Gwyn Singleton

Gwyn Singleton
Born
Gwynifer Begbie

1933
Edinburgh
Died21 September 2021
Aylesbury
EducationJordanhill College Open University
Known forspelling dictionary and pioneering support for children with dyslexia

Gwyn Singleton nee Gwynifer Begbie,(1933–2021) was a Scottish pioneer of educational support for dyslexia. She published a spelling dictionary and associated teaching aids for children with dyslexia, based on an aural coding system,[1] with David Moseley and founded Dyslexia ScotWest support group for families with children with dyslexia.[2]

Life

Born Gwynifer Begbie in Edinburgh 1933, to mother Ena Davis-Jones, a teacher and her father J. Mouland Begbie, the leader of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, she also had a sister Margot.[2]

The family moved to Glasgow where she attended Laurel Bank School and Jordanhill Teacher Training College. Her first job was in Haggs Hill School, Glasgow. In 1959, she married Ronald Singleton and later divorced. She had four children Julia, Hilary, Gregor and Clare. [2]

In the 1980s, she helped to found a group to support families affected by dyslexia in the west of Scotland (Dyslexia ScotWest) and completed a degree in education, at the Open University.[2] She moved to Newcastle, teaching at Nunnykirk specialist school with her new partner David Moseley,[3] and together they published a spelling dictionary, designed for dyslexic children and created associated freely available worksheets,[4] which were commended by the Dyslexia Association. This became a recommended resource for use in Scottish education authorities, with Stirling Council including it in its "advice and good practice in supporting dyslexia".[5]

Singleton retired, and later died aged 87, in Aylesbury, on 21 September 2021.[6]

References

  1. ^ Moseley, David (1993). ACE spelling activities : photocopy masters for use with the ACE spelling dictionary. Gwyn Singleton, Learning Development Aids. Wisbech: Learning Development Aids. ISBN 1-85503-166-3. OCLC 29389231.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  2. ^ a b c d Singleton, Clare (31 October 2021). "Gwyn Singleton - an obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  3. ^ Moseley, David (1995). ACE spelling dictionary. Learning Development Aids (7th ed.). Wisbech: LDA. ISBN 1-85503-214-7. OCLC 33971165.
  4. ^ Moseley, David; Singleton, Gwyn (2016). ACE spelling activities (2nd ed.). Cambridge. ISBN 978-1-85503-594-2. OCLC 1043225057.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. ^ Stirling Council Education - Policy and procedures for assessing, identifying and meeting the needs of children and young people with dyslexia (PDF). Stirling Council. pp. Annex M.
  6. ^ "Gwynifer (nee Begbie) Singleton". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 2023-01-27.