#LongPostAlert#
This is my second “In Other News” post. I promised to be a
voice for other children with special needs, and this time it’s for children
with Dyslexia.
I watched “Like Stars on Earth” an Indian movie in 2011, and
it kinda brought Dyslexia home for me. I had read an article in a Newspaper in
2009, about a Nobel Prize winner who had Dyslexia.
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| Carol Greider |
Carol Greider had won the 2009 Nobel Prize in Medicine with 2
other people. They had discovered Telomerase, an enzyme that plays an important
role in the division of cells, and which has a real potential to fight cancer
and age-related diseases. The Nobel Prize was not her first
award; she had won The Albert Lasker Award in 2006, an award for works in
sciences.
Who would have thought that a lady with this much accolade
struggled through elementary school because she had a disorder that made
reading and speaking difficult? Spelling words, sounding letters, putting
letter sounds together to form words were a challenge for her. She had
challenges with speaking; sometimes the wrong words will come out of her mouth
while she was thinking of another word. Carol Greider had Dyslexia just like that
little boy in Like Stars on Earth.
Dyslexia is a type of learning disorder that affects reading,
spelling, writing, and sometimes speaking. Children with
dyslexia may be able to understand instructions that are verbal, and have
difficulty with written information. The child may find it easy answering
questions orally, but may not be able to write the answers on paper. They may
read and write slowly, write letters the wrong way (e.g confuse “b” for “d”),
spell poorly, confuse the order of letters in words. Some children with
dyslexia see the words moving on the book (at least they say so). Dyslexia does
not only affect the child in writing, reading or spelling; many people with
dyslexia struggle with planning and organization, have difficulty with sequence
of direction. I remember that the little boy in the movie could not throw ball
in a particular direction.
Dyslexia usually becomes obvious when the child starts school
and starts writing, about age 5, but it can be noticed
earlier in pre-school children. Just like autism, a toddler with dyslexia can
have delayed speech (reasons you cannot assume that every child that talks late
has autism). These children may have difficulty pronouncing long words, or may
jumble up words- for example saying “beddy tear” instead of “Teddy bear”; may
not understand rhyming words like “sit” and “hit” especially in Nursery rhymes;
learning alphabets can be a challenge for the child.
Just like autism, dyslexia is a lifelong
disorder, so the child does not outgrow it. Having a child with these
difficulties can be disturbing for a parent, or teaching such a child. Learning
disabilities cannot be beaten out of a child; you cannot wait it out and expect
learning to get easier. Some people assume that comparing the child to other
children will motivate the child to be better, rather it will make the child
rebellious. As a parent, you therefore cannot leave your child’s condition to
chance.
The first way to help your child is by speaking
to the school if they have a Special Education Needs (SEN) Department. In Nigeria,
not all schools have a SEN department, so you may have to get the help of a
Dyslexia professional. But that is not all; like I always say, the bulk of the
work lies on the parents. You have to work to help your child;
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Spend time reading to your
child. This will build the child’s interest in books and improve vocabulary and
listening skills.
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Read books together with
your child. You can discuss the book, to improve comprehension.
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Don’t get bored reading
the same book to your child “a thousand times” (that’s just figurative) if he
likes it, it will reinforce his understanding and get more familiar with the
written text.
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Encourage your child to
read alone so he can get more independent and fluent.
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Reward your child’s
progress in reading, writing, spelling, speaking. Make learning fun, as it is
already harder than it should be for the child.
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As the child grows older,
you can introduce the use of computers, as it makes spelling easier; there is
usually the spell checker. Computers also usually have text-to-speech apps,
helping your child maximize his oral skills.
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Remember to work directly
with the professional that is supporting your child. It is all about team-work.
Carol Greider is not the only dyslexic person
that has succeeded in her career of choice; Whoopi Goldberg, the actress has
dyslexia; Steven Speilberg, the guy that directed many movies including
Transformers is said to be dyslexic; Richard Branson of the Virgin Group (you
know Virgin Airways na); Anderson Cooper, a News anchor on CNN is said to be
dyslexic. The list includes Tom Cruise, Leonardo Da Vinci, Patrick Dempsey, and
Jennifer Aniston. On Wikipedia alone, there are so many people and what they
do.
A Dyslexia suspicion and diagnosis is not the end
of the world. With your support, your child can be successful.
I wish you all the best, and Happy Dyslexia
Awareness Week.
Please share this post to create awareness, you
don’t know the child or parent you may be helping and giving hope to. Thank you.
