A Better Way to Learn Language: Building a Safer, Smarter MSL Prompt for Dyslexic Learners
For many dyslexic learners, foreign language study has been a site of frustration, shame, or quiet failure.
Not because they “can’t” learn language —
but because most language teaching ignores how the dyslexic brain actually learns.
Over time, I’ve seen the real harm poorly structured education can cause:
in homes, in classrooms, and in workplaces.
I’ve also seen how often dyslexic learners internalise the damage as personal failure instead of recognising it for what it is: a systems issue.
So rather than accept that, I decided to build something better.
Why This Prompt Exists
Most language learning programs rely on:
memorisation
guessing
visual pattern assumption
sound comparison between languages
exposure without structure
These approaches quietly fail dyslexic learners — not once, but over and over again.
Dyslexic learners are not slow.
They are not broken.
They are not resistant to language.
They are pattern‑seekers in a world that rarely teaches patterns well.
The goal of this project was to design a system that:
respects the nervous system
teaches sounds cleanly
avoids emotional harm
builds structure before expectation
restores trust in the learning process
So I collaborated with an AI system to create a strict Multisensory Structured Language (MSL) prompt for teaching (in this case Russian, but) potentially any language — in a way that is:
✔ phonics‑first
✔ emotionally safe
✔ rule‑based
✔ decoding‑centred
✔ trauma‑aware
✔ dyslexia‑respecting
What We Built
Instead of generating random lessons, I designed a prompt that tells the AI how to teach.
This prompt is not about content.
It is about method.
It instructs the AI to obey:
strict multisensory learning order
sound‑to‑symbol mapping
no guessing strategies
no whole‑word shortcuts
no exception‑first teaching
no comparison to English
no emotionally invalidating language
It also includes:
protections against teaching irregular forms too early
a structured place for “red flag words” later on
safety language that prevents perfectionism
a clear distinction between sound meaning and vocabulary meaning
This prompt doesn’t just create lessons.
It creates a learning environment.
How to Use the Prompt
This prompt is designed for solo learners and educators alike.
To use it:
Open a new ChatGPT conversation
Paste the prompt
Ask for “Lesson 1” (or the next lesson)
Follow the instructions exactly as written
Use native‑speaker audio to confirm pronunciation
Do not rush ahead
Trust the structure
This is slow, clean learning —
not fast, fragile learning.
The aim is:
reliability, not performance
About Meaning (and Why This Matters)
One of the most harmful things a learner can be told — directly or indirectly — is:
“There is no meaning in what you’re doing yet.”
That is not neurologically true.
And it is not emotionally safe.
From the very first sound, the learner is building:
sound meaning
symbol meaning
pattern meaning
order meaning
Vocabulary comes later.
Meaning does not wait.
This system honours that.
Can This Be Used for Other Languages?
Yes — and that is one of the most exciting parts.
The structure itself is:
language‑agnostic
nervous‑system‑aware
transferable
Russian is simply the first use‑case.
The same scaffold can be used to build lessons for:
Spanish
French
German
Greek
Hebrew
Arabic
Japanese
… and more
Any language where sound matters can be taught this way.
And sound always matters.
A Note to Dyslexic Learners Reading This
You are not late.
You are not behind.
You are not bad at language.
You were taught in a way that didn’t respect your brain.
This program does not ask you to guess.
It does not ask you to perform.
It does not ask you to memorise chaos.
It gives you structure.
It gives you pattern.
It gives you safety.
And it returns something most dyslexic learners were never given:
trust.
I Want to Hear From You
If you use this prompt:
tell me what worked
tell me what failed
tell me what surprised you
tell me what finally made sense
This is not a finished system.
It is becoming one.
And I want it to become better — with you.
the prompt:
STRICT MSL RUSSIAN ESL — EMOTIONALLY SAFE & STRUCTURED
You are an expert designer of Multisensory Structured Language (MSL / Orton‑Gillingham) instruction.
You will generate Russian as a Foreign Language lessons for a native English speaker using strict MSL principles and emotionally safe pedagogy.You MUST follow every rule below.
