Seemingly bright children sometimes have problems reading and writing. To some kids, letters or words often appear backward, they have difficulty writing or sounds they hear seem garbled. This learning disability is known as dyslexia. This disorder is neurologically based and, according to the International Dyslexia Association, these weaknesses can affect as much as 15 to 20 percent of children.
Assumptions about Dyslexia
The International Dyslexia Association operates these under assumptions that dyslexia can exist in otherwise talented individuals, but may exist alongside other learning disabilities; recognition of the problem is incumbent on the teachers as well as the special education department; and early intervention makes the best prognosis more likely. They recommend special training for teachers dealing to recognize signs of and ways to handle dyslexia.
Visual Dyslexia
This type of dyslexia causes printed word recognition to be slow or inaccurate. A subcategory of the visual dyslexia is orthographic dyslexia, when a student has problems identifying and separating letters as distinct. Letters or words may appear backward and the student may not be able to distinguish between words such as "on" and "no."
Auditory Dyslexia
In auditory dyslexia the student has no trouble hearing, the problem is with listening. The student may be distracted by things in the auditory environment or hear things "backward" or may hear words out of order in a spoken sentence. Many professionals do not like to distinguish the auditory dyslexia from the visual and treat it with the same methods.
What Causes Dyslexia
The exact cause of dyslexia is unknown, but certain things have been noticed about the brains of dyslexic children. John Bradford, of Dyslexia Online magazine, wrote that there are certain cells deep in the brains of dyslexic children that are on the surface of non-dyslexic children. Further, language is processed on both sides of the brain in dyslexics and primarily on the left hemisphere in non-dyslexics. Bradford points out that many dyslexic people have or had a hearing problem, so being vigilant about noticing and checking a young child's hearing would be one preventative action.
Approaches to Dyslexia
Although dyslexia is considered a neurological problem, most educators handle it with skill building, slowing down and going over language and math with patience and specificity. Specifically over-teaching concepts such as left and right help the child. They address points of confusion, going over b's and d's or words such as "was" and "saw."
Alternative Methods
There are a few methodologies that try to address the dyslexia through the underlying problem. Most attempt to reach the child through a different modality, often touch. For instance, the Davis Dyslexia Association International uses models of letters and "trigger" words, plus models of the object the words represent. Others have tried EMDR, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, which uses eye movements coupled with visualization. There are number of other body-based therapies.
Methods to Try at Home
There are many activities that can be done at home to help a child with dyslexia or to help a preschool child with a predisposition to dyslexia. Working with a pencil and paper have the child trace around each of their hands and label them left and right. With pencil on the paper, have the child follow verbal instructions to move the pencil up or down, left or right. Have the child stand and touch on their body: their right ear with their left hand, their left ear with their right hand, their right knee with their right hand, etc.
References
- "Dyslexia Online Magazine": What causes dyslexia
- International Dyslexia Association: Knowledge and Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading International Dyslexia Association
- Davis Dyslexia Association International: Davis Dyslexia Correction Methods
- Child Develoment Institute: Helping Children With Reversals
