Dyslexia

Cause

In a person with dyslexia, processing of the letter-sound link in the brain is disrupted. How this exactly works is not yet known. Dyslexia is congenital and in about half of the cases hereditary. The only exception is that dyslexia can be caused by brain damage due to an accident or a cerebral infarction.

Symptoms

Dyslexia can cause problems with reading, spelling and arithmetics. Therefore, the condition usually emerges in the elementary school. There are almost always automation problems. This often causes problems in areas other than learning to read and spell, such as the development of fine motor skills and orientation in the environment and the automation of other activities. Reading often takes so much effort that the material cannot simultaneously be stored in memory. Learning of rows is difficult, as is understanding of a text or a complicated sum. Learning achievements lag behind those of other children. In children, this causes great emotional stress and possibly the development of emotional or behavioral problems. Early identification and diagnosis is important.

Diagnosis

After identifying the problems posed by the teacher, the diagnosis should be made by a specialist in this field and a dyslexia certificate will be issued. Specialists who do the examination are the remedial educationalist, psychologist and/or neuro speech therapist.

Treatment

Dyslexia cannot be cured. But training is, depending on the severity of the dyslexia, in many cases possible. Many children can learn to compensate for their problems and get along in school. Sometimes, minor adjustments are necessary, such as additional time for a test. Remedial teaching might be necessary. Anyway, it doesn’t mean that a child with dyslexia has to follow special education.
Treatment of dyslexia includes mainly training. By extensive practicing under expert supervision and with proper tools (and tricks), both reading and spelling skills can improve significantly. The training can be provided by a remedial teacher, a remedial educationalist or a speech therapist who specializes in dyslexia treatment.

Prognosis

Dyslexia is a learning problem that will persist throughout life. However, with the help of exercises and tips, children may have fewer problems with their condition. Using a computer and accepting having dyslexia, children can function normally in society, despite their disability.

Considerations

• Take time to study. Really go for it.
• Many dyslectics suffer from background noise. Minimize distraction when doing homework or attending classes at school.
• You can learn best in your own way.
• Summarize lessons. Identify the essence in each paragraph and write it in your own words. By mentally summarizing, you understand better what is read. By writing it down, it is exactly logical for you.
• For difficult subjects and themes, always try to practice as much as possible.
• Try to work ahead.
• Read as much as possible. Read some text every day, read it aloud and try to understand what you read.
• Try an audio book. Nowadays, there are more and more audio books on the market.
• Don’t make dyslexia a big taboo. If necessary, you can explain that you have dyslexia and indicate what the problems are and what you’re just very good at.
• If the child is still in school, there may be made an appointment with the mentor at the beginning of the school year, possibly together with the parents. Tell that the child has dyslexia and what tools the child needs and uses and arrange this immediately for the entire school year. Agree also that teachers who do bother, may be referred to the mentor.

Facts

• The German ophthalmologist Rudolf Berlin has used the term ‘dyslexia’ for the first time in 1872.
• The term ‘dyslexia’ is derived from the Greek words dys- (limited) and lexis (word) and thus means ‘limited reading’.
• The prevalence of dyslexia is about 4%.
• Boys are nearly three times more likely to have this condition than girls.