Any dsylexia experts on here?

[Teacher12345]

DS has received his report this week and for almost everything, is at the correct age or above. The one thing he isn't and always has been behind on is writing.
From late reception onwards I have questioned dsylexia for a number of reasons.

1. He sometimes does letters and numbers in mirror image.
2. His handwriting is quite poor, even for his age.
3. He is so slow at writing things.
4. He is very articulate, intelligent - can tell you all sorts of things you never knew, picks things up quickly and has excellent understanding - but cannot produce a piece of writing without alot of prompting and support.
5. His Dad and Grandad (plus 3 people on my side) have dsylexia (plus dad is dyspraxic) and I know it runs in familes.
6. He is very clumsy, poor balance, poor co-ordination/spacial awareness. All things that link to dyspraxia which is often diagnosed with dyslexia.

So far the school have said to wait until year 3 (which he goes into in September) but I have heard from others that the school are reluctant to test for it even then because of cost.
The poor kid also has very poor sight in one eye and tinnitus so these things plus the fact that he is left handed have all been used to explain his shortfalls so far. My reason for pushing back on this though, is that he is doing so well in all other areas and it is just his writing. His teacher even wrote to me today, that he has some great idea's that he articulates so well, but then when asked to write it down, it becomes simplified and takes much longer than it should.

Does this sound like dyslexia or a disinterest in the subject?

@BwanaMakubwa

This thread illustrates the issue with dyslexia, doesn't it? Is dyslexia reading and spelling issues with a phonological processing deficit, as per Rose report and DECP guidance? In which case he probably hasn't got "it"

Or is dyslexia a working memory deficit? Problems with executive functioning? In children who can read just fine, as the dyslexia institute may argue?

Is visual processing and irlen syndrome dyslexia? Or is a visually based reading deficit qualitatively different from a phonological my based, or auditory processing based deficit? Some people would call both "dyslexia" but they need very different interventions.

Is a sequential processing difficulty also dyslexia?

I have no idea.

I think this is a real area of contention yes. In my line of work I receive many diagnoses of dyslexia and there is such variation amongst the actual deficits the students experience.

We also can't help but raise our eyebrows at some reports that are given to us by students we would not put forward for testing ourselves but have then acquired a private diagnosis. We do have concerns over some private dyslexia testers, this is their line of income, they are motivated to give the diagnosis as that is what the parents or students are there for. Parents share knowledge ' o, we got a diagnosis from such and such' . The ones that find no evidence of conditions more frequently than their counterparts will go out of business quickly. Educational psychologists employed by the local education authorities are not under the same pressures.

To my thinking, wheres working memory difficulties can certainly feature in dyslexia they can not be a sole symptom or the core symptom, and neither can executive function difficulties. (And these difficulties may be present in other co-occuring conditions as well - eg ADHD)

However, it is clear that different organisations have their own take on things and are happier to place emphasis on what I would consider weak indicators of dyslexia. But times and diagnostic criteria change I guess, and maybe it's me that needs to catch up!

It took us a year and a lot of hassling to get an EP to diagnose through school. Diagnosis was based on difficulties with literacy which persisted despite intervention at home and school over a long period of time. I flagged it in Y3 and diagnosis finally at end of Y4.

I think its worth paying for a private diagnosis - PATOSS has a list of assessors as mentioned upthread. BDA will also advise. There is a difference between screening (general questions) and disgnosis which specifies detailed results from standard recognised tests such as WISC. It will show where the major issues lie and so indicate what provision would help.

Our was also complcated by dyspraxia and visual difficulty - we went NHS for dyspraxia and private behavioural optometrist for the latter.

School should have a Visual Impairment team and physical impairment team via local authority which could look at some of these issues too and give their ideas.

If reading not an issue maybe its different kinds of recording you want to focus on - touch typing via school or Nessy Fingers could be a good start. Voice recognition software another option and scribe later on at secondary for exams.

There should in theory be no difference in whether a diagnosis is made by private or local authority. It has been well documented (TES for example ) that LA's frequently want to disregard the label dyslexia and are often reluctant to assess - due to lack of money for SEN and not wanting to identify things that then need proper provision. Their EP's are under pressure from the top to not diagnose! Warwickshire criticised in House of Lords for this attitude/policy in 2018.

A suitably qualified private assessor or EP is a professional - their evidence would be accepted by a judge for example in an education tribunal. They trust professionals not to be swayed by monetary gain.

The British Dyslexia Association's definition of dyslexia is below and is based on the definitio in Sir Jim Rose’s report on ‘Identifying and Teaching Children and Young People with Dyslexia and Literacy Difficulties’ (2009).

Dyslexia is a learning difficulty that primarily affects the skills involved in accurate and fluent word reading and spelling. Characteristic features of dyslexia are difficulties in phonological awareness, verbal memory and verbal processing speed. Dyslexia occurs across the range of intellectual abilities. It is best thought of as a continuum, not a distinct category, and there are no clear cut-off points. Co-occurring difficulties may be seen in aspects of language, motor co-ordination, mental calculation, concentration and personal organisation, but these are not, by themselves, markers of dyslexia. A good indication of the severity and persistence of dyslexic difficulties can be gained by examining how the individual responds or has responded to well-founded intervention.

secure.toolkitfiles.co.uk/clients/28246/sitedata/files/DefiningDyslexia.pdf

Useful definitions to ponder!

