A Good Spelling App for a Child With Dyslexia (2026)

Last updated: September 2026 · Written by the Spelly team

Short answer: A good spelling app for a child with dyslexia reads every word aloud, lets you practice your child's own school list, has no timers, lets them build words from letter tiles as well as type them, offers an easier-to-read font, and brings missed words back later instead of moving on. It should feel low-stress, because wrong answers are part of learning. An app is extra practice at home. It does not replace structured literacy teaching or specialist help, so talk to your child's teacher or school if you have not already.

A note on fairness: Spelly is our app, so we have an interest here. Most of this page is a checklist you can use on any app. Spelly is not a treatment or a dyslexia program, and we say plainly below what it does not do. Facts about dyslexia come from the International Dyslexia Association, the NHS, the British Dyslexia Association, Understood and the NIH, listed at the end.

What dyslexia means for spelling

The International Dyslexia Association defines dyslexia as "a specific learning disability characterized by difficulties in word reading and/or spelling that involve accuracy, speed, or both." Its definition adds that these difficulties "persist even with instruction that is effective for the individual's peers." In other words, a child with dyslexia can be taught well, work hard, and still find spelling much harder than their classmates do.

The British Dyslexia Association puts it simply: "difficulties in reading fluency and spelling are key markers of dyslexia." The NHS calls dyslexia "a common learning difficulty" and lists written work "that looks messy and has lots of spelling mistakes" among the signs. Understood notes that it's hard to say exactly how many children have dyslexia, and that estimates range from 5 to 17.5 percent.

Two things are worth knowing as a parent. First, dyslexia is not a vision problem and has nothing to do with how smart a child is. Understood describes it as a difference in how the brain processes language, and children with dyslexia often have trouble with decoding (sounding words out) and encoding (spelling them). Second, spelling is often the harder of the two. Reading gives you context clues; a spelling test gives you nothing but the sound of the word.

If you have not had your child evaluated, that comes first. Ask the teacher. In US public schools, Understood notes that evaluations are free. In the UK, the NHS suggests starting with the school's special educational needs coordinator (SENCO). If your child is struggling and you are not sure why, our guide on why a child struggles with spelling covers the common causes.

Apps support teaching. They don't replace it.

The help that makes the biggest difference for dyslexia is teaching, not software. Understood describes the core approach as multisensory structured language education, often based on Orton-Gillingham: skills taught directly and in a logical order, using sight, sound, movement and touch, delivered one-on-one or in small groups. There are no medications for dyslexia. The people who provide this help include reading specialists, learning specialists, psychologists and speech-language pathologists, in school or privately.

A spelling app fits around that. It can give your child more practice on the words they are already being taught, at home, without you having to run the session. That matters, because Understood notes that children with dyslexia often need to "overlearn" material through repetition. But an app can't diagnose dyslexia, can't plan a teaching sequence for your child, and can't notice what a skilled teacher notices. Be cautious about any app that claims to treat dyslexia.

What to look for in a spelling app for a child with dyslexia

1. Every word read aloud

A spelling test is dictation: the teacher says the word and your child writes it. An app should do the same. If it shows the word on screen for your child to read first, it is testing reading, which is often the very skill that's hardest. Understood lists reading instructions out loud and text-to-speech among common classroom supports for dyslexia; audio in a spelling app follows the same idea.

2. More than one way to work with a word

Multisensory teaching, as Understood explains it, gives children more than one way to connect with what they are learning. One technique is word building: laying out letter tiles or magnetic letters and saying each sound. An app is not a substitute for hands-on work with a specialist, but look for one that mixes hearing the word, seeing a picture, picking the right spelling, and building the word from letter tiles, not only typing.

3. Your child's own school list

Practicing a list the app chose is fine for general skills, but if your child brings home a list each week, that list is what they will be tested on. Check whether you can put your own words in, and how much work that is. Typing fifteen words every week is a chore many families give up on. We compared the options in spelling apps that scan word lists.

4. No time pressure

Understood lists extended time on tests as a common accommodation for students with dyslexia, and notes that anxiety can come along with it. A countdown clock in a practice game works against that. Look for an app where your child can take as long as they need to think about each word.

5. A readable screen, and a font your child likes

Plenty of apps offer a "dyslexia font" such as OpenDyslexic. Be realistic about it: a small study of children at a school for students with dyslexia found the font did not improve reading rate or accuracy. Some children still prefer how it looks, and that is reason enough to try it. Let your child choose, and keep whichever they find easier. A calm screen without constant movement helps too.

6. Missed words come back

If an app marks a word wrong and moves on, your child learns only that they got it wrong. Better practice brings that word back later, ideally in an easier form first, and again on another day. That is the repetition Understood describes, built into the app so you don't have to track which words need another go.

