to think DS's teachers is either thick or heartless?

[carocaro]

DS1 is 8 and dyslexic.

So his teacher makes him and the class shout out their scores they get in mental maths and spellings each day. AS DS has a auditory processing issue and find spelling very hard, so his scores are 1 or 2 out of ten at best when done this way.

I did not know this and I get a call last night from a Mum of a girl at school who said she was upset that my DS gets teased about it all the time by some of his classmates. I asked DS about it and he was so upset and said he felt more thicker since he went back to school

I am fighting the desire to go to school and belt said teacher around this head and ask her WHAT THE FUCK SHE IS DOING.

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOO ANGRY at her stupidity and lack of thought. She know what he finds hard and to humiliate him in this way beggars belief.

I am LIVID.

Maybe I was a bit strong - it was how I felt about it last night (shrugs). I am a very impatient person

Not being good at sports day is not a disability

Coming last in the egg and spoon is unlikely to harm your self esteem (for more than a day! - it's a once a year event)

Nor is a poor performance in the team relay likely to occasion teasing and humiliation by your peers (perhaps a bit of banter for a day but again it's old news next school day)

Parents, teachers the children themselves vest a lot of importance in 'doing well at school' - the stakes are high. Academic achievement affects future career prospects and life chances.

Thus it is fatuous to compare the example of a dyslexic humiliated in front of their class on a regular basis for their poor scores in mental maths and spelling, with kids who came last in sports day races!!!!!

I suppose so desertgirl but the comparison upset me on a very visceral level

it is most unfair to dismiss the feelings of absolute misery that PE cause for non-sporty kids week in week out and the bullying that often arises from it as nothing, hmc.

i think you are completely wrong
being shit at sport is not a once a year event at all, and physical problems such as dyspraxia are under-diagnosed

"Maybe I was a bit strong - it was how I felt about it last night (shrugs)"

that's bloody rude
you should apologise when you've insulted someone in a fit of temper, not shrug

I am so pleased the other mum let you in on what was happening and I hope you do go to the school to see what is happening.

I don't intend to apologise coupleofkooks since I only do that when I can apologise sincerely. And i still think it is a completely shit and grossly insensitive analogy.

If only you had more insight and perhaps a tiny shred of empathy so you could understand the worries that a parent of a child with spLD has to contend with concerning their child's future...Not to mention the rampant societal prejudice and ignorance (which is in sharp relief on Mn everyday with posters banging on about other posters spellings etc)

...then you might see that it is just not in the same league to compare a dyslexic child's regular humiliation (with the complicity of his teacher) and the consequent teasing and undermining by his classmates to.... Sports Day

I am dyslexic. I remember the dread of mental maths in the wee red books with pages folded in half. I was utterly awful. We ha to put our hands up for what score we got - 10,9,8,7,6 or under 5. Then if you were under 5 you had to see teacher.

oh ad when we had to swapp jotters with nieghbours for marking - so humiliating.

I went on to pass higher maths and do 1 year of a microbiology degree - so not crap with numbers but mental maths was hell.

Oh I then went on to do primary teaching degree - and never in a classroom have I done that.

"we had to swapp jotters with nieghbours for marking - so humiliating."

Peer assessment is considered good teaching practice, by the way.

That is awful, I am dyslexic and used to get very low scores but dont recall them being shouted out in class. I would have a strong word with the teacher, and if not the head, this is totally unacceptable, and provides cannon fodder for bullying.

I would talk to the teacher first and then if it continues then talk to the head. A teacher should be able to spare a few minutes at the end of the day for a quick chat or at least set up an appointment if that day they are not available. Also a good chance to check the facts. The teacher is being insensitive but may not realise this and just considers children giving the scores as a quick way to update her records. A quiet mention of how upset your DS is may do the trick!
I was always one of those children who came last at sportsday, was always last to be picked for teams in PE lessons every week and laughed at for how I ran. If it was just once a year I could have coped, but it was every week and twenty years after leaving school it still bother me. To this day I hate all sport, inspite of the health benefits, and struggle to keep my views from influencing my children. I still hate sports day even though I will no longer be competing! IMO it is exactly the same as humiliating a child over test scores.

