Supports for dyslexia primary school

[TheBrightBear]

Wondering what supports a child with 'moderate' dyslexia should/would receive in primary school in Ireland. I posted in the parenting thread but just got replies about the English system.
We've done the assessment with the educational psychologist and verbally talked through the diagnosis. Once we get the written report we'll share with the school but as this is all new to me I'm wondering what to expect when we discuss with the school. I'm guessing the report will make recommendations but that it will be the ideal and perhaps the school won't be able to meet all the recommendations.
I assume supports vary from school to school. I know that there are already some children with extra needs in the class so don't know if this will mean that my child would get less supports than if they were in a class with less children with needs. Also it sounds like they're entitled to an Irish exception....what does this look like in class time, can they participate in Irish anyway if they want to or do they have to do something else during that time.

Bump

I presume with their exemption, then they can just get on and do some other work whilst the class are doing Irish or perhaps School will be really good with this and plan her time with the SET teacher in this time slot. I presume she will get allocated time with a SET teacher… who will put in place a program to suit the child’s needs.

Is your child getting any learning support already?
What class are they in?
My child was getting learning support before they were diagnosed in 3rd class and they continued with this. It was very apparent he had dyslexia from an early age but they dont recommend assessment before about 8 years of age.

The assessment will recommend an irish exemption if they qualify. I was advised to avail of this, even if they want to participate in Irish as its harder to get once they get to second level and may want to use it at that stage.

The educational psychologist recommended reader pen and laptop but the school didnt really help/support with this.

Dyslexia Ireland run workshops which you child my find helpful.

Other things we found useful were coloured overlays & dyslexia friendly print books.

Thanks so much for your reply. 3rd class. Has never received learning supports and the school didn't notice anything and told me they thought dyslexia was very unlikely. So this diagnosis has come as quite a shock . We thought the psychologist at most would say mild dyslexia or just some processing issues. Unfortunately we are in a gaelscoil but will be changing school due to this so it is good to hear how things work in other schools. The difficulty is going to be finding a school place in an alternative school as the schools are oversubscribed around here so we may have to work with the current school for some time. It's all quite upsetting and stressful.

@TheBrightBear I would recommend finding your nearest deis School, they usually have good funding and resources for children with dyslexia. Well, that’s my experience of them so far. I would definitely recommend taking her out of the Gaelscoil.

Thanks so much for this, that's a good suggestion.

I absolutely 100% second this. It can be insane the difference the extra funding and extra staff can make.

Guess minimal would be ' in class support' but also would expect the pupil go out with a small group to SET for literacy support twice or three times a week.
This is based on my experience child with learning difficulty (dyslexia ) specific to spelling. No Irish exemption. Will have a spelling exemption for secondary exams.
Had support in place but school advised a private assessment report as they may not have continued to qualify for support as scores were not low enough
I'm not too sure what 'in class support' ' involves just familiar with term being used.
Also know some children use tablets, instead writing down homework take photo of it those type of things

@TheBrightBear your little one is entitled to an Irish exemption & rightly so, try & move her from the Gaelscoil ASAP as the Irish is absolutely no use to her now as she will be exempt.
Best get her into the English system straight away, she is gaining absolutely nothing in her current environment & it will be sapping away her confidence.
Get her into the most resourced school possible, she will thrive, a deis school if you have one in your area would be ideal as suggested above.

Yes. I agree about the exemption. It's easier said than done with regards finding a school place in this area though as such short notice. It is very unfortunate as she has very good friends at school. I've enquired at the closest deis school, they have not yet confirmed a place. For some reason it only has 3 or 4 girls in the class and lots of boys which is putting me off a bit as the educational psychologist spoke about weighing up the pros and cons of the social side of things.
But there seems to be no space at all in the other local schools.
Someone who had been in a similar situation said they had to get a local politician involved to help them get an alternative school place.
It seems crazy that there is no system for placing a child from a gaelscoil into an alternative school in this situation.
It is all quite stressful and upsetting.

This must be so stressful for you. As your daughter is entitled to an Irish exemption it is a complete waste of her time to be in a Gaelscoil.
A local school must fit her in as her educational needs have changed & Irish is no longer needed. Time is of the essence now as it's a new school year.
Grab the Irish exemption with both hands, it will be hugely beneficial to your daughter & she can focus on her other subjects. Some of the brightest, wealthiest & most creative people I know are dyslexic, your daughter will thrive once you get her moved.
However a Gaelscoil cannot do this now as the education is through the medium of Irish & your daughter will have an Irish exemption. Gaelscoileanna have a great reputation for mainstream pupils but on the whole are not know for bring good for children needing additional supports. I really hope you get sorted.

Thank you yes I've been trying to find out about if another local school is actually obliged to take her. I have just been told 'sorry no space' by all of them. I suspect they aren't required to though as if you look at all the 'official' info about gaelscoileanna online it all says gaelscoileanna can accommodate extra needs and dyslexia etc and that children with extra needs can do well in gaelscoileanna with the right supports. I also posted in a private dyslexia Facebook group and just got a whole load of replies about how their dyslexic child stayed in the the GS and it was great and supported them....or people saying the move can be so challenging in terms of friendships and they moved and regretted it...I suspect from the department of education's point of view she has a school place even though that is in a gaelscoil and that the school must try and provide support for her. From my point of view I do realise they won't be able to meet her needs but honestly the only time I've heard of the school telling a dyslexic pupil to go is when they've been eligible for a reading school.
So I'm quite stuck right now. We have really limited options unless a school further from our house will take both children and so far no luck.

Th Gaelscoil will have a duty to educate her & to provide support but it would be through Irish which is useless to her if she's going to get an exemption anyway & would be of no help to her English learning. She needs to be doing her subjects through English & getting her dyslexia supports through English.
Irish exemptions are extremely hard to get in secondary school so if your girl is being offered one now that's positive.
Can you leave your other child in the Gaelscoil & focus on getting your daughter a place elsewhere? I know it would be a pain but at least your daughter will have her needs met in a new school, you can always move your other child if a place comes up. Are you in a position to homeschool in the meantime?

https://rollercoaster.ie/community/behaviourdiscipline/dyslexia-and-gaelscoil-141465771/

@TheBrightBear this thread is old but has lots of advice from parents in your daughters situation. Hope it helps.

Thanks so much. Yes we are focusing on finding a school place for her. I really home it won't come to homeschooling!

Best of luck & have a read of the rollercoaster.ie thread linked. As the mammy of a child who had to move schools in the past (bullying) it's not easy but it was the best thing we ever did for her. She was a different child in a matter of weeks, previous school were no help so we had no option but to bite the bullet.
This was second class & we were able to get places in a couple of schools, we chose an all girls & she found it a very calm learning environment (it was a trio of boys from her class bullying her).
All kids who move schools have their different reasons for doing so but ultimately it's putting their needs first. My child is an only so we had no other kids to take into consideration which made it easier.

It sounds like you have experience of having a child with dyslexia in a deis school...could I just ask in your experience how likely a deis school would be to sign off on an Irish exemption in this situation? Given that the child has a high level of Irish?

Wondering was there a reason your child wasn't given an exemption....it seems the psychologist can recommend but it is the school that signs off. Which adds a whole new layer to trying to find a new school as it seems as it is a the discretion of the school...