If you are familiar with these problems, then you may be the parent of a child with dyslexia. Although it is an incurable, lifelong condition, there are ways to help children with dyslexia learn to overcome the challenges associated with dyslexia and live highly successful lives.
Steps
Part 1
What is dyslexia and why is it important to diagnose it?- Parent: “All the words in this list rhyme with “here.” Say 'here'." Child: “Here.” Parent: “The first word on this list is “mouth”; "mouth" rhymes with "here". Say "here, mouth." Child: “Here, the mouth.” Parent (moving finger to touch each word): “What word is next? Here, the mouth..." (concerns the drawn cat). Child: "Cat." Parent: “No, it should rhyme: here, mouth, k...”. Child: “Cat.” Parent (annoyed): “You have to concentrate! Here, mouth, CAT. Say: "k-o-t." Child: “K-o-t.” Parent: “Now what word will be next? Here, mouth, cat, cr...” Child: “Bed.” Of course, he will never get to the next words - mole, raft, fleet or belly.
-
Learn how a dyslexic child's brain works. Dyslexia is classically associated with a person who “sees” letters and numbers backwards, but what is actually happening is much more serious and has to do with the way the brain works. A child with dyslexia has difficulty with “phonological recoding,” which is the process of separating and combining words by breaking them down into individual sounds and associating those sounds with the letters that represent them. Because of the way their brains translate letters into sounds and back again, children with dyslexia tend to read more slowly (less fluently) and make more mistakes.
- For example, a boy is reading a book and sees the word “house”, but does not recognize it at first glance. He tries to pronounce it, which is essentially the division and translation of letters into sounds (house = d-o-m). At the same time, the girl is writing a story and wants to write the word “home”. She says the word slowly, then tries to translate the sounds into letters (d-o-m=house).
- If these children do not have a reading disability, there is a high likelihood that both will succeed. But if one of them has dyslexia, the translation process - from sounds to letters or from letters to sounds - will not go smoothly, and the "house" may turn into a "mod".
-
Understand that dyslexia is not a problem of intelligence or effort. Unfortunately, many people think that children with dyslexia have difficulty reading because they are not smart enough or don't try hard enough, but scientists have compared brain structures and reported that problems occur equally in children with low and high levels of intelligence .
- Dyslexia is not a sign of low intelligence and is not a result of a child not trying hard. It's just a difference in the way some kids' brains work.
- Parents and teachers need to be extremely patient with children with dyslexia. Impatience, irritation, or demands that are too high compared to the student’s real capabilities can lead to the student stopping doing schoolwork altogether. He already has difficulty processing this information, and the lack of support and encouragement will only make the problem worse.
-
Learn how psychologists diagnose dyslexia. To diagnose psychological disorders, psychologists use the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. This guide describes dyslexia as a neurodevelopmental disorder in which a person has difficulty coding. Such people have difficulty understanding the connection between the spelling of words and their pronunciation. Dyslexics have trouble matching written letters to their sounds (a phonological awareness problem).
Find out who is most susceptible to dyslexia. Recent research shows that dyslexia is a genetic disorder and can be inherited. If any family members have dyslexia, the child's risk of dyslexia increases. If a child has other language-related problems, such as speech delay, the risk of dyslexia also increases. Dyslexia usually begins in early childhood, but can also develop after brain injury.
Understand how important it is to diagnose dyslexia. If left undiagnosed at an early age, dyslexia can have serious consequences. Many dyslexics become juvenile delinquents (85% of America's juvenile delinquents have a reading disorder), drop out of school (a third of all students with dyslexia), are functionally illiterate as adults (10% of Americans), or drop out of college (only 2% of students with dyslexia graduate from college ).
- Fortunately, when dyslexia is detected and diagnosed early, people experience improvement.
Part 2
How to spot signs of dyslexia-
Observe whether the child has difficulties with reading and writing. Pay attention to reading difficulties your child may have at an early age, even if caregivers or teachers say there is nothing to worry about. You may notice that your child has more difficulty learning to read than his peers. Dyslexia also affects motor coordination and the ability to write legibly. Poor handwriting may be a sign of dyslexia. Because learning is based on reading and writing, a child may have problems with many or even all subjects.
Monitor changes in your child's behavior. Difficulties with reading may cause a child to become restless and irritable. If a child misbehaves in class, teachers may assume that the failure is due to indiscipline, rather than recognizing that a learning disorder is at the root of all problems. This confusion makes it difficult to identify and treat the cause of dyslexia, which can make the problem worse.
Pay attention to the child's self-esteem and emotional state. You may notice that your child hates school, thinks he is stupid, or calls himself stupid. His classmates may do the same thing, which leads to communication problems. Your child may hate going to school due to pressure and anxiety about falling behind in their studies. Anxiety ranks first among the emotions experienced by dyslexic children.
