Reading Difficulties and Dyslexia

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As a parent and like many other parents, we want our child to do well and reading is a skill essential to succeed in this present day. But what happens when a problem arises in the reading process?

There is the process of reading, and in addition to being able to read there is also reading comprehension.

Put simply, reading refers to the cognitive process of understanding a written linguistic message and understanding meaning from a piece of text.

These reading difficulties could include:
- How reading is taught in school;
- An attention deficit disorder;
- Another memory difficulty;
- Trouble sounding out or recognising words out of context;
- A slow reading rate;
- Confusion between letters and sounds;
- Reading without expression;
- Responding to punctuation in an inappropriate way;
- Low intelligence;
- A physical disability such as poor vision or hearing;
- A lack of knowledge of the English language;
- Lack of important pre-reading skills; or
- Lack of exposure to printed material.

Some of these problems are easily identifiable and treated, but where a reading difficulty persists then a diagnosis of a more complex reading problem may be identified.

A more complex problem is one that may appear to be brain based, whether inherited or not, it will follow a more specific reading disability such as dyslexia.

What Is Dyslexia?
Educator and researchers are still learning and identifying what dyslexia is themselves.

Perhaps we could say dyslexia is an overwhelming difficulty to learn to read and write by normally intelligent children. A language based problem.

If we were to take the word itself it can be broken down into 'dys', meaning not able or having difficulty with, and 'lexia' which is Greek for language.

The problems associated with dyslexia are:
- The reversal of letters;
- A tendency to be ambidextrous;
- Unable to remember sounds or names of letters;
- Unable to break words into component sounds;
- Writing from right to left;
- Reading words backwards;
- Substituting words for another related words; or
- Making new words by mixing letters from other words;

Support Mechanisms
There are some simple activities one can do to support a child with reading difficulties, such as choosing stories with:
- A reduced number or words (or difficult words);
- Shorter passages and a clear message; and
- Clear and engaging illustrations.

There is also the option of attending a course providing information about how to build a child's pre-reading skills.

Most importantly, it is fundamental to promote a positive attitude and boost self esteem.

At the end of the day the above is a very general list and one should not panic if their child has one or two of these signs.

It is a culmination of many factors that will contribute to a reading difficulty that will give you cause for concern.

Early Detection
Whether you are the parent or the teacher, early identification of any reading difficulty is essential. Don't hesitate and leave it, thinking the child will grow up and it will go away after a year.

Early detection means the child is likely to have greater success at overcoming their reading difficulty. As educators we need to deal with such problems as effectively as possible.

For parents, don't wait, contact your teacher and discuss your concerns and work towards contacting a professional reading specialist.

A reading specialist can assess and discuss a future plan on how to tackle the problem effectively. A reading specialist can also provide the intensive instruction necessary to support your child!

Whatever is diagnosed don't despair, as these reading difficulties may be corrected and improvement visible, but you must act sooner rather than later!

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Reading Difficulties And Dyslexia

Reading Difficulties And Dyslexia