Sarah Reay on supporting students with specific learning difficulties (SpLDs).
Understanding how information becomes learning is important for supporting learners with specific learning difficulties. Learning is not just about taking in new facts, it is a process of noticing, organising, exploring, and using what we know. When we slow down and think about each stage, it becomes much easier to see where a learner might be finding things difficult and where a small tweak in our teaching could make a big difference. By looking closely at how learners acquire, store, manipulate, and use information, we can shape learning environments that feel calmer, clearer, and more accessible. Most importantly, we can give learners with SpLDs the confidence and tools they need to achieve and thrive. In this article, you will notice ‘pause’ and reflect’ points throughout, offering moments to slow down and think about your day to day practice.
Acquiring information: helping learners to notice what matters
Acquiring information is like being a detective and your senses are your detective tools. They help us to notice things around us. Once we notice things, we can focus on what is important, like zooming in on crucial clues which helps us to pay attention. The initial step involves receiving sensory input from the environment. This includes information attained through the senses, sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. Once input is received, the brain processes and interprets the information to form perceptions. This involves organising and making sense of sensory data, allowing us to understand and recognise elements in their surroundings. But, we also need to consider that not all information is processed equally. Attention plays a critical role in selecting and focussing on specific stimuli, and it also helps us to filter and prioritise information. For a learner with a SpLD, the process of filtering and prioritising is challenging, but we can make this stage easier for them by offering information in different ways, reducing distractions, and building in short, intentional pauses that encourage them to think about what clues they have picked up.
Pause and reflect. Think of a learning environment you were recently in. What senses did the learners use? Did the activities help them focus on the crucial clues, or might small changes to the activities support their attention more effectively?
Storing information: keep the busy desk clear
Imagine the brain as a clever filing cabinet. When we learn new things, it has a special way of organising and keeping them safe so we can find them later. Understanding the way we store information (our memory) helps support teaching and learning. Think of working memory as a busy desk where new ideas land. Short term memory is like your quick access drawers next to your desk, useful for processing information, but only for a short while. Long term memory is like your filing cabinet, with many different drawers for different subjects. This is where we keep the information we value the most. Our brain likes to organise our files, putting information into the correct ‘drawers’. When we want to remember things well, we need to reinforce our memory, going back to our ‘files’ and reviewing them to help retain the information. By making links to previous learning we can support efficient storage, helping us to us to retrieve relevant information related to the task we are doing. How we structure the learning experience for learners is key to how information is stored. Clear lesson structure, purposeful links to previous learning and regular opportunities to revisit key ideas all help us to move information from the desk, to the drawer, to the filing cabinet.
Pause and reflect. Did your recent learning activity support this filing process? Think about working memory, short-term memory, reinforcement, and homework tasks. How well did the structure of the activity support storage in the long term memory and the ability to retrieve information at a later date?
Manipulation of information: make learning active
When we manipulate information, learning becomes active, and this can enhance understanding and retention compared to passive learning methods. When learners sort, question, build or create, they deepen their understanding and strengthen memory because they are involved in constructing meaning rather than just passively receiving it. Actively manipulating information will help learners to connect new knowledge to their existing understanding which also facilitates the storage and retrieval of information. This can be especially empowering for learners with SpLDs as it allows them to explore ideas that are meaningful. Through this learners will acquire valuable skills that extend beyond the specific content being studied, facilitating the transfer of these skills between subjects.
Pause and reflect. Think about a task you have used recently. How much time and encouragement did the learners need to manipulate the information? Does the lesson structure give space and time for exploring, creating, and questioning?
Using information: bring learning to life
Using information is the moment when learning becomes visible. Everything the learner has noticed, stored, and explored comes together so they can put their understanding into action. For many learners with SpLDs, this step can feel overwhelming, especially if the earlier stages have been rushed or if they have not yet had time to build confidence in what they know.
We can support this stage by creating a calmer, more deliberate pace. When we model our thinking, talk through how we approach a task, or show the small decisions behind an answer, we help learners see that using information is not about instant accuracy. It is about taking small steps and recognising what they already know. It also gives them space to think about one aspect at a time which reduces the sense of overload.
Over time, these small, intentional supports help learners understand how to use their knowledge independently. They begin to recognise patterns, make connections, and apply what they know in different contexts. This is where confidence grows, not through speed or fluency, but through clarity, reassurance and the chance to take thoughtful risks.
Pause and reflect. Think of a learner you support. How can you make the process of applying knowledge feel calm and manageable? Are there moments where slowing down, modelling your thinking, or breaking a task into clearer steps could help them feel more secure and more confident in using what they know?
When we break learning down into how learners acquire, store, manipulate, and use information, we start to see their needs with greater clarity. For learners with SpLDs, these stages are not barriers in themselves, they are opportunities for us to step in with the right support at the right moment. Small, intentional tweaks to our teaching can help them notice what matters, make sense of new ideas, build connections, and use their knowledge with confidence.
Ultimately, our role is to create learning environments where learners feel safe, understood and equipped with the tools they need to succeed. When we focus on the learning process, not just the outcome, we give learners with SpLDs the space to achieve and thrive, and that’s where real progress begins.
Author: Sarah Reay
Sarah Reay
Sarah Reay is Head of Professional Services at the Patoss Dyslexia Charity.
Website: patoss-dyslexia.org
Facebook: @PatossLtd
Instagram: @patoss_dyslexia
LinkedIn: @patoss-limited
