Dyslexia or just slow to catch on?

[cajunrose]

I've vented here before about my dd7's spelling and reading. She has trouble reading the most basic sentences with just words like "king, cane, come" etc. Just the same, she can't write those words. She wrote this today (It's a list)

daer (b backwards)-bear

stokeeking-stocking

star-spelled correct

stor-star (3 words after the correct star spelling)

doe-(b backwards)-bow

kandy kane

arnuint-ornament

 

Her reading is SO choppy..she has comprehension problems. She has to sound out most words, although, she IS getting better...but not hugely so. She finally got better at writing her numbers correctly, but still writes 1 (the 'formal' way..her choice to write it like that..lol), 4 and 5 backwards about 40% of the time. It used to be 100% backwards.

 

She was able to memorize her addition facts but has quickly forgotten most of them.

 

She can read a word correctly in on sentence and have to sound it out in the next....and sound it out incorrectly.

 

I'm so frustrated. She was reading something so basic yesterday and just couldn't get it. I got mad at her...then got upset with myself. If she is having problems, I have nobody but myself to blame.

 

My friends think I'm too worried about it...I think if she has a problem, she needs to get help sooner rather than later.

 

Her father has dyslexia...that's fairly obvious even as an adult.

 

Thanks for reading this. I need somebody to rest my fears or urge me to get her help. I don't know which way to go.

 

Oh and if you read this:

http://www.dys-add.com/symptoms.html

 

The lists for "Reading and spelling", "Handwriting Dysgraphia", "Quality of Written work", and "Extremely messy bedrooms" (although, I'm a messy person by nature..this could be learned) describe my daughter word for word.

[sixpence1978]

Honestly, you should look into getting her tested. Especially since your DH has dyslexia and she has so many red flags.

 

Pop in over at the Special Needs board too. The ladies there are super helpful.

[Carrie12345]

You've described my 7yodd perfectly. ;)

 

In our case, All About Spelling and a hefty dose of copywork has been helping a lot. Still far from perfect, but the amount of improvement is amazing, imo. We are confident that she's dyslexic/dysgraphic, but is learning to cope pretty well after half a year of focusing on AAS and copying.

[cajunrose]

You've described my 7yodd perfectly. ;)

 

In our case, All About Spelling and a hefty dose of copywork has been helping a lot. Still far from perfect, but the amount of improvement is amazing, imo. We are confident that she's dyslexic/dysgraphic, but is learning to cope pretty well after half a year of focusing on AAS and copying.

 

 

We finished the first book of AAS and that's her spelling after her doing well with the program. No 'real life' improvement despite her 'getting it' during the lessons. Forget about copying...she just won't do it.

 

I'm so frustrated.

 

The kid is GOOD in math though (although...while i'm writing this, she wrote 12:05 rather than 12:50 for her time...rofl). She doesn't like it and fights me on it, but she is really good at it.

[Wildiris]

Dyslexia does have a genetic link, so it might be a good idea to have her screened.

 

My DD~7 still gets mixed up with "b" and "d."

Have your tried being very consistent with school. I've found that repetition in small chunks of time works well.

[Ellie]

We finished the first book of AAS and that's her spelling after her doing well with the program. No 'real life' improvement despite her 'getting it' during the lessons. Forget about copying...she just won't do it.

Maybe Spalding would be better. It's so much more comprehensive than AAS, and addresses more issues such as directionality.

 

I'm so frustrated.

She's just 7. It's just reading and spelling issues. It's probably fixable. It's nothing to be *frustrated* over.:)

 

The kid is GOOD in math though (although...while i'm writing this, she wrote 12:05 rather than 12:50 for her time...rofl). She doesn't like it and fights me on it, but she is really good at it.

First-born children are often just like this. Ask me how I know. :D

[Blossom'sGirl]

My artsy ds 7 is very similar except for the copying part, he is very good at that. My concern is that his early reader 5yo brother has passed him in reading. I am going to start SWR with both of them next year and drop the BJU reading program. I want him to read for fun and I have been through it enough now to help him on my own. I have heard that writing in cursive helps this. I know it helped my oldest tremendously. I have also heard that music lessons, such as piano, help a child to get the left to right progression.

 

I wish I could have my 7yo tested but I don't know where to go and I'm not sure an expensive "official" diagnosis would change anything.

[abbeyej]

daer (b backwards)-bear

Doesn't concern me too much -- reversals of b/d aren't uncommon at seven, and switching the vowels isn't shocking either

stokeeking-stocking

This one worries me more because of the additional syllable...

star-spelled correct

stor-star (3 words after the correct star spelling)

doe-(b backwards)-bow

kandy kane

arnuint-ornament

The others don't shock me. This one is of more concern because she leaves out a sound completely. Using a wrong but plausible sound isn't a grave concern with a new reader -- but adding in additional sounds or leaving out sounds completely is worrisome.

