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Does My Child Have a Learning Disability?
By Carol S. Siege, PCC
Founder, Family Pathways Coaching, LLC
By the time my youngest child was in preschool, it was evident he was struggling to recognize letters and link sounds to words. Two of his older brothers had already been diagnosed with learning differences, so the red flags were clear to me: Letters had no meaning to him and no amount of time with flashcards were making them any more identifiable. By elementary school, even though he could articulate thoughts and make connections verbally, reading and writing continued to elude him.
By age 6 he was formally diagnosed with dyslexia, along with ADHD, and began working with specialists to learn to read and write. It was a long journey, but today he is a huge fan of fantasy fiction, with books stacked across his room. He is a successful student, though he must put in more hours than his classmates and relies on a multi-sensory approach to learning. He learns best by reading about a topic, listening to lectures, digesting the information, and writing his notes manually so the information is embedded in his memory.
Research conducted by the NHIS, the U.S. Department of Education, and other related associations show that most LD diagnoses come between grades 2 and 5 (ages 7 to 11), though some children are of course diagnosed earlier or later. As classroom work moves faster and becomes more involved – think math word problems and literature that departs from plot-driven stories – learning differences become more apparent.
If you are worried about your child’s academic performance, read on for some typical signs to look for in LD students.
- Otherwise capable children perform poorly in class
When my oldest child was in preschool, he loved to invent stories and would dictate these imaginative tales while I wrote and wrote and wrote. But when he entered first grade and was asked to write the simplest narrative, he was wholly unable to comply. He could still verbally express his thoughts, but putting pencil to paper seemed out of his reach. None of his teachers questioned his intellectual capabilities (as it turns out, he is classified as gifted), and yet he was unable to complete what would seem like simple academic tasks. That was a first sign for us.
- Egregious spelling or math errors
Lots of children struggle in Language Arts class and need time to learn the rules of spelling, punctuation, and capitalization. A dyslexic student, however, will make repeated mistakes with seemingly simple words or number sentences and need significantly more exposures to a word or math problem before they commit it to memory. Literacy research shows that typical students need to be exposed to a word between four and 12 times before memorizing it; dyslexic students, in contrast, need to be exposed to a word more than 30 times. Math dyslexics, that is, students who struggle with dyscalculia, also need many more exposures to remember basic math facts.
3. Hard work that doesn’t pay off in the classroom
As a high school freshman, one of my sons had a miserable time in his European history class. He did all of the readings, listened intently to class discussions, and understood the causes and effects of the many 18th and 19th century conflicts he was studying. But despite many hours of preparation, he got a D on a French Revolution exam. What happened? Even though he understood the subject matter, the test focused on names, dates, and locations without any context. Rote memorization that is not connected to stories or patterns is particularly difficult for dyslexic students. Their brains process information differently and often more slowly than typical learners, which makes it significantly harder to recall unrelated facts quickly, especially in stressful situations like tests.
If you suspect your child may have a learning disability, which can include dyslexia (reading), dyscalculia (math), or dysgraphia (writing), consider getting your child tested to confirm a potential diagnosis. School districts or private evaluators can perform IQ tests, phonological processing tests, reading achievement tests, fluency and comprehension tests and/or spelling and writing measures to determine if there is a learning disability or a related condition, such as ADHD.
No matter the outcome, your child will always benefit from patience and understanding. Recognize that some terrifically accomplished people have been diagnosed with or presumed to be dyslexic, including Steve Jobs, Anderson Cooper, and John F. Kennedy, to name just a few from a very long list. Remember that our kids want to succeed. They want to reach their potential. And yet they may need help getting there. Be their advocates, be their cheerleaders, and support their efforts. With help, they will make it to their destination … in their own time.
