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Categories Affected by Dyslexia
Reading
Dyslexics will often confuse letters
(b for d, p for b etc.) and say words backwards (tac
for cat) and will often omit simple words in sentences.
Word and letter reversals are common as are the omissions
of small words and parts of words. Their ability
to see the sequence in words or sentences is somewhat
scrambled. Their visual and phonetic memory is extremely
weak which causes the deficits in reading.
Writing
Writing is often delayed in dyslexics.
The ability to write follows the same patterns as
reading, some words are written backwards and d's
and b's are often confused. For some dyslexics, printing
is easier than written script, yet for others, the
opposite will hold true. Sometimes you'll notice
'mirror writing', this is not at all unusual for
dyslexics.
Spelling and Grammar
Although some dyslexics
are good spellers, it often isn't the case with many.
Again, you'll notice word and letter reversals in
spelling. Weak memory and instability with phonics
hampers the ability to spell correctly. The ability
to spell is often due to a good memory and understanding
of phonetics which are often weak in the dyslexic
student. Note, the ability to spell correctly improves
over time. Grammar needs to be taught to dyslexic
students to help with such items as capitalization,
run on sentences and standard punctuation. Although
it's seen as a weakness, it can be compensated for.
Spatial Orientation
Left, right, front and
back and areas of directionality are a weakness among
dyslexics. Many will get lost easily in large buildings,
new locations and the poor sense of directionality
will cause some confusion. They don't seem to have
an intuitive sense for right or left or North, South,
East and West. Improved strategies to compensate
will help improve spatial awareness and dirctionality
issues over time.
Math/Time
Although disabilities in math are
referred to as Discalculia, dyslexics will often
reverse numbers in mathematical operations and have
difficulty telling time and remembering the difference
between quarter past or a quarter to, of course digital
watches certaintly help!
Speech / Language
Many dyslexics were late talkers
and most will have some type of speech disturbance
but this too is compensated for over time. In some
cases, speech therapy will be required. It will often
take the dyslexic person longer to respond to a question/statement
due to the processing time required to understand
what you have said or asked. This of course improves
when distractions and extraneous background noise
is eliminated. In fact, you'll find that dyslexics
can be easily distracted and a good strategy is to
keep background noise and distractions to a minimal.
This also helps with the ability to concentrate which
is also another weakness among dyslexics.
Summary
Although Dyslexia can't be cured, with
the right teaching strategies, ongoing support and
confidence building, the dyslexic child can certainly
learn. Many dyslexics go on to college or university
and become very adept at compensating for some of
the deficiencies. Like most learning disabilities,
early intervention is key to success. Remember, there
are a lot of famous people with Dyslexia! Thomas
Edison, Albert Einstein, Tom Cruise, Harry Belafonte,
John F. Kennedy, George Washington, Hans Christian
Andersen, and Agatha Christie just to name a few.
Courtesy of Sue Whatson
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