over reaction to dyslexia -any advise welcome

[bejeezus]

my dd is in year 1. She is very bright and enthusiastic about school and learning new things. She has struggled with reading and 'sounds' and is not interested in practicing. Today her teacher told me they are quite sure she is dyslexic. She is already getting extra help in class and is taken out of class. They said she will get more help. They said she has problems with symbol recognition. She has apparently developed good coping skills.

Ridiculously, I cried. I feel inexplicably really upset about it. I dont know why really. I dont want her to struggle and loose interest in education but I was never determined that she would be a lawyer or a doctor or anything.

I need to read about dyslexia but wondered if any of you have any experience/ advice;

what DOES it ACTUALLY mean for her life?

are there personality traits associated with dyslexia?

is it a given that she will not do well academically?

is it stigmatised? do your kids get picked on for being dyslexic?

in some ways, I feel a bit relieved-it is explains quite a lot

faple, that was such a funny description!!!
My DD talks non-stop (even in her sleep)- it's like a verbal tap stuck open! At school where she couldn't chat, she'd hum. It drove the other kids nuts. The Ed Psych told us something really interesting. Children with visual-perceptual dyslexia do not get enough input through their eyes to keep their brains stimulated so they create stimulation through their ears. They talk to keep their brains awake!

horse wow! my dd is the same -I mean NON-stop!!

I am relieved you found it amusing horsemadmom, I was worried I might offend somebody. It is such a small sample of dyslexic people I had to base it on, but I always found it so odd that it was the one feature that was the same with all three. With the 3rd guy I went out, after a only a few weeks of seeing each other we had a small argument while we were in his car and something just made me stop and ask him if he was dyslexic. It had nothing to do with what we were discussing, I had never seen him try to read or write. He said yes in a slightly annoyed voice, and continued with whatever verbal diarrhoea he was spinning at that moment.

Even more weird 2 of the 3 were identical twins and the twins were also dyslexic in both cases. All great guys I might add.

I assume there might be different types of dyslexia and it wouldn't be applicable to all though. Maybe just a strange coincidence.

fapl - I may have a SOH failure but I didn't entirely appreciate the 'some thick person who declares they have dyslexia' comment. Dyslexia impacts across the board, it affects the super bright, moderately clever, average, and err 'thick' as you put it! - perhaps that person with less than average ability does have dyslexia (sorry but I loathe the description 'thick'). I didn't appreciate you had to be clever for your dyslexia to elicit empathy

I also think dyslexia is a valid 'excuse' sometimes and allowances should be made! - I completely agree with more time for examinations, a scribe when required etc etc. It seems a bit of an own goal to keep it under wraps and to treat it like a furtive secret when it can be and often is a disadvantage, so I am not filled with admiration for the stoical 3 blokes you refer to.....

hmc I agree.

I did think that came across as if horse thought 'thick' people were less entitled to have other learning difficulties. I expect you didn't mean it like that, but ...

I think dyslexia might get picked up more by families who can see that their child is very bright (by the verbal intelligence/diarrhea) but is also really struggling (hence the stereotype association with pushy mothers not accepting their child isn't as intelligent as they think). But on the other hand we were told that ds was not eligible for an assessment let alone any help because he wasn't sufficiently far behind (and he really hadn't developed much in the way of coping strategies apart from refusing to read and being disruptive) so I think that those picked up by school might be more likely to be be less traditionally bright and more educationally damaged.

Given how much ds's reading improved with such a small amount of help I do wonder how much of the problem is caused by dyslexia-unfriendly teaching (he was originally taught by mixed methods). In fact I've seen some activists suggest that many dyslexics have simply been badly taught.

I like the term dysteachia to describe kids who haven't learn to read because of bad teaching :)

As far as I can tell kids don't learn to read and write well because of:

• Either bad teaching
• Or underlying subtle vision problems
• Or underlying subtle hearing problems
• Or underlying subtle neuro development problems.

Vision, Hearing and Neuro Development problems can cause memory and slow processing problems which then cause dyslexia problems learning to read and spell....

Before settling for a diagnosis of 'dyslexia' and 'compensating strategies', it is really worth investigating every possible underlying problem to see what actually is curable......

If your child has a history of speech delay or disorder, even if it appears resolved, it is worth considering this in terms of literacy difficulties.

This explains how they can be linked

LRD, please reread the thread. I never used the word 'thick'.

Hmmm. dyslexia=bad teaching? Certainly dyslexics run the gamut of intelligence but, an NT person of low intelligence probably doesn't have words floating around the page in front of them or, in DD's case, a complete inability to see words on patterned or illustrated paper. We aren't talking about the children who are slower to learn to read. Dyslexics can't learn to read properly.

