Cognitive & Dyslexia

A screening assessment that shows whether a pupil’s reading and spelling difficulties fit a dyslexic profile or a wider pattern of need, with clear next steps for each child.

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See a sample report

Illustration: a pupil chooses a task on the Talamo Cognitive & Dyslexia screen while a classmate works on a laptop and the Talamo cat walks past, beside cards from Emily Hargreaves’ sample report showing a dyslexia risk of ‘Very likely’ and scores for visual reasoning (117), reading speed (74) and spelling (73).

Age range

7–16

Years 2 to 12

Time

35–45 mins

Can be split across sittings

Format

Online, in school

Whole class, small group or one pupil

Who runs it

A teacher or TA

No specialist qualification needed

What you get

Dyslexia risk level

Plus a cognitive profile, Level of Need and next steps

What it measures

Three tiers, one clear profile

The assessment is built around the Delphi consensus definition of dyslexia (February 2025). Reading the three tiers together lets it separate a profile linked to dyslexia from broader or non-specific learning difficulty.

Tier 1

Baseline reasoning

Verbal and visual reasoning give a baseline. On their own, they never raise dyslexia risk.

Verbal reasoning

Visual reasoning

Tier 2

Key dyslexia indicators

The processing skills most closely linked to dyslexia. Phonological difficulties are the most commonly seen.

Phonological awareness

Working memory

Processing speed

Tier 3

Reading and spelling

Where any difficulty shows up in reading speed, reading comprehension and spelling.

Reading speed

Reading comprehension

Spelling

What your pupils will do

Nine short tasks

Pupils see each task by a friendly name, and every task starts with spoken instructions and practice.

Introduction video

Spoken instructions

Practice with feedback

Game-like feel

How a session starts

Talamo test screen: ‘Enter your code’ with an 8-character Login ID typed into the boxes, on the starry test background.

Pupils type their own 8‑character Login ID

Talamo test screen: a welcome card with the Talamo character that says ‘Hi Emily, when you’re ready, let’s go!’ above a Start button.

They press Start when they’re ready

Talamo test screen: three tiles to choose from, Skills (0 of 9 complete, selected), Numbers (0 of 15) and Focus (0 of 8), above a Start button.

They choose Skills, the name pupils see for this assessment

Task by task

Each card shows the name pupils see, the task’s formal name and the skill it measures.

Shapes

Spatial Relations

Sees a large shape and clicks the smaller pieces that fit together to make it.

Visual reasoning

Similar words

Synonyms

Reads and hears a word, then picks the word that means the same.

Verbal reasoning

Memory

Numbers Reversed

Hears a string of numbers and types them backwards.

Working memory

Letters

Letter Pattern Matching

Scans rows of letters and clicks every matching pair as fast as possible. This task is timed.

Processing speed

Beats

Syllables

Hears a word and clicks how many syllables it has.

Phonological awareness

Made-up words

Nonword Spelling

Sees a made-up word briefly, then spells it from memory.

Spelling and decoding

Speed

Sentence Reading Fluency

Reads short sentences and marks each one true or false as quickly as possible. This task is timed.

Reading speed

Reading

Passage Comprehension

Reads a sentence with a word missing and picks the word that completes it.

Reading comprehension

Spelling

Hears a word used in a sentence and types its spelling.

Spelling

How the tasks are scored

Questions are scored without retries. If a pupil gets several wrong in a row, the task ends early and they still see the normal finish.

See a sample report

Shapes
Spatial Relations
Sees a large shape and clicks the smaller pieces that fit together to make it.
Visual reasoning
Similar words
Synonyms
Reads and hears a word, then picks the word that means the same.
Verbal reasoning
Memory
Numbers Reversed
Hears a string of numbers and types them backwards.
Working memory
Letters
Letter Pattern Matching
Scans rows of letters and clicks every matching pair as fast as possible. This task is timed.
Processing speed
Beats
Syllables
Hears a word and clicks how many syllables it has.
Phonological awareness
Made-up words
Nonword Spelling
Sees a made-up word briefly, then spells it from memory.
Spelling and decoding
Speed
Sentence Reading Fluency
Reads short sentences and marks each one true or false as quickly as possible. This task is timed.
Reading speed
Reading
Passage Comprehension
Reads a sentence with a word missing and picks the word that completes it.
Reading comprehension
Spelling
Hears a word used in a sentence and types its spelling.
Spelling

Questions are scored without retries. If a pupil gets several wrong in a row, the task ends early and they still see the normal finish.

Requirements

What you need to run it

Check these six things before the first session.

Laptop or desktop, with headphones

Every task opens with spoken instructions, so each pupil needs their own headphones.

Chrome browser (preferred)

The assessment runs online in the browser, at test.talamo.co.uk.

Keyboard and mouse or trackpad

Both are required. iPads can be used only with an attached keyboard.

A Login ID for each pupil

Pupils log in with their own Login ID, which is 8 characters long.

Sound on, Talamo not blocked

Browser audio must be on, and school filtering must not block Talamo domains.

Smaller groups for some pupils

Smaller groups or extra support help younger pupils, EAL learners and pupils with high needs.

Requirements

What you need to run it

Check these six things before the first session.

Laptop or desktop, with headphones

Every task opens with spoken instructions, so each pupil needs their own headphones.

Chrome browser (preferred)

The assessment runs online in the browser, at test.talamo.co.uk.

Keyboard and mouse or trackpad

Both are required. iPads can be used only with an attached keyboard.