Consider disorders that have similar symptoms. Dyslexia can be difficult to diagnose because it shares characteristics with other disorders. Children with dyslexia react more slowly, have difficulty concentrating quickly, and may have difficulty organizing themselves and managing their space. This occurs in children with the following disorders:
Realize your child's uniqueness. Dyslexia in one child looks completely different than dyslexia in another. The disorder manifests itself in various forms and degrees of influence. This disorder is purely individual, thereby making diagnosis difficult. You may notice that your child has difficulty understanding when others talk to him. Or he may have trouble forming and expressing his thoughts and ideas.
Part 3
What to do if you think your child has dyslexia- You can contact a school or kindergarten psychologist or a clinic at your place of residence.
Complete the online assessment using the questionnaire. There are several free online questionnaires available to screen for dyslexia. Have your child take tests so you can see if dyslexia is truly at the root of his reading difficulties.
Contact a specialist. If it seems likely that the child has dyslexia, show the results to a psychologist who can guide you in making a professional diagnosis.
-
See a psychiatrist. These professionals can help manage the anger, anxiety, depression and behavior problems that dyslexics often experience due to irritability. They are also an invaluable support for parents concerned about the needs of a dyslexic child.
- Find a mental health professional in the directory by talking to your child's pediatrician or psychologist. Ask around on local online forums for parents who have children with special needs: they often know good specialists.
-
Find out what educational options are available for your child. Because dyslexia is caused by the way the brain processes information, it cannot be changed or “cured.” But there are ways that dyslexic children can be taught phonics so that their brains understand the basics of how sounds and letters relate to each other. This allows them to learn to read more successfully.
-
Understand the importance of the emotional component. When your child's teacher is aware that he or she has dyslexia, they can change their approach to suit your child's emotional needs. For example, the child will not be put in the difficult position of having to read difficult texts out loud, which can cause enormous stress and anxiety. Accordingly, his classmates will not tease him.
- Instead, the teacher should actively look for ways to highlight the child's strengths. This way, your child can experience what success is like and receive praise from their peers, thereby increasing their own positive self-esteem.
Observe a child who is having difficulty completing reading assignments. For example, some parents realized their son was having trouble reading when he couldn't complete a small kindergarten homework assignment: read rhyming words to his parents. Following the directions given by the teacher, here is how the exercise went:
- Do not try to identify dyslexia without the participation of a pediatrician. Many conditions can contribute to developmental problems, and some can mean serious health problems.
Sources
- http://www.thelearningsolutionswf.com/misconceptions.aspx
- http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/dyslexia.htm
- http://www.nih.gov/news/health/nov2011/nichd-03.htm
- http://dyslexia.yale.edu/EDU_signs.html
- Characteristics of Dyslexia in Children (Natalie Hill) @ http://www.learning-inside-out.com/dyslexia-in-children.html
- Signs of Dyslexia (Dr. Sally E. Shaywitz in Overcoming Dyslexia), reprinted by The Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity @ http://dyslexia.yale.edu/EDU_signs.html
- Dyslexia and Reading Problems (Kyla Boyce, RN) at http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/dyslexia.htm
- Signs of Dyslexia (Dr. Sally E. Shaywitz in Overcoming Dyslexia), reprinted by The Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity @ http://dyslexia.yale.edu/EDU_signs.html
- Dyslexia and Reading Problems (Kyla Boyce, RN) at http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/dyslexia.htm
- Common Misconceptions About Dyslexia Q & A at http://www.thelearningsolutionswf.com/misconceptions.aspx
- Dyslexia and Reading Problems (Kyla Boyce, RN) at http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/dyslexia.htm
- Common Misconceptions About Dyslexia Q & A at http://www.thelearningsolutionswf.com/misconceptions.aspx
- Famous People With The Gift of Dyslexia at http://www.dyslexia.com/famous.htm
- Dyslexia and Reading Problems (Kyla Boyce, RN) at http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/dyslexia.htm
- Dyslexia and Reading Problems (Kyla Boyce, RN) at http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/dyslexia.htm
- Common Misconceptions About Dyslexia Q & A at http://www.thelearningsolutionswf.com/misconceptions.aspx
- NIH-Funded Study Finds Dyslexia Not Tied To IQ (National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services) at http://www.nih.gov/news/health/nov2011/nichd-03.htm
- Annual Research Review: The Nature and Classification of Reading Disorders—A Commentary on Proposals for DSM-5 (Margaret J Snowling & Charles Hulme) in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 53(5), May 2012, pp. 593-607.
- NIH-Funded Study Finds Dyslexia Not Tied To IQ (National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services) at http://www.nih.gov/news/health/nov2011/nichd-03.htm
- A New Self-Report Inventory of Dyslexia For Students: Criterion and Construct Validity (P. Tamboer, H.S. Vorst) in Dyslexia 21(1), February 2015, pp. 1-34.
- Annual Research Review: The Nature and Classification of Reading Disorders—A Commentary on Proposals for DSM-5 (Margaret J Snowling & Charles Hulme) in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 53(5), May 2012, pp. 593-607.
- http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/dyslexia/dyslexia.htm
- NINDS Information Page (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) at http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/dyslexia/dyslexia.htm
- Annual Research Review: The Nature and Classification of Reading Disorders—A Commentary on Proposals for DSM-5 (Margaret J Snowling & Charles Hulme) in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 53(5), May 2012, pp. 593-607.
