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Lexion is a computer-based system for stimulating and training people with language related learning disorders, dyslexia, or aphasia.

Lexion makes it easy to assess pupils who are struggling with reading and writing. Simply select a test for their age and area of difficulty and Lexion will analyse the result, displaying the results in charts and text. It then automatically creates exercises to address the difficulty. The pupil can practice the exercises either at school or at home, and as they improve, they can be re-tested to assess progress.

Lexion has 94 structured modules interwoven according to a thoroughly thought-out educational pattern. There are 1100 age related word lists, more than 2000 photographic pictures and 4000 digital recordings. The word base itself consists of 265000 words. The exercises cover the most fundamental processes in learning reading and writing, including phonological awareness, letter-sound correspondence, syllable and morpheme segmentation and blending, grammar, spatial skills, arithmetic and understanding the clock.

Background

Lexion was developed in 1992 in Sweden by Olof Gunnilstam, speech therapist and Martti Martens, speech therapist and SEN teacher and has been deployed in Sweden over the last 16 years and is used in about 80% of Swedish schools, often on a daily basis. In addition countless Swedish speech therapists and SEN teachers have used the Swedish language version. The program has now been comprehensively rewritten as an English language version, in accordance with current English educational models and in consideration of the similar difficulties often experienced by English language learners. It is designed to provide pupils with structured training in basic cognitive English language processes before and during the acquisition of reading and writing skills.

1. Lexion is now shipped with two versions: a complete Lexion CDROM and two minimized or Mini-Lexion CDROM's.
   • This innovative package allows for the installation of Mini-Lexion as a standalone program at a pupils home, capable only of installing exercises and then letting the user practice. The ability to send the exercises to a user for training somewhere else than at the teacher’s/speech therapist’s, is a unique feature of Lexion
   • The teacher may send a user’s archive with its exercises, exercise properties, and lists to be installed in Mini-Lexion for practice
   • Exercises may be sent by e‑mail, diskette, USB memory stick, or a self-made CD
   • An installed Mini-Lexion may contain more than one user, for example several siblings practising at home on the same computer, thereafter you install on the computer as many differently named users as you wish by using different sets of exercises (or e-mail attachment files)
   • Note: Existing users of Lexion will be updated with Mini-Lexion CD's free of charge
2. A new series of profiles called Beginning to Read is intended for any five- or six year old or seven-year-olds with minor to no problems or for eight-year-olds with major problems - see Download Resources No. 1 below for a description of the profiles as a printer-friendly ^PDF
• The profiles cover the first steps of how to learn to read and are of course a complement to normal education
3. The Lexion assessment now extends to age ranges 6-16 years instead of 6-12, thus encompassing usage with high school students also

Lexion Assessment

The Lexion analysis helps to assess whether a child will have difficulties in reading and writing during their first years in school. Secondly, it can be used as a screening tool when a new stage in reading and writing education is to begin, or where a certain level of ability should have been reached.

Experience has shown that children enjoy being tested with Lexion, with the special approach engaging their interest and improving concentration levels.

The assessments cover the following areas:

• Phonological awareness 6-16 years - manipulate elements at the word, syllable, and sound levels, without seeing any text in writing
• Spoonerisms 10-16 years - A more challenging test of phonological ability
• Arrange sounded words 6-12 years - build a word from its component sounds.
• Find the picture for sounded word 6-9 years
• Arrange sounded letters 7-9 years – the word is segmented into sounds, but the child is asked to build words with letters.
• Arrange letters 7-9 years - hear the word and build it with letters.
• Arrange syllables 10-16 years - build a word from its syllables
• Reading 7-16 years
• Reading comprehension 8-16 years
• Spelling 7-16 years
• Remember picture/number/pattern sequence 6-16 years

Lexion Exercises

Lexion will automatically create exercises according to a pupil's test results. Alternatively it will create exercises suitable for any term from Prep to Year 9. Exercises include the following areas:

• Phonology (1) – helps the child to become aware of phonemes
• Phonology (2) - tasks around phoneme-grapheme correspondence.
• Phonology (3) - a ‘sound memory’ exercise.
• Phonology (4) - segmentation of words into phonemes and the reassembly of phonemes into words.
• Phonology (Spelling) (5) - spelling variants are trained from a phonological aspect and common spelling rules are introduced.
• Words (1) - ‘Write the word’ offers a great variety of word lists and settings.
• Words (2) - letter sequencing with help of phonological analysis at word level.
• Words (3) - see words or phrases for a limited time and match them to a source word, picture or sound.
• Concepts - although decoding may still be difficult, training should also focus on comprehension. Comprehension tasks are available in several exercises.
• Syllables (1) - more exercises follow, now looking at syllables.
• Syllables (2) - assemble syllables (also using their sound).
• Sentences and texts - exercises in grammar, syntax, and comprehension.

Windows System Requirements: Lexion is compatible with Windows® OS 98/ME, 2000, XP and Vista (from mid-2008). Earlier versions can be upgraded to Windows®Vista® compatibility by a free download.
Note: There is no Macintosh version available.

Download Resources:

1. The latest Lexion update (March, 2010) is available to download (.exe, 14.4MB)
1. Read about the very latest improvements here
2. For the Additions to the printed manual click here
3. A comprehensive description of the new Beginning to Read profile sequences is available as a printer-friendly ^PDF by clicking here.
4. A summary folder of both the assessment process and some following key exercises is available as a printer friendly ^PDF by clicking here.
5. This download fixes Windows Vista incompatibility (when you have installed an old Lexion or Mini-Lexion CD in Windows Vista and the program will not start).