Horse - have you had your DDs eyes tested by a behaviour optometrist?

How do you know she doesn't have a vision problem rather than 'dyslexia'?

All poor readers are not what we commonly understand as "dyslexic" and some poor readers are so because of poor teaching. Some people with dyslexia who are poor readers will also have experienced poor teaching.

It depends on your definition of dyslexia. The term itself means basically dys (difficulty with) and lexia (reading).

It's used to encompass a whole range of different difficulties with reading even in its traditional usage as a disorder of reading. Not all people with dyslexia find the page jumps about in front of them. Not all people with dyslexia have speech processing difficulties. Not all people with dyslexia respond to the same intervention approaches or teaching styles. Not all people with dyslexia will have had good teaching.

horse, do you perhaps mean hmc when you put my name? I never said you did use the word 'thick'.

What I objected to was the way your earlier post sounded as if you thought less-able people were using dyslexia as an excuse. I acknowledged that you probably didn't mean to come across this way, but it sounded as if you thought these people were less likely to really be dyslxic when they said they were - which would, obviously, be a really offensive thing to believe.

You are also misinformed. Dyslexics can learn to read properly. Yes, your DD needs help and has a fairly common problem that often goes with dyslexia - but don't write her off yet. Loads of dyslexics learn to read properly.

Just to clarify it was fapl who used the term thick and my post was addressed to her, although I didn't 'bold' out her name.

Sheesh!

[grins] at chinese whispers effect!!

or even!

I am currently studying maths with a woman who is dyslexic. She is bloody brilliant!! She grasps mathematical concepts which are way beyond the scope of the course (it's a bit of a baby course really) like imaginary numbers, patterns that the rest of us struggle to see let alone understand; she just gets them.

My best friend is dyslexic and has just got a degree in Counselling; hard won, almost against all odds, including her own self-perception and lack of sense of deserving to do more than work in a shop, let alone study, let alone pass - with a bloody good 2:1 I might add.

Both are mid-50s or more. Both at school before dyslexia was known and when dyslexic kids were routinely seen and treated as stupid, lazy or both.

My fellow student is enthusiastic, has great self-esteem. Her family supported her throughout school, never thought less of her, encouraged her in things she was naturally good at, talented in - she's an artist. She was lucky in her school too, who could see she wasn't stupid.

My best friend's mum - for all her virtues - believed the school when they treated my friend as if she were stupid. My lovely friend has had difficulties with self-esteem, never really explored her potential as she thought she hadn't any, etc.

Your dd is bright and enthusiastic, the school have discovered her weak point early and there are vast resources available to help her. She's got the best advocate anyone could ask for, you.

Of course you can have a little secret cry, too, but no doors are closed to her.

Thanks hmc.

I agree with you too it's not always funny ... what's cute in a child can come across as odd or rude in an adult, and I suspect it's out of order for me to react more strongly to someone being amused by a comment. But it isn't terribly funny, really.

Jux - the self-esteem aspect is very important isn't it! I have to spend a lot of time reassuring my dd that she is as capable and bright as the next person

Yes hmc, it is a really fundamental aspect of it. One which can affect absolutely everything else in your life, possibly in ways far worse than the original problem.

My friend took years to develop enough belief in herself to give up working in a shop and put her toes in the water of what she actually wanted to do. She'd got into the habit early of avoiding writing more than was necessary and has had the most difficult struggle psyching herself up to write essays as she still expect ed to be pulled up for spelling, sentence construction and so on. I was completely stunned by her determination and bravery in facing her fears, especially as even at the college she attended, and even with them all knowing her dx, some 'teachers' were thoroughly unhelpful, even went out of their way to make things harder for her. If she'd started off with normal self-esteem she'd have chosen a better institution, but I honestly think she chose that dung heap because she thought no one else would take her. Luckily, she switched after having to do her first year twice due to the intransigence of her tutor and went to a much much better Uni, where she got a lot of extra help, extra time wasn't a problem, she wasn't treated as a nuisance etc.

Luckily, schools don't, as far as I know, still label children as stupid, and much help is available.

I personally find my DDs school too helpful.

They design all lessons for kids who can't necessarily read and write.

So they don't really seem bothered at all if she doesn't learn to read and write. :(

All they care about is that she's confident and happy. :(

at the crass ignorance and obstructiveness of some of those HE lecturers Jux - anyone in any area of education should be au fait with SpLD and flexible enough to accomodate this...