- Annual Research Review: The Nature and Classification of Reading Disorders—A Commentary on Proposals for DSM-5 (Margaret J Snowling & Charles Hulme) in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 53(5), May 2012, pp. 593-607.
- NIH-Funded Study Finds Dyslexia Not Tied To IQ (National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services) at http://www.nih.gov/news/health/nov2011/nichd-03.htm
- Dyslexia: Its Impact of the Individual, Parents and Society (Lamk Al-Lamki) in Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal 12(3), August 2012, pp. 269-272.
- Common Misconceptions About Dyslexia Q & A at http://www.thelearningsolutionswf.com/misconceptions.aspx
- Common Misconceptions About Dyslexia Q & A at http://www.thelearningsolutionswf.com/misconceptions.aspx
- Dyslexia: Its Impact of the Individual, Parents and Society (Lamk Al-Lamki) in Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal 12(3), August 2012, pp. 269-272.
- Dyslexia: Its Impact of the Individual, Parents and Society (Lamk Al-Lamki) in Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal 12(3), August 2012, pp. 269-272.
- Signs of Dyslexia (Dr. Sally E. Shaywitz in Overcoming Dyslexia), reprinted by The Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity @
Hello, I have been working as a speech therapist for 10 years. And I preventively check all children who graduate from the NPZ group for a predisposition to dyslexia using the “method for early detection of dyslexia (EMD)” developed by A.N. Kornev (see Kornev A.N. Reading and writing disorders in children. St. Petersburg, 1997)
I offer everyone the methodology and rules for assessing the completion of tasks
“Series speaking” Instructions: “List in order the seasons and (after answering this question) the days of the week.” Help in the form of leading questions or a hint that does not contain an ordinal listing is allowed.
Scores: answered both questions correctly - 0 points, answered one question correctly - 2 points, did not answer any question - 3 points.
Note: A critical factor in dyslexia is the difficulty of finding a starting point in spatial and temporal sequence.
“Rhythms” Instructions: “Listen to me knock, and after I finish, knock in the same way.” After this, a series of strikes is made once on the table (with a pencil or stick) at long and short intervals:
- Simple rhythms - !! !, ! !!, !! ! !, ! ! !!, ! !!!, if the task is completed correctly, then move on to a more complex one, if more than one mistake is made, then stop;
- Complex rhythms - !!! ! !, ! !! !!, ! !!! !, !! !!! !. The performance criteria are the same as in simple rhythms.
Scores: both tasks completed - 0 points, only simple rhythms completed - 2 points, not a single task completed - 3 points.
Note. Children with dyslexia perform this task with a large number of errors. In adults, this test diagnoses damage to the premotor and temporal structures of the right hemisphere.
Test “Fist - edge - palm” Instructions: “Look carefully at what I’m going to do and repeat in exactly the same way.” The experimenter demonstrates to the child three times in a row a sequence of three hand movements: hit the table with the fist, place the palm on the edge, clap the palm on the table. The child, like the experimenter, must reproduce this sequence three times without errors. If a child violates the sequence of movements more than once, it is necessary to indicate that a mistake was made and give him one more try (if the child reproduced a sequence of three movements only once and after stimulation continued it correctly, then this is not considered an error). If the reproduction is obviously erroneous, the sample demonstration is repeated. A maximum of 5 demonstrations are allowed.
Scores: correct reproduction in one or two attempts after the 1st demonstration – 0 points; correct reproduction after the 2nd demonstration or after three demonstrations on the 1st attempt – 2 points; correct reproduction after the 4th and 5th demonstrations or after three demonstrations from the 2nd or more attempts - 3 points.
Note. This test is sensitive not only to damage to motor systems (mainly their premotor parts), but also to modally nonspecific deficits of successive functions. In the first case, switching from one movement to another in an automated mode often suffers: the child takes long pauses between movements. In the second case, children confuse the sequence of movements or miss some of them. Presumably, difficulties in this task can be associated with left hemisphere insufficiency.
Subtest “Repetition of numbers”. Instructions: “Now I’ll tell you a few numbers, and you, as soon as you finish speaking, repeat them in exactly the same order. Attention!" After this, the experimenter, in an even voice, without changing intonation on the last digit, in the rhythm of the start time countdown, calls a series of three digits (see digital series). In case of incorrect reproduction, another row of three digits is presented. If played correctly, they move on to a row of 4 digits and so on up to a row of 5 digits. The experimenter records the number of digits in the largest correctly reproduced row. This is a preliminary assessment for the first half of the assignment. After this, a new instruction is given: “Now I will tell you a few more numbers, and you will repeat them, but just start from the end, repeat them in reverse order. For example: if I say 1-2, then you must say 2-1.” For clarity, you need to alternately touch two imaginary points on the table with your finger: first from left to right, then from right to left. The tactics for examining and recording the results are the same as in the first half of the task: first we offer a series of two numbers, then three, etc. The final result of completing the entire task is the sum of preliminary marks for the first and second half of the task
Digital series
Direct counting
№3 3-8-6 6-1-2
№4 3-4-1-7 6-1-5-8
№5 8-4-2-3-9 5-2-1-8-6
Countdown
№2 2-5 6-3
№3 5-7-4 2-5-9
№4 7-2-9-6 8-4-9-3
Scores: final result more than 6 - 0 points; the final result is 6 - 2 points; the final result is less than 6 - 3 points.
