Children with dyslexia – things you can do to help them succeed
It has been estimated that as many as 20% of the children may have some form of dyslexia. An even more disturbing statistic is that as many as 27% of these children may drop out and never finish school if intervention and treatment is not happening. Although this is not an article about dyslexia statistics, one is worth reciting is that only 1 / 3 of children with dyslexia are being treated in school. There are many things you can do at home for your dyslexic child. Read on to learn some of these things.
First and perhaps most important, is to show support and love for the child. If they are struggling to read it will affect the whole learning process, and they can be categorized as slow or stupid if they have not been diagnosed correctly. Other children may ridicule them or shun them. At home, they must understand that you do not think they are stupid and that you support them in their efforts to learn.
Another way to support your child is to ensure that they receive proper diagnosis and treatment for their disorder. You are your child's best advocate. Schools and skills teachers in the school must deal with many children and limited resources. If your child is struggling in reading you may want to consider talking to schools about dyslexia testing or get more outside help from an educational psychologist or a literacy expert. There is a possibility that child may only need something simple, such as vision correction, to improve their reading skills. It is also possible that they are dyslexic and need a different approach to reading to help them learn and keep up with their peers.
This brings up another area where you can help children with dyslexia. If you read and learn as much as you can about the disease, you can work with them and help them to learn in the style that suites them best. Literacy teachers are frustrated children as they work with and make progress during the school year, but did not practice their reading over the summer and will return early next year because of it. It is well known that children who are struggling to show more improvement if they read outside of school in addition to getting special help while in school.
Encouraging your child is another area where the parents are key. You can help your child to maintain their self-esteem by pointing out the areas where they excel in other subjects. You can also help them learn about famous people whom they may see as role models who suffer from dyslexia. Just a short list of the people, Thomas Edison, Jay Leno, Whoopi Goldberg, Ervin "Magic" Johnson, etc. This list goes on and on.
Being diagnosed with dyslexia need not be traumatic for a child or a negative thing. In fact, it may be the turning point title = "http://www.dyslexiahealth.com/kids-with-dyslexia/"> children with dyslexia need to get the help they might not have previously. You as a parent, teacher, or friend can help them overcome this illness and live a very successful, fulfilled life.
About the Author
Dee Henry has written a great book on all aspects of dyslexia especially for parents of kids with dyslexia. Visit her website at http://www.dyslexiahealth.com/ to subscribe to her free email course on dyslexia.