 

Her reading is SO choppy..she has comprehension problems. She has to sound out most words, although, she IS getting better...but not hugely so. She finally got better at writing her numbers correctly, but still writes 1 (the 'formal' way..her choice to write it like that..lol), 4 and 5 backwards about 40% of the time. It used to be 100% backwards.

Again, at 7 these things are borderline. Many non-dyslexic 7yos have reversals, but these are quite a few... Difficulty with comprehension is to be expected when she has to go to the effort of sounding out most words.

She was able to memorize her addition facts but has quickly forgotten most of them.

Most kids need regular review of math fact.

She can read a word correctly in on sentence and have to sound it out in the next....and sound it out incorrectly.

Again, not necessarily unusual for a new reader.

I'm so frustrated. She was reading something so basic yesterday and just couldn't get it. I got mad at her...then got upset with myself. If she is having problems, I have nobody but myself to blame.

This isn't true. Don't blame yourself. Don't get upset with her either! But this is NOT your fault. (My mother home schooled three kids. She said, "I was a *fabulous* home school teacher -- until your sister came along." Mom *was* a good teacher -- but my sister's LDs made learning so much more difficult, and it was really hard on both of them...)

 

My friends think I'm too worried about it...I think if she has a problem, she needs to get help sooner rather than later.

Yes. You're right.

Her father has dyslexia...that's fairly obvious even as an adult.

This is the *biggest* red flag for me. This combined with the fact that she's adding in additional sounds or leaving sounds out completely in her spelling and all of the other "little" things that she does come together to give a picture of a child who very likely has some (possibly only mild) dyslexia.

Thanks for reading this. I need somebody to rest my fears or urge me to get her help. I don't know which way to go.

...

 

She doesn't sound wildly outside the range of normal to me. But given that she's at least borderline *and* that there's a family history, I would ABSOLUTELY go looking for help right now rather than putting it off.

 

But please, please, please don't blame yourself for this. If there are things you can improve about your teaching (consistency, for instance, if that's an issue), then do that -- but if she's dyslexic, it truly has nothing to do with either of you. And the last thing I want is you beating yourself up for being an "inadequate teacher" or either one of you imagining that she's "bad" or "lazy" or "stupid" (these are the labels that dyslexic kids often pick for themselves when they don't know WHY they can't do what everyone else can) because she's struggling.

 

Go ahead and find out as much as you can about what's behind this and how you can help her... This is the *perfect* time for you to begin interventions -- she's old enough that you can really get a good picture of how she struggles, but young enough that interventions can make a really enormous impact on her future academic progress.

[Hikin' Mama]

I absolutely agree with everything Abbey said. My daughter has dyslexia, and I wish I would have had her tested earlier. Your daughter may not, but if she does, it will greatly help you both to know that. Some programs that work for kids without learning disablities are not so great for kids with dyslexia, such as the above mentioned Spalding (at least that's what I've read as I've researched dyslexia).

 

If she is diagnosed with a LD, go over to the special needs board and seek help. The people there are great and have BTDT.

 

Good luck!

[LizzyBee]

Have you done the free student screening on http://www.bartonreading.com with her? If your dd is dyslexic, and it sounds to me as though she is, you might need to back up and work on phonological awareness before continuing with any reading or spelling program. After she can pass the student screening, I suggest using an Orton Gillingham based program such as Wilson or Barton. We use Barton with my 9 yo dyslexic daughter and she's doing very well. OTOH, I used Phonics Pathways and SWR with my mildly dyslexic middle dd and it was awful. I also tried AAS with my 9 yo when she was younger, and it moved way too fast.

[Quiver0f10]

Honestly, you should look into getting her tested. Especially since your DH has dyslexia and she has so many red flags.

 

Pop in over at the Special Needs board too. The ladies there are super helpful.

 

 

I agree. Your Dh having it significantly raises her chance of having it too. I'd get her tested as soon as possible.

Edited December 6, 2010 by Quiver0f10

[EKS]

I would get her evaluated. The spelling looks exactly like my (dyslexic) son's did at her age and everything else you mentioned sounds like dyslexia. The fact that her father has dyslexia really clinches the deal.

 

You are not too worried about it. Now is an excellent time to get the evaluation ball rolling (it can take a while). Meanwhile, read up on how to teach dyslexics to read, and go for it. You can do it! But it is a long road.