When examining children 6.5 - 7.5 years old without severe speech pathology, the following three scores are summed up: for “Series Speaking”, “Repetition of Numbers” and for the “Fist - Rib - Palm” or “Rhythms” test (from these two, the task for which received a high rating). A score greater than 5 indicates a predisposition to dyslexia.
Primary school is the next important stage in the life of a little person. The first ruler and flowers for the teacher, new desk neighbors and, of course, academic disciplines. Alas, news from teachers is not always happy. There is no need to immediately grab your belt and accuse yesterday’s kindergartener of all mortal sins. Perhaps the disappointing results are evidence of dyslexia. Let's figure out what it is.
What's happened
Dyslexia is a brain disorder that makes it difficult to learn reading.
Foreign experts believe that the classification of dyslexia includes:
- – difficulty learning to write
- Dyscalculia – inability to learn to count
- Dysorthography - illiteracy
- Dyspraxia, or poor coordination of movements.
Russian doctors differentiate this list of diseases, considering each separately.
Kinds
The varied symptoms of dyslexia allow us to distinguish the following types of dyslexia:
- Agrammatic dyslexia - confusion in genders, cases and numbers (“delicious candy”).
- Phonemic - syllables and paired consonants are swapped (v-f, b-p).
- Semantic dyslexia is a lack of reading comprehension. A simple analogy is a text spoken by a computer program that is unable to grasp the meaning.
- Optical dyslexia – letters with similar spellings (r – ь, sh-shch) are confused.
Mnestic dyslexia - the relationship between a letter and the corresponding sound cannot be understood in the head. - Such forms of dyslexia are much more common than tactile dyslexia - the inability of blind children to understand the dotted letters in Braille.
Causes
The prerequisites for the onset of the disease are always associated with neurobiological factors - the incorrect functioning of neurons between the cerebral hemispheres. There are different possible etiologies for dyslexia.
Before conception:
- Mutation
- Genetic predisposition - the presence of similar difficulties in close relatives increases the chance of developing pathology in the fetus.
In the womb:
- Intoxication (alcohol, smoking, drugs, chemicals)
- Hypoxia
- Viruses (jaundice, herpes, influenza)
- Placental abruption
At the moment of birth:
- Weak or absent contractions
- Stagnation in the birth canal
- Drug induction of labor
- Kristeller's maneuver, or squeezing out the newborn by applying pressure to the mother's abdomen
- Umbilical cord entanglement
Causes of dyslexia after it:
- Hidden left-handedness, or right-hemisphere brain activity
- Developmental delay
- Viral infections (measles, chickenpox, polio, measles rubella)
Signs
Since the mechanisms of dyslexia are extremely diverse, it is necessary to carry out full testing for an unambiguous diagnosis. There are “bells and whistles” - signs the presence of which requires speech therapy consultation.
Symptoms of dyslexia that you can pay attention to at home:
- Disorganization
- When reading, the child seems to be trying to guess rather than decipher the text
- Bad handwriting
- Emotionality, impulsiveness, irritability
- Uncoordinated movements.
Early diagnosis of dyslexia is carried out by a speech therapist.
The person administering the dyslexia test uses the following set of tasks:
- The child is asked to repeat a simple rhythm, which he must repeat without errors. As you perform, the rhythmic sequences become more complex.
- List the seasons and days of the week in order.
- They take turns showing three different gestures (slam your hand on the table, turn it with an edge, or clench it into a fist), and the little one copies the manipulations performed.
- Repeat number, letter and concept chains.
- Reproduce articulatory movements (rotating the tongue, curling into a tube, smiling).
- Duplicate complex terms spoken by an adult (example: thermometer, accreditation, emergency room).
- Repeat sentences as close as possible to the semantics of the source text.
- Form plural forms for a given word in the singular, adjectives from nouns.
Dyslexia in younger schoolchildren is noticeable in their academic performance.
In the absence of treatment, character traits such as:
- Absent-mindedness
- Excessive daydreaming
- Complexes due to feeling “stupid”, “different from peers”
- Anxiety, isolation
- Frequent mood swings
- Slow assimilation of knowledge.
Consequently:
- Bad marks
- Dislike of studying
- Sometimes bad habits are formed that suppress stress (biting nails, picking skin, twirling objects in your hands)
- Lack of perseverance
- Difficulties in communication.
Treatment and correction
Optimal treatment for dyslexia in children in preschoolers or younger schoolchildren. The correction is aimed at forming:
- Skills in semantic analysis of information
- Spatial thinking
- Visual and auditory memory
- Lexico-grammatical language norms
- Pronunciation correction
Exercises
- Making up stories based on a group of pictures.