7. Low-stress by design

Watch how the app treats mistakes. Children with dyslexia make a lot of them, and an app that punishes wrong answers, takes away lives, or shows a big red failure screen can turn practice into something to avoid. Short rounds, gentle feedback, and a way to stop and pick up later all help. Our guide on how to help your child with spelling has more on keeping practice at home positive.

Where Spelly fits, and where it doesn't

Spelly is a spelling practice app for kids ages 6 to 12, on the web, iPhone and iPad, and Android. It was not designed for dyslexia and it is not a treatment. It is a general spelling app, and some of the ways it works line up with the checklist above:

Every word is read aloud in a natural voice, so a child who can't read the list yet can still practice it.
Your child's own list. Type or paste it, or take a photo of the printed or handwritten worksheet and Spelly turns it into a practice list in seconds. There are also ready-made lists by grade and AI-made lists on any topic.
Five games. Matching (word to picture), Multiple Choice (hear it, tap the right spelling), Fill the Gap (fill in the missing letters), Build It (tap letter tiles to build the word) and Type It (hear it and type it, like a real test). Typed answers are checked letter by letter, and Spelly's own keyboard keeps autocorrect from spelling the word for them.
No timers in the games. The road screen is still: nothing moves except a slow pulse on the current step, and the device's reduced-motion setting turns that off too.
Easier-to-read letters. A setting that shows the game screen in OpenDyslexic, a dyslexia-friendly font. Given the mixed evidence above, treat it as a preference to try, not a fix.
Missed words come back. A missed word returns later in the same round in an easier game, and words missed on an earlier day come back in a short review.
Small rounds. Rounds are a few words at a time, and a list longer than 30 words plays in 10-word parts and remembers where you left off.
Wrong answers are free. Free play runs on hearts that come back over time, and a wrong answer never costs a heart.
A weekly email to the parent with days practiced, words mastered and words still to practice, which can be useful to share with a teacher or tutor.

What Spelly does not do: it doesn't teach phonics or reading from the beginning, it doesn't follow a structured literacy sequence, and it doesn't assess or diagnose anything. It is practice for words your child is already learning. If your child is still learning letter sounds, a specialist or a phonics program is the right place to start. It also works in 14 languages, and can be played without sound, with a picture or the word's meaning in place of the spoken word, though for a child with dyslexia we'd suggest leaving the sound on.

Spelly is free to start, with no ads, and a one-time $29 unlock with no subscription. If it sounds like a good fit, try Spelly free with this week's list and see how your child gets on.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a spelling app made for children with dyslexia? Some apps describe themselves that way. Look at what an app actually does rather than the label: does it read every word aloud, take your child's own list, avoid timers, and bring missed words back? Spelly is a general spelling practice app, not a dyslexia program, but it does those things and has an easier-to-read font setting.

Can a spelling app replace a tutor or dyslexia specialist? No. Understood describes structured, multisensory teaching delivered one-on-one or in small groups as the core help for dyslexia. An app is extra practice at home on words your child is already being taught. It works best alongside that teaching, not instead of it.

Does a dyslexia font help with spelling? The evidence is mixed. A small study of children at a school for students with dyslexia found that the OpenDyslexic font did not improve reading rate or accuracy. Some children simply prefer how a font looks, so let your child try it and keep whichever they find easier.

How do I find out if my child has dyslexia? Start with your child's teacher and ask about an evaluation. In US public schools, Understood notes that evaluations are free. In the UK, the NHS suggests talking to the school's special educational needs coordinator (SENCO). An app can't tell you whether a child has dyslexia.

Should a child with dyslexia still take weekly spelling tests? That is a question for the school. Understood lists accommodations such as extended time on tests and grading on the content being taught rather than on spelling. If tests are causing real distress, ask the teacher what support is available.

Can my child practice their own school spelling list in Spelly? Yes. You can type or paste the list, or take a photo of the printed or handwritten worksheet, and Spelly turns it into a practice list in seconds. Every word is read aloud, so your child can practice it before they can read it.

How we checked this

Facts about dyslexia come from the International Dyslexia Association's definition, the NHS, the British Dyslexia Association and Understood, checked in September 2026. The font finding is from a study published in Annals of Dyslexia and available through the NIH. The features we list for Spelly are what the app does today. We have not made any claim that Spelly improves outcomes for children with dyslexia, because we have no study that shows it. If you are worried about your child's reading or spelling, the right first step is their teacher, the school's special education team, or a clinician.

Try Spelly free · Why is my child struggling with spelling? · How to help your child with spelling · Spelling apps that scan word lists

Last updated: September 2026.