Supporting Struggling Readers With Mindfulness Practices

Distracted, toe-tapping, staring off into space, frustrated—this describes most (all?) struggling readers I’ve had over the years.  They don’t start this way, but by third grade and up, this is who I work with.

I always felt there was a piece missing.  Strategies don’t work if the reader can’t use them.  I found this time and time again.  Each daily reading lesson would role into the next, weeks and months passing, with little gains.

In today's fast-paced world, where information bombards us from every direction, reading remains a necessity and a source of anxiety for many, especially if they struggle to make sense of what they are reading.Whether it's academic texts, work-related documents, school work, or leisure reading, the pressure to absorb, comprehend, and retain information can be overwhelming. 

Anxiety comes from thinking about the past or the future, where struggling readers might say to themselves, “I can’t do this... I’ve tried before... I don’t get it…I don’t understand... I never get this... everyone will laugh at me because I can’t read.”  That’s what my students say to themselves, and that’s what I said years ago when I was the one struggling with learning.

This reading anxiety often goes hand in hand with cognitive overload, where the brain struggles to process and manage the influx of information effectively. However, there are strategies and techniques rooted in mindfulness and cognitive psychology that can help alleviate these challenges and pave the way for more focused, efficient reading experiences.

Mindfulness, a practice of being present and attentive to the moment without past or future judgment, has gained significant attention in the past decade for its potential benefits in various aspects of life, including reading and concentration. Research within the last ten years has shown promising results regarding the positive effects of mindfulness on focus and reading comprehension. By cultivating mindfulness, individuals can train their minds to stay present and attentive, thereby reducing distractions and enhancing their ability to engage with written material.

One study published in the "Journal of Cognitive Enhancement" in 2018 found that participants who underwent a mindfulness-based intervention showed significant improvements in attention and reading comprehension compared to those who did not engage in mindfulness practices. This suggests that incorporating mindfulness techniques into one's reading routine can lead to tangible benefits in terms of focus and comprehension.  There are other studies that also support mindfulness.  

So, how exactly can mindfulness be applied to improve reading performance? And can it be applied to those with dyslexia or other neurodiversities that make interacting with written material a struggle?  

One approach is through the practice of mindfully anchoring through seeing, hearing, or breathing.  This means individuals intentionally focus their attention on the act of breathing, seeing, hearing, or even eating in the moment.  Observing thoughts and reactions without judgment. By staying present (not thinking about the future or past) and fully engaged in the moment, one can reduce mental clutter and enhance understanding of a task, such as trying a new reading strategy.

Try it!  Try this right now: Close your eyes.  Name 10 different sounds you hear.  My class liked this one: Look around the room.  Find 3 things you’ve NEVER noticed before.

How did you feel while you were listening to sounds or noticing?  Present?  

Mindfulness techniques can help struggling readers manage reading anxiety by promoting relaxation and stress reduction. Techniques such as deep breathing, body scanning, and progressive muscle relaxation can help calm the mind and body, making it easier to approach reading tasks with a clear and focused mindset.

Mindfulness is part of the equation.  Together, mindfulness and  practical strategies can help alleviate cognitive overload and make reading strategies manageable and more effective. 

One reading strategy is to break reading into smaller chunks or sections. Rather than trying to tackle an entire reading assignment in one sitting, breaking it down into smaller, more manageable parts can help prevent overwhelm and allow for better focus and comprehension.

Furthermore, providing scaffolding in the form of sentence starters, frames, templates, and models of finished products can help alleviate cognitive overload by guiding readers through the process of comprehension and analysis. By providing clear structure and support, these scaffolding tools can help reduce the cognitive burden associated with reading tasks and make them feel more achievable.

For example, when faced with a complex reading assignment, students can try mindfulness, and then use sentence starters to help them formulate their thoughts and responses. Instead of staring blankly at a page, unsure of where to begin, they can use these prompts as a starting point to organize their ideas and engage with the material more effectively.

Similarly, providing templates or models of finished products can help students develop a mental schema of what is expected of them, making the task feel more familiar and less daunting. By breaking down the task into smaller, more manageable steps and providing guidance along the way, parents and educators can help students navigate reading assignments with greater ease and confidence.

I first discovered and tried mindfulness around COVID, I found it helped me with my writing stamina.  I was able to work longer with more focus.  I was calmer (you can ask my kids).  I was, in general, in a better mood.  I was in a doctorate program at the time, and found mindfulness helped keep me motivated and focused.  It also helped me clarify what was important, and my time management improved.

I have since used it with my current students globally.  There are mixed reviews- but here in one example in action:

A few weeks ago, when I was at a tutoring session with my third grade client, he was incredibly unfocused.  We had been working for 15 minutes.  He had been focused and did quite well.  However,  he started to get squirmy, tapping his feet, his hands were reaching for everything and it wasn’t getting any better.  I was going to suggest a quick mindfulness break, where we would use our breath to anchor us….but before I could suggest it, he just stopped, closed his eyes, and started breathing mindfully (focusing on the present) on his own.  I kid you not.  Another teacher had been teaching the students this technique, and he pulled it out on his own.  After about one minute, he looked at the problem we were dealing with clearly, and moved forward.  I couldn’t believe it.  

By incorporating mindfulness practices and practical strategies into our reading routines, we can cultivate a more focused, attentive approach to reading and alleviate the burden of cognitive overload. By breaking assignments into chunks, providing scaffolding, and promoting mindfulness, we can empower struggling readers to engage with literacy more effectively and confidently.