- Memorizing poetry (expands vocabulary and activates memory).
- Retelling your favorite book passages.
- Magnetic alphabet games.
- Composing letters and syllables from sticks, pencils, cubes, and threads of colored yarn.
- Tongue twisters and articulation exercises.
- Letter stencils.
- Drawing words with your fingers on the child’s body and then asking them to decipher what they drew.
I.N. Sadovnikova offers children the following technology to overcome dysgraphia and dyslexia:
- Correct sentences with errors in certain parts.
- Insert missing letters.
- Count syllables, vowels and consonants.
- Name objects starting with a given letter.
- Conduct sound-letter analysis.
- Feel the alphabet made of cardboard, associate the letters with familiar objects.
- Use copybooks and ABC books with bright pictures.
Prevention
The etiology of dyslexia is very extensive. In order to minimize risks, a pregnant woman should be careful about her health, strictly follow the instructions of the medical staff of the maternity hospital and avoid contact with patients before and after the birth of a small miracle. Such measures are the best prevention of dyslexia.
One hundred percent prevention of dyslexia is impossible. However, there are ways to minimize risks.
Future prospects
Most parents, even when identifying the first symptoms of dyslexia, panic: what kind of work and serious career growth can we talk about with such a diagnosis! Believe me, everything is not so terrible.
Dyslexia is often called "disease of geniuses". Famous personalities earn huge sums of money despite this violation.
Vin Diesel, the brutal star of The Fast and the Furious, was able to build a successful acting career while being dyslexic.
Keanu Reeves, without having a secondary education, made billions of people think about the artificiality of our world by playing in The Matrix.
The list also includes Daniel Radcliffe, who earned millions even before he came of age.
“The disease of geniuses” sometimes becomes a difficult test both for the owner himself and for his relatives. Do not despair and do not worry about the fate of your treasure: being different from others is not fatal. Dyslexia, with due attention from parents, does not prevent children from having a great life.
Dyslexia is a developmental disorder that manifests itself as a child's inability to learn to read and write. Early identification of this disorder can help children reach their full potential. Dyslexia is a chronic neurological disorder characterized by a child's learning disability. Children with dyslexia have great difficulty learning to read and write, despite having a normal or even high level of intelligence.
2 97403
Photo gallery: Methods for early detection of dyslexia
Dyslexia affects an individual's ability to recognize words (and sometimes numbers) in written form. People with this condition have difficulty identifying and arranging speech sounds (phonemes), as well as whole words in the correct order when reading or writing. You will learn which treatment to choose for this disease in the article on the topic “Methods for early detection of dyslexia.”
Possible reasons
There is no consensus regarding the nature of dyslexia. Most experts believe that the condition develops due to specific brain abnormalities, the causes of which are unknown. It is assumed that there is a disruption in the interaction between the right and left hemispheres of the brain, and dyslexia is also believed to be a left hemisphere problem. The consequence is dysfunction of areas of the brain associated with speech understanding (Wernicke's area) and speech production (Broca's area). There has been a tendency towards hereditary transmission of the disease and a clear genetic connection - dyslexia is often observed in members of the same family. Dyslexia is a multifaceted problem. Although all dyslexics have difficulty acquiring reading and writing skills (which is usually unrelated to their overall intellectual level), many may also have other difficulties. Characteristic features are:
- difficulties with the arrangement of sounds in a word;
- inability to remember the names of letters, numbers and colors;
- inability to distinguish sounds or rhyming words;
- confusion of letters and words with a similar structure: for example, “i” is confused with “n”, “s” becomes “o”, and “sh” - “sch”.
- clumsiness and lack of coordination;
- inability to distinguish between “left” and “right”;
- decreased attention and concentration;
- emotional lability;
- disorganization;
- inability to plan, lack of understanding of the concepts of “tomorrow”, “today” and “yesterday”;
- problems in mastering basic mathematical knowledge.
Although dyslexia is born with dyslexia, difficulties arise from the beginning of education, when affected children first encounter written language - it is at this time that the problem is identified. However, the disorder can be suspected earlier - in preschool age, with delayed speech development, especially in families where there were cases of this disease.
Learning disability
Starting school for children with dyslexia brings with it incredible challenges; they may try very hard and spend more time studying than their peers, but in vain. Untreated dyslexics lack essential skills; Even realizing that they are performing the task incorrectly, they are not able to correct the mistakes. Children become frustrated, bored and have difficulty concentrating. They may avoid doing homework because they are confident that they will not be able to do it correctly. Failure at school often undermines self-confidence, which can lead to further isolation for these children. Angry, frustrated and misunderstood, the child begins to misbehave both at school and at home. If dyslexia is not recognized early, the condition can have a devastating impact not only on school performance, but also on other areas of life. Parents, teachers and other people around the child often fail to identify the problem and fall into the trap of “myths about dyslexia.” There are several common myths, or misconceptions, about dyslexia:
- dyslexics are “stupid” - children with any level of intelligence can suffer from the disease;
- dyslexics are "lazy", they make "stupid mistakes", they are "sloppy" or "don't try hard enough" - processing information is extremely difficult for dyslexics;
- dyslexics lack talent;
- dyslexics are indifferent;
- Dyslexics are doomed to dead-end jobs - if the problem is identified and effective treatment is given, there is no barrier to choosing any profession from a wide range of options.
