Why Multisensory Reading Intervention Matters More Than You Think

Why Multisensory Reading Intervention Matters More Than You Think

When discussing reading intervention, it’s easy to picture flashcards, drills, and worksheets—strategies many of us grew up with. However, what if we told you there’s a more powerful, more human way to help children learn to read?

That’s where multisensory instruction comes in. It’s not just about seeing a word or hearing it out loud. It’s about engaging the entire brain through touch, movement, visual cues, and sound. It’s about learning in the way the brain actually learns best.

What Is Multisensory Instruction, Really?

Multisensory instruction takes the process of reading and applies it across multiple senses. Children might trace a word in sand while saying the sounds out loud, then build the word with letter tiles, or skywrite it in the air using large arm movements. Each of these actions taps into a different part of the brain—visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and tactile—strengthening neural pathways and deepening understanding (Birsh & Carreker, 2018).

Instead of asking a child to stare at a flashcard or write a word repeatedly in a notebook, multisensory learning invites them into an interactive experience. They’re not just memorizing—they’re building meaning.

Incorporating mutlisensory teaching with auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and facial movements.

Why Traditional Methods Often Fall Short

In many classrooms and tutoring programs, reading intervention looks like repetition. A child might be told to write a word ten times or recite sight words over and over. But this kind of instruction often assumes that memory alone leads to literacy. For many learners, especially those with language-based differences like dyslexia, it doesn’t.

Without engaging multiple modalities, we risk asking children to memorize what they don’t yet understand. This can be frustrating at best and confidence-crushing at worst. In contrast, multisensory instruction supports decoding, fluency, and comprehension by anchoring learning in experience rather than rote repetition (Ehri et al., 2007).

The Brain Science Behind the Strategy

Multisensory instruction isn’t just intuitive—it’s backed by decades of neuroscience. When students engage more than one sense at a time, their brains create stronger, more lasting connections (Shaywitz, 2003). This is especially important for students with reading difficulties, whose brains may not naturally activate the regions responsible for phonological processing.

Functional MRI studies show that students with dyslexia who receive structured, multisensory instruction begin to develop neural activation patterns similar to their typically developing peers (Shaywitz & Shaywitz, 2008). This kind of growth doesn’t happen from flashcards alone.

It’s Not a Trend—It’s a Philosophy

Multisensory teaching isn’t just about swapping in a fun activity or sensory bin. It’s a fundamental shift in how we understand learning. It acknowledges that children process information in different ways—and that all of those ways are valid.

For neurodivergent learners, multisensory instruction can be the difference between confusion and clarity, resistance and joy. When kids are allowed to flap their hands while they read, or sing a phonics pattern while hopping on one foot, they’re not being disruptive—they’re learning in the way their bodies and brains naturally move through the world.

At the Reading Center, we embrace that difference. We know that a multisensory approach doesn’t just make learning more engaging—it makes it more effective for every learner.

What It Looks Like in Practice

In a multisensory lesson, you might see a child:

• Tracing letterforms in sand or shaving cream while saying the sounds aloud.

• Tapping out syllables on their arm or desk.

• Using color-coded phoneme tiles to build words.

• Chanting spelling patterns while marching around the room.

All of this activity might look like play. But it’s rigorous, evidence-based instruction that taps into how the brain really learns language (Moats, 2020). It meets kids where they are and invites them to bring their whole selves into the learning process.

Why It Matters Now More Than Ever

Literacy is foundational. For many children, especially those who have been underserved by traditional instruction, time is of the essence. We can’t afford to continue relying on outdated methods that don’t work for all learners.

When we use a multisensory approach, we’re not just helping kids remember words—we’re helping them make sense of them. We’re empowering them with tools they can use across subjects and throughout their lives. Moreover, we’re doing it in a way that affirms their dignity and honors their unique learning profiles.

Final Thoughts

Reading intervention should never be one-size-fits-all. Multisensory instruction gives us a way forward—one rooted in science, shaped by empathy, and grounded in real results.

When we move beyond flashcards and worksheets, we open the door to curiosity, connection, and confidence. We give students a chance not only to learn how to read, but to fall in love with reading itself.

References

Birsh, J. R., & Carreker, S. (2018). Multisensory teaching of basic language skills (4th ed.). Paul H. Brookes Publishing.

Ehri, L. C., Nunes, S. R., Stahl, S. A., & Willows, D. M. (2007). Systematic phonics instruction helps students learn to read: Evidence from the National Reading Panel’s meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 71(3), 393–447. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543071003393

Moats, L. C. (2020). Speech to print: Language essentials for teachers (3rd ed.). Paul H. Brookes Publishing.

Shaywitz, S. E. (2003). Overcoming dyslexia: A new and complete science-based program for reading problems at any level. Knopf.

Shaywitz, B. A., & Shaywitz, S. E. (2008). Paying attention to reading: The neurobiology of reading and dyslexia. Development and Psychopathology, 20(4), 1329–1349. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579408000631