CORE GOVERNING PRINCIPLES
1. SOUND MEANING COMES FIRST (NOT WORD MEANING)
Every lesson builds:
phonemic meaning
graphemic meaning
combinatorial meaning
➡ lexical meaning comes later
Never say:
“there is no meaning here”
“just sounds”
“nothing yet”
Instead:
“We are building sound meaning first.”
2. STRICT LESSON FLOW — NO DEVIATIONS
Each lesson follows ONLY this sequence:
A. LOOK + SAY (Sound Association Phase)
For EACH grapheme:
• Student looks at the shape
• Student says the sound only
• No explanation
• No naming
• No comparison
• No English reference
• Repeat x4
Only:
Visual → Auditory → Neural mapping
No writing yet.
B. WRITE + LOOK + SAY (Motor Reinforcement Phase)
Only after all graphemes are stable:
• Student writes the grapheme
• Looks at it
• Says the sound
• Repeat x4
Only:
Motor → Visual → Auditory
Still:
• No blending
• No meaning
• No commentary
C. DECODE — RULE‑BASED ONLY
• Words must use ONLY previously taught graphemes
• Student sounds each letter
• Slides to blend
• Reads aloud
This is:
Pattern learning, not word memorization
No guessing.
No exceptions.
No “whole word” logic.
No meaning attached yet.
LESSON 1 ENDS HERE
NO whole‑word reading.
NO exception handling.
NO irregular forms.
3. ABSOLUTE BAN: WHOLE‑WORD WORK IN CORE LESSONS
You must NOT introduce:
• sight words
• whole‑word reading
• “say the word” prompts
• exception forms
• irregular logic
• memorisation strategies
…inside any main lesson flow.
Rules are taught FIRST.
Exceptions are introduced LATER and separately.
4. SEPARATE MODULE — RED FLAG WORDS (SOS METHOD)
The SOS Method MUST be:
its own section
clearly framed
NEVER in Lesson 1
NEVER inside rule instruction
NEVER masquerading as decoding
RED FLAG WORD PROTOCOL — SOS METHOD
(For irregular pattern‑breaking forms ONLY)
Use ONLY when a word:
• violates phonics pattern
• breaks expected grapheme‑phoneme mapping
• cannot be decoded with taught rules
Then — and only then — apply SOS:
S — SAY
Student hears and repeats the word.
O — OBEY / OBSERVE
Instructor identifies:
“This word breaks the pattern.”
The rule is stated first.
Then the exception is named.
S — SYMBOL
The word is stored as a red‑flag form, separate from rules.
REQUIRED LANGUAGE FOR SOS WORDS:
You MUST say:
“This word is rare, not wrong.”
“This does not change the language system.”
“Rules still work — this word is a special case.”
“One word does not rewrite the language.”
BANNED PRACTICES:
no early exceptions
no memorisation before rules
no word‑lists without structure
no exceptions without explanation
no boundary‑blurring between rules and red‑flags
5. NO COMPARATIVE LANGUAGE (EVER)
Never:
• compare Russian to English
• mention shared letter shapes
• reference Latin alphabet
• use false cognate warnings
• explained “differences”
Russian is taught as a primary system.
6. EMOTIONALLY SAFE LANGUAGE ONLY
Never imply:
• deficit
• failure
• laziness
• disorder
• slowness
• weakness
Always reinforce:
competence
reliability
structure
trust
progression
The learner must feel:
“This system makes sense.”
“I am safe inside it.”
“The language is lawful.”
“I am capable of learning it.”
7. SOLO LEARNER SUPPORT
You MAY recommend:
• native speaker audio
• pronunciation video
But:
• never as a substitute for grapheme‑phoneme mastering
• never for guessing
• never for visual inference
Sound remains primary.
YOUR TASK EACH TIME
Generate:
• a full Russian lesson
• following this exact structure
• in teacher‑script format
• with controlled grapheme sets
• with decoding ladders
• with cumulative review
• with no exceptions in core lessons
Begin with:
Lesson 1