A Login ID for each pupil

Pupils log in with their own Login ID, which is 8 characters long.

Sound on, Talamo not blocked

Browser audio must be on, and school filtering must not block Talamo domains.

Smaller groups for some pupils

Smaller groups or extra support help younger pupils, EAL learners and pupils with high needs.

Requirements

What you need to run it

Check these six things before the first session.

Laptop or desktop, with headphones

Every task opens with spoken instructions, so each pupil needs their own headphones.

Chrome browser (preferred)

The assessment runs online in the browser, at test.talamo.co.uk.

Keyboard and mouse or trackpad

Both are required. iPads can be used only with an attached keyboard.

A Login ID for each pupil

Pupils log in with their own Login ID, which is 8 characters long.

Sound on, Talamo not blocked

Browser audio must be on, and school filtering must not block Talamo domains.

Smaller groups for some pupils

Smaller groups or extra support help younger pupils, EAL learners and pupils with high needs.

Planning your first session?

Book a call with our team and we’ll talk it through with you.

Book a call

What you get

A clear report for every pupil

Each report is written in plain English: the pupil’s scores, what they mean and what to do next.

Inside Grace’s report

Use the arrows to look through three pages from the sample report of Grace Kowalski, a fictional secondary pupil.

Insights

Her Level of Need and dyslexia risk, each explained in a few plain sentences.

Results

Her scores in eight areas on one chart, compared with pupils of the same age.

Scores

Each standard score with its score rank, such as Low Average.

The rest of her report suggests ways to support her, matched to her profile and year group: in the classroom, through extra support and at home.

See Grace’s full report (PDF)

Dyslexia risk level

Reported as one of five levels rather than a yes or no, because dyslexia is a spectrum and screening can’t draw a hard line.

Unlikely

Few of the signs associated with dyslexia. No further dyslexia evaluation is suggested, though other learning needs may still be present.

Possible

Some signs are present. A specialist check is optional; consider screening again in a year or two.

Likely

Several signs associated with dyslexia are present, and the results deserve a closer look.

Very likely

A strong pattern of signs. The school or a parent may wish to seek a specialist assessment, which can confirm a diagnosis and unlock formal support.

Inconclusive

The results aren’t reliable enough to score, for example because several tasks gave unusual results.

Inconclusive never means low risk. A retest is recommended.

Level of Need

How much support a pupil may need overall. It draws on every Talamo assessment they complete, so it becomes better grounded as they take more.

Low

Ordinary classroom teaching is enough.

Medium

Targeted support in one area.

High

Structured support across more than one area.

Very high

Intensive support; specialist involvement is worth considering.

Built into every report

Checked by a person

Every report is reviewed by Talamo before release, normally within 48 hours.

Unusual results flagged

A score far outside the typical range is flagged for review, not treated as a verdict. Check supervision, access needs and the device before arranging a retest.

Pupil data kept private

The AI model sees pseudonymised scores and context, never a pupil’s name or school. Pupil assessment data is stored in the UK.

Sample reports

Read the full sample reports

The complete reports for two fictional pupils, Emily at primary school and Grace at secondary, including the support pages: ideas for the classroom, for extra support and for home.

See Emily’s report (primary, PDF)

See Grace’s report (secondary, PDF)

See all sample reports

“I liked the visual aspects of the report. Breaking it down really helps talk to families about dyslexia and about the needs of their children.”

Rebecca Bye, SENCo, Sevenoaks Primary School

Read the Sevenoaks case study

The evidence behind it

First piloted in 2023 at a specialist dyslexia school, Cognitive & Dyslexia has been in schools since September 2024 and is checked continually against new data. Every figure here comes from its technical manual (September 2026).

4,580

pupils in 85 UK schools make up the current norms, built in summer 2026.

0.80–0.97

reliability (KR-20) across all nine tasks: good to excellent.

95%

agreement between the AI risk model and specialist reviewers on benchmark profiles. A person still checks every report.

British Dyslexia Association

Talamo was selected through the BDA’s two‑stage tender process, and the BDA considers Talamo a suitable screening tool for children aged 10–16. The assessment itself is standardised for ages 7–16.

See the BDA’s screening page

BDA screening page

Built with Riverside Insights

Seven of the nine tasks are adapted from the Woodcock‑Johnson IV, developed in partnership with its publisher, Riverside Insights. Syllables and Nonword Spelling were built by Talamo for fully online phonological assessment.

Read about our research

Want more technical detail? Ask us and we’ll share it.

Want technical detail? Ask us

Good to know

What screening can and can’t tell you

Screening gives you an evidence‑based starting point. Read results alongside what you know from the classroom, attainment data and, where needed, specialist assessment.

A snapshot, not a diagnosis

Results are described as “consistent with” dyslexia. They show one point in time, not progress or response to intervention, and only a specialist assessment can confirm a diagnosis.

Pupils learning English

EAL pupils may score lower on vocabulary‑heavy and literacy tasks because of language exposure. EAL status never raises the dyslexia risk level. Low phonological scores in both of a pupil’s languages are more consistent with dyslexia.

Low scores everywhere

Broadly low scores across every area, including reasoning, fit general learning difficulty better than dyslexia, which usually shows areas of relative strength.

What it doesn’t measure

It doesn’t assess rapid naming, reading‑aloud accuracy, writing or visual stress. If a pupil reports discomfort or movement on screen, consider visual support and possibly an optometry review.

Some pupils with dyslexia will be missed and some without it will be flagged; that’s true of any screening tool. Stay alert to classroom difficulties, whatever the result.