To be fair it is sports in general (mostly PE lessons) rather than sports day as such; the comparison probably got off on the wrong foot by referring to an annual event when that is only a small part of the overall sports picture.

Not sure how you would do PE without it being obvious who was useless though; do any schools manage?

i am dyslexic with numbers (dyscalculia?) and I remember a 'game' which involved shouting out times table answers. I got stuck on the answer, always, and teacher did the whole ''well, NO-one is the class is going for break until Molly can tell us what the answer is...''
Way to go Miss, now the whole class hates me!

My son is dyslexcic and at primary they were generally pretty good at inclusion (once Miss ''I'm Afraid I Don't Believe In Dyslexia'' had retired . In Yr4 during a day about careers, she told DS he should train as a plumber as ''I don't think YOU'LL be going to university, will you dear?''.

I wasn't good at games at sports, but I enjoyed them anyway. Turned out later I was a whizz at swimming. And archery! Go figure. Can't hit a ball to save my life, but I am a very good shot.....

That is so horrible. YANBU! Why would teacher think that a good idea? Go to school and belt her round head (metaphorically speaking, of course[grin).

I have just popped on to say there is treatment for auditory processing, it's not cheap.

I had dd4 treated and she went from have a horizontal hearing "curve" - ie there wasn't the curve to having perfect hearing in 9 months!!!!!!!!

The dyslexia research trust is currently running a study on the affects of APD on dyslexia and is treating primary aged children for free in Oxford - can't find any info on the website but my friend has just got her son signed up to it!

Neurodevelopmental delay also contributes to dyslexia - look at INPP.org for more info
www.inpp.org.uk/

Johansen sound therapy info here
www.johansenias.com/

There are different organisations who train practioners etc it's not cheap but as a mum who has paid to have 3 of her children treated it was worth every penny and I could see the benefits very quickly.

HTH

Gosh this thread brings back such awful memories for me.
I have no idea whether I am Dyslexic or not, but I remember a whole year of mental sums first thing in the morning, then the teacher would make us all stand up and she'd call out 10/10, 9/10, etc. You got to sit down when she got to your marks.
I was always in the 2 to 4 range and got caned before I was allowed to sit.
I was so scared of being caned that I couldn't concentrate on the questions anyway.
I hated her and tried to be late for school on numerous occassions just so I'd miss the sums.

I recently told all this to my mum and she was horrified, especially as I never said anything at the time. I was too worried she'd think I was stupid so kept quiet. Now of course I know she'd have marched in there and given the teacher what for.

I'd go straight to the head if I were you and make shure he/she knows that you will be going even higher if it does not get sorted.

Looking forward to hearing how you get on with this tomorrow - this teacher is either really really stupid, incredibly insensitive. Either way, she has no business teaching children and should think about a change of career.

dyslexic children are routinely humiliated in too many schools Its like oh god another annoying parent and low self esteem child .Lets allgang up against them and make sure the child gets real low confidence .At primary school my daughter was not permited to go in the adittional literacy support group where they could all read and spell better than she could according to the head teacher it was way above her head. Someone later explained it was easier for them to get results with children who were not dysl
exic to boost their league table She got no decent help at primary according to the sen co she would never do gcses but shes doing A LEVELS NOW one high school was good started getting the help she needed but school got closed so stuck in a lousey ofsted praised school where humiliation was constant why are you talking asked friend for spelling sir what was the word word so simple teacher wouldnt believe it .Then extra time for gcses school really exelled at humiliation she never knew what was going to happen one exam sent all over the school no one seemed to know where she was meant to do the exam then stuck in a room with pupils with glandular fever or just sick A NOTHER EXAM ENGLISH TEACHER DENIED SHE WAS DISLEXIS she tried to overcome her low self esteem kept on insistingtill he finally checked on his computer no no one ever said sorry he just stormed off and she got the exta time she was entitled to Dyslexic children are routinely humiliated