A learning disability is not a dead end. Children who learn and think differently can succeed in their academics, social relationships and career pursuit.
What is a Learning Disability?
Learning Disabilities (Differences) are neurological disorders in children which may impair their ability to acquire, comprehend, use and retain verbal or nonverbal information.
As a result, a child may struggle with speaking, writing, spelling, solving basic mathematical problems, retention and coordination. Learning disability is a major cause of poor academic performance in children and can be a lifelong condition as no known ‘cure’ has been discovered.
However, a learning difference does not translate to intellectual deficiency. Children with LD are known to possess special gifts, strengths and skills which when developed can improve their overall developmental performance.
Albert Einstein, Whoppie Goldberg, Ludwig van Beethoven, Charles Darwin and Thomas Edison had learning differences yet they went down history for achieving historical feats.
Types of Learning Disabilities
Learning disabilities vary and there’s also a possibility that a child may have one or two. The most common learning disabilities in children are:
Dyslexia: This is the most common learning disorder that affects a person’s ability to read, write, comprehend or acquire other language skills.
How to identify a child with dyslexia
- A child with dyslexia may also suffer from delayed speech.
- Difficulty with reading, comprehension, spelling proofreading and identifying phonological sounds.
- Struggles with processing auditory or visual information, learning new vocabulary.
- Reversing the position of letters whilst writing.
Dyscalculia: A diagnosis of dyscalculia reveals that the child has difficulty solving problems in mathematics, remembering concepts or identifying patterns, tell the time, count and group numbers. Dyscalculia is also known as “math dyslexia”. A natural dislike for math can be overcome with constant practice but dyscalculia is a severe case.
How to identify a child with dyscalculia
- Difficulty with solving basic arithmetic (addition, subtraction, division and multiplication)
- Struggles with understanding mathematical concepts like measurement, estimation, approximation and time.
- Difficulty with ordering, counting and grouping numbers.
Dysgraphia: Children with dysgraphia find it difficult to organize and express their thoughts in correct, written sentences. Dysgraphia can be caused by neurological disorders or difficulty with motor skills. may also manifest as difficulty with letter spacing, writing neatly, spelling, critical thinking or poor motor planning or grammar skills.
How to identify a child with dsygraphia
- Dsygraphia can manifest as difficulty with expressing written words clearly.
- Jumbled and unclear handwriting.
- Takes time in writing.
- Poor grammatical expressions.
- Poor organization skills in writing, reading books or spelling.
Dyspraxia: This neurological condition affects the child’s ability to coordinate movement, process information and perform tasks in a coordinated order. Dyspraxia is also known as Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) and is caused by the brain’s inability to process information about coordination and movement.
How to identify a child with dyspraxia
- Dyspraxia interferes with hand coordination skills and can hamper specific learning.
- Poor hand-eye coordination skills.
- Struggles with balance and coordination.
Auditory Processing Disorder (APD): Central auditory processing disorder affects the way the brain understands what a child hears. It interpretes a different thing from what is actually said. APD is not in any a hearing loss condition but is related to hearing related tasks.
How to identify a child with APD
- Difficulty remembering or understanding or summarizing verbal speech effectively.
- Difficulty reading, speaking, writing or listening to long teaching sessions.
- Easily distracted by noise or loud sounds.
- Difficulty comprehending jokes, abstract thoughts or figures of speech. They also misunderstand jokes.
How to support children with Learning Disabilities
Learning disabilities can affect the overall performance of a child academically or socially. Hence, knowing what strategy to employ as a parent, educator or caregiver to ensure they thrive and learn is of utmost importance. Diagnosing a disability right away may not be possible but there will be obvious signs that show that a child needs help as stated above.
Here are some helpful strategies parents and educators can utilize to support a child with learning differences (LD)
- Take N.O.T.E: The first step to addressing a learning disabilities, is to take N.O.T.E. of the obvious signs. N.O.T.E. is an acronym for:
- Notice – As a parent, the best way to know your child is by noticing their behaviours. If you notice anything out of the ordinary it may raise questions like these in your mind: Is my child just throwing tantrums or going through a meltdown? Why does my child not stay focused? Is my child struggling with writing, reading, math?
- Observe – To observe, pay close attention to behavioural patterns; where, why and when they happen. Observation makes you aware of what is going on with your child. Take notes of happenings especially for easy referencing.
- Talk – Share your observations with your child’s teacher/educator, a pediatrician or psychologist, your spouse and the child. Interacting with these key players in the child’s life will help you gain more insight into the patterns, their academic, social life and overall well-being.
- Engage – Have a conversation with your child about your observations, careful not project your fears on them. Ask them questions and listen to their explanations. Also give them room to share their concerns and challenges with school work or social relationships. Here’s a guide designed by Understood.org that you can use if starting a conversation is difficult ENGAGE.
- Develop their strengths: The second step to supporting your child with a learning difference is to focus on their strengths. Children have skills or activities they are excellent at and others they are bad at. Find out what your child’s strength is and work on them to get better at it. It could be a simple but useful activity or skill like playing chess, painting, sports, solving problems or caring for people. Get them to develop these strengths and be generous with accolades when they succeed at anything.
- Specialized Learning Program: The third step is for schools to incorporate the Individualized Education Program into the curriculum. An IEP allows a child with a diagnosed disability receive special education which is tailored to meet their learning needs and improve their academic outcomes. An IEP is a great tool for educators in SPE because it focuses on the child’s current level of performance, measurable goals and objectives and support systems for achieving the goals and objectives. Teachers can teach a child with LD to “learn how to learn” thus achieving success and improvement. Success for a student with LD is possible if educators use direct instruction; learning strategy instruction; and using a sequential, simultaneous structured multi-sensory approach.
- Support Groups and Communities: Maximizing support groups and communities is another way to manage and support a child with LD. Local and online support groups contain information and helpful tips from other parents facing similar situation. Also resources like books on learning disabilities, special education and parenting guides can be of great help. Utilizing these resources will help you learn more about your child’s difference and how best to support them through the journey.
- Develop their social and emotional Skills: Lastly, help your child by developing healthy social and emotional skills. Children with learning disabilities often struggle to keep social relationships and this can affect them. Integrate them into the community, get them to belong to a group and engage activities that can be helpful to their social and emotional well-being. Being children who learn differently, it’s okay to let them know their learning style will be different but every step to getting better at relating with others will build their self esteem and confidence.
