Stephanie Johnson #12
Strategy Matrix: Organizing Needs & Strategies for Intervention Purposes
Disability: Specific Learning Disability
Possibly / Common Strengths: Often empathetic and can provide a unique perspective.
Common Disability Characteristic Evidence-based Instructional or Behavioral Strategies
1. Poor reading comprehension:
Students with LD often struggle
with reading comprehension.
They often have difficulty
processing information.
2. Struggle to express ideas in
writing: Many students with LD
struggle with the writing
process.
1. Low self-esteem: Students
who have an LD are at a higher
risk for having low self-esteem.
Children with a learning disability
may compare themselves with
others and judge themselves as
slow or dumb.
2. Difficulty following directions:
Students who have learning
disabilities need high structure,
explicit teaching and extended
opportunities to practice
strategies until they develop
independent skills.
1. Frequently forget to do
assignments or homework:
Students who have learning
disabilities frequently struggle to
keep track of the tools they need
for schoolwork.
2. Work at a slower pace than
their peers: Due to the struggle
with reading and writing that
students with LD often face,
sometimes they need more time
to complete an assignment.
Providing support in the form of
scaffolding from the teacher and
peer cooperation may help
students with this road block.
Academic
a) Sticky Notes to Increase Reading Comprehension: It can help students with LD because
it helps the student to keep track of an idea, a theme, or details while reading in a
textbook.
b) Graphic Organizers: Graphic organizers can help increase students reading
comprehension. They help students organize ideas and help students see the difference
between main ideas and supporting details.
a) Guided Notes: They can help by modeling how to take better notes. Guided notes can
also help students identify the main topic and summarize. Being better organized may
help translate into an easier time transferring ideas into writing.
b) Illustration and Art to Teach and Learn Content: Using art to teach and learn content
can help students produce richer writing with more details. It can also serve as a jumping
off point for students who struggle to get started writing.
Social / School (Skills)
a) Positive self-talk: This strategy helps students to recognize a challenge and then see
what can be done to overcome it. It helps to overcome feelings of helplessness or
distorted perceptions of reasons for failure.
b) Praise Notes: This strategy helps to build student self-esteem and provides
encouragement when needed. It helps to recognize students success.
a) Student Choice: Allowing students to make choices about their school day can
empower them with a sense of control. This strategy can improve behavior and build a
more positive relationship between teacher and student.
b) Visual Schedules: They support students who have difficulty following directions. Visual
schedules can help increase students flexibility and acceptance of change.
Behavior / Organization
a) Self-monitoring: This strategy empowers students to evaluate if they are reaching their
goals. Students can monitor their daily progress on completing and submitting homework
assignments.
b) Organizational Strategies for Students: This strategy enables students to manage their
time and materials in a productive manner. For example, student mailboxes can be used
to prevent students from misplacing work.
a) Scaffolding: This strategy offers support that is gradually withdrawn overtime to help
students achieve higher levels of comprehension. Students working at a slower pace may
need more assistance and scaffolding from the teacher.
b) Instructional Activities for Cooperative Learning Groups: This strategy helps students
stay on task and encourage each other. For students who work at a slower pace,
encouragement from peers can boost their self-esteem and help them stay on task. It can
prevent them from getting discouraged.