Cultivating such myths only delays early diagnosis of the disease, which only aggravates the situation. Since the nature of dyslexia is very diverse, the incidence of this disease is not reliably known. In European countries, the prevalence of dyslexia is thought to be around 5%. Boys are more likely to have dyslexia than girls by a ratio of three to one. A diagnosis of dyslexia can be made after a series of tests. Early detection of the condition, as well as the implementation of special educational programs, can help the overall development of affected children. Slow development of a child, even in the case of targeted efforts to eliminate the gap in any area, requires an examination for dyslexia (or other types of learning difficulties). This assessment is especially important if an intelligent child is making good progress in speaking.
Survey
Any diligent child who has difficulty reading, writing, or doing arithmetic, or who is unable to follow instructions or remember what is said, should be evaluated. Dyslexia is associated not only with problems in singing, so the child should be examined not only from these positions, but also from the point of view of his speech skills, level of intelligence and physical development (hearing, vision and psychomotor skills).
Tests to detect dyslexia
Physical tests are rarely used to diagnose dyslexia, but they can rule out other likely causes of a child's problems, such as undiagnosed epilepsy. Social-emotional or behavioral tests are often used to plan and evaluate the effectiveness of treatment. A reading assessment is designed to identify patterns in a child's errors. The test includes word recognition and analysis; fluency, accuracy and level of word recognition in the proposed text fragment; written comprehension and listening tests. The child’s understanding of the meaning of words and comprehension of the reading process; Diagnosis of dyslexia should also include assessment of reasoning and inference abilities.
Recognition skills are assessed by testing the child's ability to name sounds, divide words into syllables, and combine sounds into meaningful words. Language skills describe a child's ability to understand and use language. An assessment of “intelligence” (tests for cognitive abilities - memory, attention and drawing up inferences) is necessary to make an accurate diagnosis. The examination also includes a consultation with a psychologist, since behavioral problems can complicate the course of dyslexia. Although dyslexia by its nature is a disease, its identification and treatment is rather an educational problem. Parents may have their own suspicions, but identifying children with learning difficulties is easier for teachers. Any child who is not performing well in school should be assessed to determine his or her educational needs. Educational institutions should be guided by a clear, legally established set of recommendations in relation to children with learning difficulties. This will enable schools to take responsibility for the special education of children with learning difficulties. One of the main tasks seems to be the early identification and examination of such children, which should help to unlock their potential.
Special training programs
Parents, educators, teachers and health care managers take part in identifying any diagnostic sign that will require examination of the child. Every school should have a Special Educational Needs Coordinator who conducts school-based assessments of children with learning difficulties. It may also take into account information received from other professionals, including the school psychologist and the local pediatrician or health visitor. The result of the examination is a description of the strengths and weaknesses of the child’s development, which will allow drawing up an individual education plan. For most children, both the examination and the development of an individual plan can be carried out at school, without the need to remove the child from the main class. Few children have special needs that cannot be met through school resources. In such cases, the child’s education is transferred to a specialized institution.
The purpose of diagnosis is not treatment as such, but the development of a specialized training program. The cause of the disease is unknown in most cases, so there is no drug therapy. Children with dyslexia require a flexible approach to learning and implementation of methods such as:
- direct training in sound skills (recognizing sounds and determining their order within words), as well as decoding words and analyzing them;
- assistance with language and literacy skills;
- assistance in organizing and coordinating written language;
- assistance in using different types of communication.
People with dyslexia learn to adapt to their condition to a greater or lesser extent depending on their personality and the support they receive at home and at school. Although dyslexia is a lifelong problem, many dyslexics achieve functional reading skills and sometimes achieve full literacy. With early recognition and the necessary additional training, dyslexics can learn to read and write at the same level as their peers, but these skills will still be difficult for them. Any delay in diagnosis hinders the child’s adequate development and reduces the likelihood of him becoming a full-fledged member of society in the long term. Now you know what a technique for early detection of dyslexia can be.
A person remembers not what is constantly before his eyes, but what flashes. Therefore, in order to master some skills and bring them to automatism, it is necessary to carry out not long exercises, but short ones, but with great frequency. An hour and a half of training will not give any benefit and will even suppress any desire in the child to read. It is much better to do them for 5 minutes several times a day and even before bed.
1. The buzz reading method is very interesting. With buzz reading, you and your child read simultaneously out loud, in a low voice, each at their own speed, for 5 minutes.
2. Reading before bed gives good results. The fact is that the latest events of the day are recorded by emotional memory, and during sleep a person is under their impression. The body gets used to this state. It is not for nothing that 200 years ago it was said: “Student who lives by science, learn the psalter for the coming sleep.”
