Promoting Letter-Naming and Initial-Phoneme Detection Abilities Among Preschoolers at Risk for Specific Learning Disorder Using Technological Intervention With Two Types of Mats: With and Without Target Letter Forms

This study tested the potential of a technological intervention procedure for promoting letter-naming and initial-phoneme detection skills among preschoolers at risk for Specific Learning Disorder. The study rational is based on evidence for paired associated learning of visual-verbal stimuli, integrated with the use of a tangible technological device (educational floor robot) as means for promoting letter knowledge. Two intervention groups (N = 60) participated. The intervention lasted for eight sessions of phonological training; each dedicated to one target letter. Participants were asked to navigate the robot’s path from a current stopping point to the next according to phonological information processing. Both groups went through the same procedure, but using a different type of mat (one with and one without a visual form of the letter). A control group (N = 30) of at-risk preschoolers received no intervention except for their preschool educational routine. We found that children who participated in phonological training with linkage to the visual form of the letter scored higher in post-intervention tests. Among other proposed explanations, we mention the advantages of using a tangible robot and seemingly three-dimensional letters, along with the tendency to consider visual features while processing language stimulus among children with dyslexia.