Find Symptoms of Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a learning disorder that some schoolchildren have, affecting boys and girls equally. Typically, the child reports seeing letters and numbers in reverse or inverted positions. For instance, the letter A may appear to a dyslexic child as an inverted V. This, however, is not sufficient basis to diagnose a child as being dyslexic. Thorough testing, aided with a careful consideration of the signs and symptoms of dyslexia, is needed.
Reversals are a warning sign of dyslexia. On its own, this condition gradually disappears until the child is not making reversals by the end of the firs grade. It is when the condition persists beyond this age that further screening for dyslexia is warranted. School teachers, together with the parents, are often the ones who first suspect that a child may be dyslexic.

What are the dyslexia symptoms that parents and teachers may notice? Usually, learning difficulties are the first clues. For example, the child may find it hard to copy words from the board or a book. His written work may appear jumbled, with frequent misspellings and uneven spacing, direction or letter size. He might also evince forgetfulness or poor memory, failing to recall simple things such as the plot of his favorite story. And all too often, he experiences problems in math. He struggles with arithmetic operations, and even with counting numbers.

At play, the child may also display symptoms of dyslexia. He or she also has trouble distinguishing between left and right. It is common for him to not have a preference for either left or right hand.
The dyslexia symptoms do not stop there. There may also be auditory problems, such that the child often fails to understand what he hears, let alone remember it. A complex or multi-step instruction may be particularly perplexing to him. Related to his processing difficulties, he also may pronounce words incorrectly, because he has not learned their correct sounds. His sentences may not make any sense to others, due to various reasons such as mispronunciation, use of the wrong words, and missing words or parts of the sentence. It is many a dyslexic child's frustration to know exactly what they want to say, but fail to find the words or the ability to express it. Some children find this so upsetting that they lose interest in communicating with others and withdraw into a world of their own.

Any one of these symptoms, but more likely a combination of them, can cause a dyslexic child to become introverted, shy, and at times even depressed. Failing to understand his situation, his playmates may make fun of him, aggravating the situation. The dyslexic child may develop a low self-esteem, have no friends, and begin to hate school and learning in general. To a casual observer, he may look like an unmotivated and lazy student, but of course such is not the case.

While most dyslexic children tend to be withdrawn, there are those who act out. This may be a direct expression of their frustration, but it also distracts attention away from their learning difficulties.
When parents and teachers notice these symptoms of dyslexia, they should be open to the possibility of the existence of the learning disorder. Help should be given as early as possible for the child to learn to cope with his or her disability and the symptoms of dyslexia.

Thank you so much for caring about literacy in the world!
My goal is to have compassionate education, and to start students where they are, always preserving their self-esteem. Through correct understanding of dyslexia this will be easy!