Christodoulou of MGH Institute of Health Professions, Dr. Tyler Perrachione of Boston University, and Dr. John Gabrieli of Massachusetts Institute of Technology.