Homework can be the hardest part of the day for a child who finds reading and spelling effortful. They’re tired, the task often relies on reading the instructions, and the help they get in class isn’t there.

“Multisensory” simply means learning through more than one sense at once: seeing, hearing, saying, touching and moving. These five routines bring that into homework. Each takes a few minutes, needs very little equipment, and works best alongside the phonics and spellings your child is already practising at school.

Before you start

The British Dyslexia Association suggests a few habits that make any homework easier:

• work “a little and often” rather than in one long session

• go over the instructions together so your child knows exactly what to do

• praise effort, not just the result

• tell the teacher if homework regularly takes much longer than it should

1. Textured tracing for tricky spellings

You’ll need: something textured to trace on, such as a tray of salt or sand, a piece of felt or a sheet of fine sandpaper.

1. Write the word clearly and say it together.

2. Your child traces each letter slowly with a finger, saying the letter or sound as they go.

3. They say the whole word when they finish.

4. Repeat twice, then write the word on paper from memory.

Why it helps: linking the feel and movement of each letter with its sound gives your child more than one way to remember the word.

2. Colour-chunking sentences and instructions

You’ll need: highlighters or coloured pencils, and the sentence or homework instruction your child is working on.

1. Split the sentence into short, meaningful chunks, for example who, what and where.

2. Give each chunk its own colour.

3. Read one chunk at a time aloud.

4. Ask your child to explain each chunk in their own words.

5. Read the whole sentence together.

Why it helps: smaller chunks mean less to hold in mind at once, so your child can focus on meaning rather than keeping their place.

3. Build it, say it, read it

You’ll need: magnetic letters or letter tiles, and a tray or the fridge door.

1. Choose a word from this week’s spellings or reading.

2. Your child finds each letter and builds the word, saying each sound as they place it.

3. They slide a finger under the word and blend the sounds to read it smoothly.

4. Mix the letters up and let them build it again on their own.

Why it helps: moving real letters makes the link between sounds and spelling concrete. Talamo reports suggest the same idea for school, using letter tiles to blend sounds into a word and then break the word back into sounds.

4. Air-writing with saying aloud

You’ll need: some space, and paper and a pencil.

1. Say the target word together.

2. Your child writes it in the air with big arm movements, saying each letter or sound.

3. They close their eyes and do it again.

4. Then they write it on paper and check it.

Why it helps: big movements are a playful way to rehearse a spelling before committing it to paper, which can take some of the worry out of getting it wrong.

5. Listen, repeat, write, check

You’ll need: a short sentence from the homework, paper and a pencil, and a highlighter.

1. Read the sentence aloud.

2. Your child repeats it back.

3. They write what they remember.

4. Read the sentence again together and check.

5. Highlight anything to practise next time.

Why it helps: hearing, saying and writing the same sentence gives several chances to remember it. It’s also a gentle way to practise following a spoken instruction.

Keep it short and positive

Pick one activity, try it for a few minutes and stop while it’s still going well. If homework is a battle most nights, it’s worth a conversation with school about what’s behind it. Our dyslexia screener for parents shows where your child’s strengths and difficulties lie, with suggestions for supporting them at home. See how it works.