Dyslexic ds did his KS1 Sats without his coloured overlay

[LoopyLucyLoo]

I'm annoyed about this, but can't decide if I'm over-reacting. My yr 2 ds is (mildly) dyslexic and dyspraxic and uses a coloured overlay for his reading which really seems to help. He has told me he had to do some assessment papers and found them really hard to read because he wasn't given his coloured overlay to use.

I'm having a real struggle getting the school to understand his needs (private school with seemingly no clue about either dsylexia or dyspraxia) and this is the last in a long list of frustrations. I'm conscious I may be blowing this out of proportion as I'm already hacked off with the school, but it's really annoyed me that they didn't give him the overlay to use when they know he needs it for optimum reading.

Is this pretty poor of the school do you think or just an insignificant over-sight?

I would be annoyed too.

If the school is not taking your sons needs seriously then it is going to be difficult for him to reach his potential.

The SATS thing is not that important IMO but you would have thought they would have wanted him to achieve the best that he could.

My Dd3 has some issues and we had to move her to another school before her needs were met properly.

If you have already spoken to them about this many times then you might be looking at a move too.

Sorry if thats not what you wanted to hear and good luck.

Thanks for the reply Ineedbunting. The school just seem really clueless about what a dyslexic/dyspraxic child might need in the classroom and I do worry that he is not going to reach his potential - he's certainly not at the moment.

I have thought about switching schools, but he's really happy there so it's a tough decision. I am starting to think he would do better in a state school who are more experienced with sen though. I don't know if it's 'normal' for private schools to be poor with special needs, but they don't seem used to dealing with dyslexia or dyspraxia (and these are very experienced teachers).

Sorry I haven't got much advice as to dealing with the school.

However, I suffer with dyslexia myself. My college used to photocopy all of my exam papers onto coloured paper. They used the closest shade as possible to match my overlay colour. This really helped a great deal and was easier than using the overlay.

Good luck with the school. I think a lot of schools can be clueless in regards to dyslexia. My school offered no help at all and it made things v hard.

Maybe it?s worth speaking to some other schools and seeing what support they can offer your son.

Wishing you and DS lots of luck.

If he needs a coloured overlay, why don't you buy him the appropriate coloured glasses?

Thanks Clargo55, that's a good idea.

IndigoBell - I hadn't thought about glasses tbh. The overlay was free, wouldn't the glasses just be a more expensive way of achieving the same thing? Also, because he's dyspraxic and clumsy, I fear they'd spend more time being repaired than being worn! :o

Have the overlays been prescribed by a specialist optician? They are usually regarded as less effective

No mrz, the overlay was suggested by an OT and SENCO. We haven't seen a specialist optician. Have seen a SENCO (not the one at ds's school though as they say he's just a lazy boy who isn't ready to perform better yet and besides he's not the worst in the class so won't qualify for any help!), an Educational Psychologist and ds has recently started a programme with an OT similar to the Dore programme. Should I add a specialist optician to the list?

If he needs a coloured overlay/lenses it is better that it is tailored to his needs rather than a generic ones suggested by an OT.

The school should be making sure he gets the help and support he needs. I know you say he is happy there but if they arent supportive I would be looking at finding a school which can better meet his needs.

The school are unfortunately not giving him any help or support at all. They don't agree there are any issues. They say he's just a typical boy and I shouldn't be labelling him at this age. They're not worried as he makes good progress each year and have suggested I shouldn't be pushing him to perform better. He is in the bottom half of the class for all subjects and is still on reading level 5 yet his teachers say not to worry as his levels are 'right where they should be'.

I had ds assessed privately and this confirmed my experience of him as a bright little boy - he has an above average IQ (128), and his average age across the tests they performed was 8 yrs 10 mths. His working memory though was very poor which is where I think a lot of his difficulties come from. I showed his teachers these results, they frowned and said they'd put them in his file.

Ds would be so upset if he had to move schools, but it's looking increasingly likely. I would prefer though to get his current school to give him the help he needs so am inclined to continue fighting for a bit longer. It's so frustrating though!

Thanks mrz - I will look into a proper assessment for the lenses.

OP - my dyslexic DD has been prescribed a yellow overlay by a specialist optician, a green overlay by a behaviour optometrist, and a turquoise overlay by a therapy centre.

Then I took her to Tinsley house who said she didn't need coloured overlays at all. She just had convergence insufficiency and eye tracking problems and needed vision therapy instead.

I am very sceptical of coloured overlays. A fraction of the population need them - yet they are given out very frequently.

If your DS really did have irlen syndrome and need coloured glasses, he probably wouldn't be able to read at all without them.

If you think your child has vision problems he needs to do vision therapy at a good behaviour optometrist.