Once she'd gone from there, on to better things, I did write to the powers that be at the so-called institution, pointing out very unhelpful attitudes apparently fairly prevalent among their staff with links to helpful dyslexia websites, also asking if they had considered the effects of publicity on their reputation alongside musings about the amazing growth of social networking sites.......

With luck the staff I named have been given some retraining, or their contracts were not renewed.[very gleeful ]

Sorry all. Must take notes while reading !
Yes, I did and do take DD to a behavioural optometrist (read back and you'll see I recommended it highly). A high percentage of children with dyslexia, as opposed to auditory processing disorders, have vision issues. This isn't near/far sightedness but issues with the way visual information is interpreted by the brain. Regular opticians can't pick it up. Eye movements have to be measured independently and this requires a fairly long assessment with equipment you won't find at Specsavers.
I don't think that less able children are being routinely labeled dyslexic. Please read back. I do think that all dyslexic children can read. It is just made much harder for them to learn if they don't have early, intensive intervention.

I apologise for the comment I made yesterday and the way it came across. LRD is right that those less bright have an even bigger uphill battle on their hands and it must be very difficult.

I do still believe that some things that are difficult to quantify and diagnose and have a label, are at times inappropriatley applied to people, not just dyslexia, but others, ADHD for example (I have a sibling that had behavioural problems diagnosed as having ADHD a child and prescribed ritalin. Did he have ADD? I am not sure, my dad doesn't think so, he refused to take the drugs anyway.) It can be a cop out for bad teaching and parenting, and it gives an excuse. Indigobell I like the term dysteachia.

HMC, I don't expect you to be filled with admiration for 3 people you don't know, and I wouldn't apply the term stoical to any of them, so there, we have managed to offend each other now. They are three people who I knew well at points in my life and I do admire them all. They all had to overcome a lot of challanges throughout their school years (and even in adulthood have created coping strategies) and are all very successful adults. One of them, his dyslexia was so severe he could pretty much only write his own name, he couldn't even write his mums name on a form as next of kin because he literally couldn't.

I never said I expect people with dyslexia to cover it up. I am just amazed at the creative coping strategies people come up with. Of course allowances should be made in sitting exams and course work, and in work environments where appropriate. But there are situations in life where most people just read and write in the course of an ordinary day eg. a restaurant menu, or a train departure board, those that can't or cannot easily, do things differently to the majority. (and I am NOT saying that people suffering from dyslexia cannot do these things) I think the brain is facinating and amazing.

It has gone off track from what beejeezus originally posted about, but just to bring it back to topic for a moment:

what DOES it ACTUALLY mean for her life?
From the people I have known, there will probably be struggles at points, but in terms of life outcomes, your daughter will be able to do whatever she wants.

are there personality traits associated with dyslexia?
There was only 1 personality trait I saw as the same amoungst a few people I know and I have already mentioned that, I won't go there again.

is it a given that she will not do well academically?
No

is it stigmatised? do your kids get picked on for being dyslexic?
Of the people I know I have mostly known them as adults with dyslexia, and as adults they were not stigmatised that I was aware of, they were all very popular people. (I couldn't say about their school days though, the only one I knew at school he was so popular he was voted house captain at his school). But I must admit there was 1 person I knew at work who was extremely lazy, and I suspected her 'dyslexia' could have been attributed to bad teaching and her being a lazy student. That was more of a character judgement all round of her though than me judging her for in anyway for her dyslexia.

And I also apologise anybody whom my comments were wrongly attributed.

can anyone tell me what an Assessment involves. I know they are conducted by an Educational Psychologist- is that why they are so expensive? Is it a computer based test thingymajig? The school have said they will speak to Ed Psych about getting one done, but that it might take some time (dont know how much time ) It seemed odd to me that this wasnt standard procedure, but someones post earlier said that not all are entitled to an Assessment if they are not far enough behind their peers- is this so?

Am thinking about having a private one done, but am very poor and £400 would be really hard to find right now. Is £400 reasonable?

Hi,
It isn't a computer test. The assessment is a series of written and verbal tests. Some examples:
Remembering and repeating a series of words and numbers and repeating them after 5 mins. Then doing it backwards.
Recreating a block pattern.
Remembering common letter combinations.
Writing a passage.
Answering questions about something they listen to.
Fine motor co ordination.
Gross motor co ordination.
Looking at pictures on a grid and then placing the pictures on the grid in the correct places.
and, and, and......
It takes about 3 hours. About a week lated, you go back to discuss the findings and receive a very thick report with all the centiles and a diagnosis with advice on how to proceed.
You can wait 18 months in the state system for a free assessment. It is expensive for the LEA's to do it so expect resistance. You may have to wait 4-5 months for a private appointment unless you are like me and you push like hell.