Use of Pictographic-Articulatory Symbols to Promote Alphabetic Reading in a Language-Impaired Boy: Case Study

Abstract

This case study describes an intervention that used both Blissymbols and a new type of pictographic-articulatory symbol to teach reading to a 9-year-old boy with a specific language impairment. The symbols are derived from spatial positioning of the articulators relative to each other within the whole, with each symbol portraying the salient articulatory features of a letter sound. The results suggest that the symbols may have played a mediating and compensatory role by promoting this child's ability to read traditional orthography.

• alphabetic reading
• articulatory symbols
• case study
• language impairment
• literacy
• pictographic symbols