Look at dysgraphia too - national handwriting association may have good info.

I personally find dyslexia complicated and fascinating. I certainly don't understand it. The above just reinforced that!

Dd has a diagnosis of dyslexia. Privately, from somebody recommended by somebody I trust. School were not interested as she generally meets expected. I am apparently that parent, who compares dd to her more academic sibling. I just want to support and enable her to achieve the best she can.

Best bit of the diagnosis is she no longer thinks she is stupid. There is a reason why her spelling is interesting. Why her reading is slow. Both behind in years but apparently still enough to meet her targets.

Nessy is fab. Recommendation is extra time in exams and a move to computers not paper.

Was £350 and so far worth every penny.

a diagnosis of dyslexia doesn't affect the way the child is taught or lead to additional intervention or funding

This is the biggest hurdle parents have to jump over every single day, every detention, every report, every complaint

A child with dyslexia should be taught differently, shouldn’t be punished for not completing work (which is why they need the extra time) should not lose breaks because they need to relax their brains, shouldn’t be punished for lack of focus.

They should be taught organizational skills, Time keeping skills, speech to text or text to speech, the should be given audio books to read and extra lessons in touch typing

Shameful

They shouldn't be shouted at because they don't know how to spell a word and in a Covid classroom do not have access to a dictionary. That happened to dd yesterday.

It does feel like you just have to get on with it. That it's expected that dd will under achieve because she sees the world differently. I keep being told of the benefits of dyslexia post education. Of the amazing people with dyslexia. She still needs an education and exams with good grades to access a lot of stuff first!

No child should be shouted at because they do not know how to spell a word.

@greentulips

You've misunderstood my comment. I said that a diagnosis changes nothing. I said this because if there are possibilities that a child is dyslexic, then we teach "as if dyslexic." The strategies shouldn't rely on the diagnosis, as then only children with parents invested enough or rich enough to pursue diagnosis (in my area, local authority EP does not diagnose dyslexia) have access. The strategies should depend on the child and their needs.

I'm not ashamed, even though you took my comment out of context and think it's shameful.

I'm sorry that you've had bad experiences with your children. I'm well aware that what should happen isn't what does happen.

No they shouldn't mazsagong. Not any child but especially a dyslexic. Her last day at the school tomorrow

Not a professional, but a mum expert! From my own experiences, I would say it is well worth paying to get a full assessment with an education psychologist as it sounds like there is more going on potentially than just dyslexia. The EP may then advise you to get a referral through the GP (maybe you can self refer?) to see an occupational therapist to explore the hand writing difficulties and possible dyspraxia. My son is also left handed and dyslexic and was also diagnosed with hypermobility and low tone by the OT which explained why hand writing was so painful and tiring for him. He uses a laptop now for longer pieces of work. At age 12, he still reverses a good quantity of letters and numbers and his hand writing looks like a small child's. BUT the quality of what he writes is outstanding! These assessments are very expensive, but so worth it to understand your child and be able to help them.

You are describing my son to a tee.
His school repeatedly came up with reasons he wasn't dyslexic and came up with imaginative explanations for his difficulties. I found a great ed psych. They test all different aspects of capabilities like short term memory, working memory spatial abilities etc. From this they come up with both an IQ for your child and highlight areas which arent working properly (if it us the case) in your child. Which therefore gives a diagnosis of dyslexia. Throughout his school process we have seen three different ed psychs, 2very good and one not so who have all used this method, the better ones have supplied techniques to help in everyday lifewhich have made a huge difference, rather than the diagnosis itself). Push for the testing and if you can pay you might be wise to for an easier life.

A child with dyslexia should be taught differently,

lighthouse.mq.edu.au/article/september/mysteries-of-dyslexia-unravelled

"Says Castles: “What we know is the way you assist children with dyslexia is the same way you would teach reading skills to kids without dyslexia; you just need to do it more intensively and probably for a bit longer.”

There are various arguments about how a dyslexic person can best learn to read. Orton Gillingham is one - multisensory, phonics, sight words and Maple Hayes have very good results with their unique morphological route where other methods have failed.

We persevered with phonics and he is now (age 10) almost there - so he can now pass a Y1 phonics test for example (these are available to see online for free). We have just kept going - drip feeding words of same 3 digraphs until it stuck, Y3 we mainly did HFW all year.

I would say he is on target to leave primary with reading age between 7 and 8. Functional literacy is age 9 - so not brilliant but not bad.

We also spend a lot of time reading aloud to him and sharing books and comics which he choses and enjoys - reading is not all about the technical, it is about enjoying and usefulness too.

Reading Bears is good I'm told. Toe by Toe, Teach My Monster to Read and Nessy have all been useful for us.

I’m a specialist dyslexia assessor and have also been primary teacher for nearly thirty years. It takes a long time and a lot of training to become an assessor and, as a PP mentioned, we are professionals with a huge interest in this area. In order to maintain registration we have to undergo training every year.
I certainly don’t charge much and, in many cases, end up assessing friends’ children for nothing. Early diagnosis is helpful and many schools don’t have the time, resources or access to specialist help. I’m currently working with a Year 4 child who can barely read who is not able to get specialist help in school. COVID has not helped.