I'm so confused! Please can someone help me (dyslexia dx)

[WhyDoesMyMamLiveInMyMirror]

DD is 8 and was seen by a SENCO last year who said she was borderline dyslexic. I received a report in the post on Friday stating that DD definitely has dyslexia and providing spelling strategies and rules.
I'm flummoxed to be honest. I can't find any information on my local LEA or its assessment requirements but surely two meetings aren't enough for a diagnosis and surely there should be some form of future planning??
I'm going to arrange a meeting with the SENCO on Monday (she only works 3days a week and Friday isn't one of them) what do I need to ask? Thanks in advance for any/all responses.

There are screening tests for dyslexia that can be done by eg SENCOs which give a percentage chance of dyslexia and then EP assessments that can diagnose.

My ds is dyslexic and was diagnosed by an EP at a similar age. He also has dyspraxia which means it is hard to write as fluently as his peers.

Given that dyslexia is essentially a memory issue you are looking for memory things like
My suggestions for your SENCo meeting are
what symptoms does he show:-
spelling below that expected for his general cognitive ability
organisation difficulties
writing difficulties eg letter reversals, non-joined up writing etc
reading difficulties

What do they suggest by way of provision/therapy to reduce the symptoms?
typically this is learning spelling rules through the conscious channel, some writing exercises to improve the hand-eye coordination, and maybe some sessions on organisation - maybe this will be more important later when organisation is more crucial, but at year 5 90% of the stuff in the cloakroom clearout was ds's or his equally absent minded friend.

The other type of provision they should be looking at are ways of changing the learning environment to help dc thrive and habe a fair chance,
So ways of getting dc's thoughts down without having to be help back by the handbrake of dyslexia. How can dc think creatively and get the thoughts down without being distracted about spelling and letter reversals etc.

The most frequent option is touch typing and access to a keyboard. My ds learned to touch type at 8 - it is dull and he needed a lot of incentives to get the modules done, but it was worth it. It is easier to spell because the 'b' can't get confused with the 'd' because 'b' is on the bottom line and 'd' on the middle. Also if you have the spell checker set so that it identifies spelling mistakes and makes suggestions for alternatives, then the brain starts to pick up repeat mistakes and the correct alternative.

Some schools/parents offer to scribe for their kids so that the answer can go down untainted by the effort of recording.

Then reading - e-readers with the text sized magnified makes life easier, school providing large print homework or, more discretely one of those magnifying sheets. Lots of people have success with different coloured films to put over the page, or even work printed on different coloured paper.

And, probably for later, there is dragon dictate. I heard of a lass who could not write or read but is at uni with all her work recorded by dragon dictate and all her written texts dealt with by text-voice software.

Hope this helps

Good Luck

Thanks for the response! I hadn't thought of touch typing at all, I used kaz myself years ago, will see if I still have the disk somewhere.
I will certainly bring up the other things you suggested, DD has been getting more and more anxious because she knows these things don't come easily for her

It is all important that she realises that it is NOT HER FAULT.

She is. according to the report, in a well documented minority and is in good company eg Einstein, Richard Branston (who also has a speech impediment) and former deputy prime minister Michael Heseltine.

The top business people are far more likely to have learning issues such as dyslexia than the mainstream population. Top sports people similarly.

OK it might be easier to fit in with the majority, but my ds, now at uni, has set up a new society, and is romping up the ranks of the Officer Training Corps. He says that he would not change a thing 'it makes you more determined' .

And yes, he can still mis-spell his own name, but so what?

My DH points out that he writes only a few times per week, when he signs his name at the bottom of letters, and that is illegible. Spelling is vastly over-rated and the world of texting and social media is giving it a long overdue kicking.

dd will be fine, she just has to deal with the over-strict rules of the mainstream classroom until they adjust to meet her needs,

Good Luck