Sorry if you are all fed up with questions about dyslexia and related concerns

[Sherbert37]

DS2 is going to be assessed privately for dyslexia and 'other concerns'. Any idea what this may show up and what the next steps will be? His school have never really taken my concerns seriously but his teacher this year believes we are 'missing something'.
He is nearly 10. His spelling is all over the place, he can read well but it is from memory, is painfully slow tying his shoelaces, didn't speak properly until he was nearly 3. He is kind and helpful at school but needy at home and becoming very frustrated, although he is desperate to learn. I do hope this shows us the way forward before he goes to secondary school. Any help much appreciated.

Is the assesment for Dyslexia only? or will they be able to do an overall assesment and let you know the findings.

It can sometimes be difficult to get independant assesments recognised by statutory bodies like LEA's so be prepared for the fact that although it means you will finally have the answers you need it may not necessarily give him the help he may require.

If he does have Dyslexia an the school accept this, depending on the degree of his difficulties he will be offered either an IEP which lists some targets and strategies in which they can help to achieve these goals.
he may be placed on school action + whihc is similar to an IEP but with a little extra funding so he may be able to get some time out of the classroom to help with area's of his education thathe may find difficult.
if he is very severe in his difficulties they may advise you apply for a statement of special educational needs. this involves getting assesments from various sources, they hold a review and will decide if his needs are great enough to warrant a statement. if he is they will allocate him an amount of funding which will be used to meet the criteria set out in the statement. if it is stated that he needs a 1:1 for 4 hours then the school and LEA are LEGALLY obliged to provide this.

try to take it all one step at a time, if you dont know then ask. make sure you are fully understanding of all thats going on....and get your battle gear ready.

Thanks for your reply Mamazon. We do have 'informal' help in place at present - he has been doing Toe by Toe with me each night and is seen by the SN teacher after school one day a week (for the last few weeks). I don't feel they are taking this seriously. It does not help that I have two older children who are very gifted and I worry about being seen as the pushy parent. The assessment is a general one which looks at motor skills as well as reading and writing. I am doing it as much to rule out any problems as to rule them in, if that makes sense. I have worked very hard with him to keep him happy (he has been a demanding child in many ways but is very very loving). I am now at the stage where I may have to accept that I cannot 'parent' him out of this.

when you say "can read well but it is from memory" do you mean he reads whole word rather than letter by letter? coz whole word reading is pretty common in dydslexics , its not a big problem once you get away from reading aloud, and may even be quicker.
Good luck. hope you find some teaching methods that suit his way of learning.

I would say he recognises the shape of common words, also is very quick to guess from the initial sounds. Toe by Toe is making him slow down as he has to sound out every syllable. He can do this but only on the third attempt with some blends.