If a child does not like to read, then a gentle reading regime is necessary: one or two lines are read, then a short rest is arranged. This mode occurs when a child watches filmstrips: he read two lines under the frame, looked at the picture, and rested. Filmstrips should have entertaining content (fairy tales, adventures).
The development of reading technique is hampered by underdeveloped RAM: after reading three or four words, the child already forgets the first and cannot understand the meaning of the sentence. This situation can be corrected with the help of visual dictations developed by Professor I. T. Fedorenko (Kharkov). Each of the 18 sets contains 6 sentences: the first (“The snow is melting”) contains only two words of 8 letters, and the last contains 46 letters. The length of the sentence increases gradually, one to two letters at a time. What is the best way to conduct visual dictations? Write down on a piece of paper for the child either 5 sentences at once, which are opened one at a time, or one is written. A certain time is allotted for reading each sentence, which is indicated after it. Your child reads the sentence silently and tries to remember it. Invite him to close his eyes and imagine how it is written, and repeat it to himself. Then remove the piece of paper with the written sentence. The child writes down the text. Visual dictations should be written daily.
Texts of visual dictations (according to I. T. Fedorenko)
Dictation 1
1. The snow is melting. (8 letters)
2. It's raining. (9
3. The sky is gloomy. (10)
4. Kolya got sick. (eleven)
5. The birds began to sing. (eleven)
(22 dictations on a separate page)
Reading at the pace of a tongue twister is intended for development of the articulatory apparatus, special attention is paid to the clarity of reading the endings of words.
We are constantly working on development of phonemic hearing using pure proverbs, tongue twisters, proverbs, sayings.
An indispensable condition for improving reading technique is constant systematic work on analysis and synthesis of words.
When should you contact a speech therapist?
A child 6-8 years old needs specialist consultation if he:
1) poorly distinguishes and reproduces sounds;
2) has difficulty learning poetry;
3) gets confused in the order of the seasons and days of the week;
4) cannot correctly repeat four digits in forward order, and three in reverse order;
5) cannot correctly repeat a series of strikes on the table (with a pencil) at long and short intervals;
6) is poorly oriented in the concepts of “right - left”;
7) will not learn how to fasten buttons and tie shoelaces;
8) finds it difficult to compose a story based on a series of pictures.
Children at risk for dyslexia also include:
1) left-handed children, latent left-handers and the so-called ambidextrous children, who can use both their right and left hands equally;
2) kinesthetics;
3) children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder;
4) children with delayed development of oral speech.
Attitudes towards dyslexia abroad
Little by little, the position of education and health care in relation to the problem is changing under the influx of new scientific discoveries. In the United States, school teachers are responsible for early identification of children with such problems and special education for them. Despite all the shortcomings of this method, American experts argue that it is far ahead of a similar system in Europe, where there is no appropriate legislative framework to support it. For example, in France, speech therapists provide assistance to children suffering from dyslexia; in Italy, there is no individual approach to the problem of dyslexia as such, but such a child can receive help from a teacher at school. The UK has already issued a number of instructions on teaching children with dyslexic characteristics, but in practice it is being implemented extremely slowly and primarily covers the central regions. Recently, scientists at the University of Helsinki published the results of a study that indicates that the cause of the non-standard structure of the brain of dyslexics may be a mutation in the DYXC1 gene. However, as experience shows, proper training at an early stage of a child’s development can completely rebuild the brain, eliminating the malfunction. With timely training, children suffering from dyslexia will soon catch up or even surpass their peers in their studies. This does not mean at all that those teenagers who did not seek help in time and still cannot read are hopeless. It’s just that other techniques are used for them, which are designed to compensate for phonemic incoherence at the expense of other parts of the brain. There are no miracles here. Children who have congenital differences have to work hard in order to achieve positive results. However, it's worth it. They learn not only to read or write, but also to persistently pursue their goal, and, as you know, persistence is the key to success
Benefits of Dyslexia
It would seem how there can be any talk about advantages if dyslexia itself is, at least insignificant, but still a disorder. However, according to Ronald D. Davis, dyslexia is a unique gift, and it is not given to everyone. The mental function that is the cause of genius is also the cause of all the above problems. Of course, having dyslexia will not make every dyslexic a genius, but to increase his self-esteem, one can notice that the brain of such a child works in the same way as the brain of great geniuses. Not all children with dyslexia develop the same talent, but they all have certain mental abilities.
Basic properties common to all dyslexics:
- they can use the brain's ability to change and create perceptions;
- are highly aware of their surroundings;
- more curious than others;
- think mainly in images rather than words;
- highly developed intuition and insight;
- they think and perceive in a multidimensional view, using all senses;
- have a vivid imagination.
If these abilities are not suppressed or destroyed by the educational process, then they will result in two characteristics: above-average intelligence and highly developed creative abilities. What can then emerge is the true gift of dyslexia - it is a gift of mastery that develops in different ways and in different areas. For example, for Albert Einstein it was physics, for Walt Disney it was the art of cinematography and animation, for Greg Louganis it was sports.
