What's it all about?
A podcast for parents and educators about the best way to support people living with specific learning difficulties.
Do you, your partner, your child, a relative or a student of yours grapple with an identified (or suspected) Specific Learning Difficulty (SLD)? Knowing what to do next can be scary.
But……you’re not alone.
About dys podcast
Specific learning disabilities/differences/disorders/difficulties… whatever you call them, they DO exist and colour the lives of people everywhere. Dyscastia is a podcast for people who live with any of the Dys family, whether they have a Dys themselves, parent a child with a Dys, have a partner with a Dys or teach people with a Dys. So, which Dys’s are we talking about? You’ve guessed it – Dyslexia, Dysgraphia and Dyscalculia. We call these the 3Ds.
Michael Shanahan is a specialist teacher of students who live with a Dys or more than one Dys. He runs a thriving practice and brings his own thoughts and experience to you and the unique perspectives of others whose lives are touched by Specific Learning Difficulties.
dyscastia (n.)
“a difficulty in podcasting due to a condition of the brain,” from Greek dys- “bad, abnormal, difficult” (see dys-) + cast + past participle of cast (v.). Figurative sense “widely spread” is recorded by 1785. As an adverb from 1832. Modern media use began with radio (1922, adjective and noun). As a verb, 1829 in a figurative sense, 1921 in reference to radio. + abstract noun ending -ia.
About Michael Shanahan
Michael is the director of Dyslexic Strengths and is a specialist reading and maths intervention tutor in Adelaide, South Australia.
He co-developed the Literacy Support Kit with Sally Andrew and built the online Word Cracking software. He has a Bachelor of Education and has completed the highly regarded Teaching Students with Dyslexia (TSD) training.
Michael lives with dyslexia, dysgraphia, and ADHD, giving him firsthand experience of how much effort people living with learning difficulties must put in to succeed. His lived experience informs his approach, ensuring that his teaching is both evidence-based and deeply empathetic.
If you are in South Australia, Michael maintains a directory of specialist literacy and maths tutors on his website, South Australian Literacy & Maths Specialist Tutors.
Recent Episodes
Episode 18: The Literacy Support Kit with Sally Andrew
In this episode, Michael Shanahan is joined by experienced specialist dyslexia tutor Sally Andrew to discuss The Literacy Support Kit (LSK)—a comprehensive set of resources designed to support children for whom standard literacy intervention programs are too difficult.
Episode 17: What high-performing countries are doing in maths. With Liana McCurry
In this episode, we have Liana McCurry back to talk about her Churchill Fellowship findings on what the top PISA performing countries are doing with maths instruction and how we can use that information to improve outcomes for kids living with learning difficulties.
Episode 16: The Importance Of Daily Review with David Morkunas
In this episode, we chat about daily review with David Morkunas, current head of teacher efficacy at Brandon Park Primary School, previously a teacher at Bentleigh West Primary School.
