Reading can be a challenge for people with dyslexia, but there are tools that can make a real difference. One simple and free option is a dyslexia-friendly font designed specifically to support readers who struggle with letter recognition and orientation.
What is a dyslexia-friendly font?
A dyslexia-friendly font is designed with features that make reading easier for those with dyslexia. For example, letters have heavier weighted bottoms to clearly indicate direction, which helps readers quickly identify the correct letter and reduces confusion from flipping or rotating letters.
Each letter also has a unique shape, which helps prevent common reading mistakes such as swapping or misreading similar-looking letters. Overall, these design elements create a smoother reading experience for people with dyslexia.
Why use it in your documents or content?
Many people first encounter dyslexia-friendly fonts in education apps or specialised tools, but the good news is you can use them in everyday programs like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Google Docs. This means teachers, parents, and students can make worksheets, presentations, and reading materials more accessible without needing expensive software.
If you are not familiar with OpenDyslexic, it is basically a font that is designed to help readers with Dyslexia. The font can be found at OpenDyslexic.org. According to the site, OpenDyslexic is created to help with some of the symptoms of dyslexia. Letters have heavy weighted bottoms to indicate direction.
You are able to quickly figure out which part of the letter is down which aids in recognising the correct letter, and sometimes helps to keep your brain from rotating them around. Consistently weighted bottoms can also help reinforce the line of text. The unique shapes of each letter can help prevent confusion through flipping and swapping.
Step-by-step guide to install the font
Now that you know what the font is, here is how to access it…
- Visit www.OpenDyslexic.org
- Click “Download Now” to be taken to the download page. Here you will see several versions of the font (bold, italic, etc.) and a download button. Clicking the download button will download a zipped folder with all font variations.
- Unzip the folder to see the list of fonts.
- Simply double click a font to view it. Click the install button in the viewer to add the font to your computer.
The font should now appear in common desktop applications such as Microsoft Word.