Famous dyslexics:
Alexander Graham Bell
Leonardo da Vinci
Marilyn Monroe
Nelson Rockefeller
Peter the First
Richard Rogers
Stephen J. Cannell
Tom Cruise
William Butler Yeats
Winston Churchill
Walt Disney
Charles Schwab
Cher
Albert Einstein
Bruce Jenner
Whoopi Goldberg
Hans Christian Andersen
Harry Woodrow Wilson
Henry Ford
Greg Louganis
Dustin Hoffman
Jay Leno
Jackie Stewart
George Burns
George Bush
Smith Patton
Dani Glover
Quentin Tarantino
Dyslexia Tests for Adults
You can take a short test to determine dyslexia. The nature of the disorder is determined by the doctor through more detailed testing. The results are quite easy to interpret: if you answer “Yes” to more than five questions, then we can say that you have some form of dyslexia.
TEST
When you check what you have written, do you often notice your own mistakes? (Not really)
- When dialing a phone number, do you often confuse numbers? (Not really)
- Do you have problems with spelling? (Not really)
- Do you confuse dates, times, or miss important meetings? (Not really)
- Is it difficult for you to fill out forms? (Not really)
- Do you find it difficult to accurately convey messages left on the phone to other people? (Not really)
- Do you confuse buses with numbers such as, for example, 95 and 59? (Not really)
- Is it difficult for you to determine which months of the year go faster and which slower? (Not really)
- Did you experience difficulties learning the multiplication tables at school? (Not really)
- Do you take longer to read a page in a book than others? (Not really)
- Do you have difficulty determining where is right and where is left? (Not really)
- When you say a long word, is it difficult for you to pronounce all the sounds in the correct order? (Not really)
In addition to such a test, it is necessary to pass a standard test to determine deviations in auditory, phonological, visual and other functions.
Next, it is determined to test reading abilities, spelling abilities, working memory abilities, comprehension, intelligence, difficulties in determining right-left, visual tracking, medical, genetic factors and others.
School:
Do you feel inferior at school? (Not really)
- Do you feel a lack of self-confidence? (Not really)
- Do you have difficulty studying, are you upset by the results of exams or test tests? (Not really)
- Do you often miss words when reading, do you have to re-read the sentence again? (Not really)
- Is it difficult for you to read aloud? (Not really)
- Is it difficult for you to perform mathematical calculations? (Not really)
- Do you often doubt the correct spelling of a word? (Not really)
- Have you noticed that you are reluctant to go to school, have you ever had unreasonable stomach pains during school? (if there are such cases, please specify at what age this occurred and, if possible, under what circumstances) (Yes / No)
- Do you find any school subjects difficult? If so, which ones? (Not really)
- Do you have difficulty copying text from the board? (Not really)
- Do you often stay the longest when completing a school assignment in class (test, independent)? (Not really)
- Do you feel a state of confusion when performing a task that is difficult for you? (Not really)
- Did you have any changes in the normal learning process (at some points your studies went better, at others - worse)? If yes, at what age and how often? (Not really)
-Have you often felt confused at school? For what reason? (Not really)
- What are your favorite subjects at school?
- What are your least favorite subjects?
- Do you like sports? (Not really)
- Do you like art, drawing? (Not really)
At work and in college:
Are you having difficulty performing your current responsibilities? (Not really)
- Do you have difficulty introducing new methods at work or new programs at college? (Not really)
- Do you have difficulty performing certain duties at work? When performing what duties? Describe. (Not really)
-Have you ever felt confused because you were unable to cope with any task at work/college? (Not really)
Right and left:
Are you good at understanding the concepts of right and left? (Not really)
- Are you left-handed? ((Yes / No / Uncertain (oberuk))
- Are there any left-handers among your relatives? If so, who? (Not really)
- If you play football, which foot do you usually kick the ball with? (Right / Left / Both in turn)
- Take a piece of paper, roll it up like a telescope and look inside. Which eye did you apply the tube to? (Towards left / Towards right)
- Do you often doubt which way a letter or number is written? (Not really)
Medicine:
Do you have any health problems? If there are or were, then which ones? (Not really)
- What was your birth weight? - Do you have vision problems? Which? (Not really)
- Was it that you didn’t hear what people told you? When it was? (Not really)
- Have you ever had an ear infection, have you ever had your ears treated? From what diseases? (Not really)
Used Books:
Lalaeva R. I. "Reading disorders and ways of their correction in primary schoolchildren", "Union" St. Petersburg 1998
Fedorenko I. T. (Kharkov) "Complex of visual dictations"
Rakitina V. A. "Prevention of reading and writing disorders"
Chirkina G. V. "Theory and practice of eliminating dyslexia - the speech therapy aspect of the problem"
Kornev A. N. "Key issues of dyslexia"
Stanislav Milevski "Phonetic-phonological knowledge in speech therapy practice (selected issues)"
Altukhova T. A. "The state of professional competence of speech therapists in secondary schools in the prevention and correction of writing and reading disorders"
Rossiyskaya E. N. "Use of editing reading as a means of self-control of written speech of students with dyslexia"
Rusetskaya M. N. "Experimental study of the cognitive causes of reading impairments"
