Dyslexia

[kezzyleah]

Hi, my ds (aged 9) has a few difficulties with spelling and has slow processing. He is intelligent and achieved 'exceeding' in all areas at the end of last year (year 5) but he finds school quite hard work and tiring.

I mentioned this to a friend who is a dyslexia specialist and she offered to give him a diagnostic test for free. I hadn't thought of paying for one as he has always done okay academically but she said despite this he may be underperforming.

So she has recently given me the report and she has identified poor processing skills which point to dyslexia and said there is a huge discrepancy between his cognitive skills and his phonological processing and has made some recommendations such as thinking time and extra time on tests.

My question is, if I give this to his teacher, do you think they will likely take any notice of it? I mentioned I thought he was dyslexic last year and the teacher was very sceptical and pointed out he did well. Shall I just try and support him more at home?

Opps sorry - end of last year was year 4

Did your friend give you a formal report (as if you had paid for it) or just tell you what she found out? In order for a school to act on it for extra time etc, it would need to be formalised (i.e. from a registered educational specialist in this area).

Our experience with DS was that whenever we tried to raise concerns (we saw how difficult he found homework) we were fobbed off with 'he's doing fine' but it all unravelled when he got to senior school and the workload increased - he had been successfully masking his dyslexia.

He got a private assessment with very similar feedback to yours and then the school swung into action. He got extra time and adjustments in class like he was allowed to photograph the whiteboard etc (his copying was so slow he missed the explanation/ discussion). Honestly, it was the best thing for him - it boosted his confidence hugely to know that he wasn't 'stupid/slow' (something he'd been internalising) but just had a different way of thinking.

Thank you! As far as I know it is a formal report. She is a trained teacher and has now trained to be a dyslexia specialist. It's in a report and she has signed it. I will take it along to the next parents evening and see what they say. Hopefully they do acknowledge it.

I'm not sure I'd wait for parents' evening to be honest, as there would be limited time for discussion.
I'd request a meeting with his class teacher and/or the school SEN co-ordinator to raise it.
I wouldn't mention it's been done by a friend, just say you've had an independent assessment done and share it and ask to develop a plan for how the school can help him. They should develop a specific document called something like a Learning Support Plan or Individual Learning Plan which outlines the difficulties your son has, and what reasonable adjustments are recommended.

You also need to spend some time with your son explaining it all because otherwise he might feel stigmatised and unwilling to do anything which makes him 'different'. There are good resources online.

I wouldn’t wait for parents evening. Get in contact with the class teacher and ask for next steps after they’ve had time to read and digest it. Give them the headlines of how tired he gets and that he may be reaching the limit of being able to keep on hiding his internal struggles. If the yea her needs support from the SENCo then they can speak with them. Where I work, that’s how we do it as the teachers are the leaders of learning in their class. SENCo is there for further advice. Other schools may run this differently.

I’m interested in your experience. My 7 year old boy is doing well, but I’m convinced he is dyslexic (I am, had a late diagnosis towards the end of secondary school) and see so many signs, but school aren’t concerned as he does well enough, although I don’t think he is reaching his potential. My question to you would be, what help do you think school can provide? I’d love to hear from someone who has had a diagnosis and found school has acted to help, when the child is deemed to be doing well enough.

Give it to the teacher.
Is your friend an Educational Psychologist? It’s worth getting a diagnosis because it has implications for gcse and a-levels. Your son is dyslexic and he needs to be given support to manage it. He sounds amazing and I’m sure this will help him. Your friend is very kind.

There's a big risk that kids with dyslexia will fall under the radar if they are bright and learn to overcompensate in other ways. My DS wasn't diagnosed until he was nearly 14 and it was a huge relief as I had instinctively known something was going on (already had an older son) but because my DS2 was 'managing OK' his primary school weren't worried.
The problem is that a child presenting as 'managing OK' at school may be coming home exhausted from masking/coping all day, and may also be suffering from self-esteem problems when they don't understand why their friends seem to be able to do things they can't (e.g. in DS2's case this was remember things the teacher said - he has very poor verbal memory).

A diagnosis was a relief as it 'explained' a lot of things for us and also meant that teachers had to be a bit more aware/ attuned. When the Senco sent round DS2's Individual Learning Plan (extra time, written copies of instructions etc etc) a lot of his teachers said 'oh yes, I'm not surprised, as he's always been a bit slow to get on with things and asks for stuff to be repeated' and I was rather annoyed that nobody had thought to raise this!

Pleased to say DS2 thrived after this - did well in GCSES and A levels and is now doing well at uni. He is so much happier and confident and has read around himself for tips and techniques etc.