How to Figure Out if Child Has Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a common learning disorder that affects many children and adults. The proper recognition of dyslexia can help children and adults manage their learning disability and even help them succeed in many areas of their life. However, failure to recognize dyslexia early on can cause much stress and emotional heartache for the child, parents, and teachers.
What Is Dyslexia?
Many people may have a skewed definition of what is dyslexia. Many people think that those with dyslexia just see everything backwards or that they just mix up letters. Others are under the misconception that those with dyslexia are just unintelligent or bad students. Some even think that those who have dyslexia must also have brain damage, which couldn’t be further from the truth.
Dyslexia is a learning disability that is primarily language based. Dyslexia affects the learning of reading, writing, word pronunciation, and even reading comprehension. Since reading and writing are the core to any subject in school, even math, dyslexia makes every subject harder for the child.
Signs and Symptoms of Dyslexia
The most prominent sign of dyslexia in a child is poor reading and writing skills. Children with dyslexia will often become overwhelmed and emotional when it comes to schoolwork. They may even complain of stomachaches and headaches when reading. The easiest way to figure out if a child has dyslexia is to have them read a book aloud. This book should be one they are not familiar with. One will be able to suspect dyslexia based on the child’s reading skills and emotional state.
Many cases of dyslexia can also present themselves in other signs and symptoms in a child. For example, a child can suffer health issues or habits due to their dyslexia. These issues or habits could be bed-wetting, low self-esteem, ear infections, and food sensitivities. While experts cannot tie these issues directly with children who have dyslexia, these traits are similar in those with more severe cases of the learning disorder.
Other children with dyslexia may even have behavioral issues due to their learning disability. These issues can include goofing around in class or causing trouble among other children. It is not that these children mean to be disobedient or not pay attention; they just overcompensate for what they cannot do. Many times their “goofing around” is a survival mechanism so other children cannot make fun of them for being a poor student.
If a child is suspected to have dyslexia, it is crucial to see the child’s doctor and a specialist. The doctor can rule out sight problems or any other problems that may be causing issues. A specialist or therapist can usually at tor through he child’s school. They can diagnose the problem and help the child and family with special school accommodations.
Photo by John-Morgan
