Learning Difficulties and Attention Challenges

Dyslexia is an inherited condition that makes it extremely difficult to read, write and spell in a person’s native language despite having at least average intelligence. Approximately 10-20% of the population has some form of dyslexia. Most forms are never diagnosed. Dyslexia has NOTHING to do with overall intelligence, but with the ability to process individual sounds in words.

What does an attention problem look like?

As a parent, you are aware when your child is struggling to maintain attention, but are the causes of those struggles true ADD/ADHD, laziness or just plain defiant behavior?

These are some typical warning signs that your child may have an attention problem:

• Poor study or work habits
• Fidgeting or squirming excessively
• Constantly interrupting in class or in conversations
• Difficulty maintaining attention
• Difficulty organizing activities
• Getting up often from his or her seat in class
• Taking too long to finish assignments
• Failing to hand in homework
• Answering questions before they are completed
• Getting distracted by noise or other conversations
• Difficulty waiting for his or her turn
• Constantly has to be moving

It is important for you as a parent to realize your child is not doing these things on purpose. Kids who show these signs don’t yet have the ability to adequately control their attention. They may lose focus too easily or actually hyper-focus on activities that they enjoy. The key is teaching them to recognize and learn what it feels like to pay attention and to learn to be in control of their own attention.

Sensory processing refers to the way the brain receives, organizes and responds to input received through the senses. Sensory processing disorder (formerly referred to as sensory integration dysfunction) is a condition in which the brain has trouble receiving and responding to information that comes in through the senses. Some children with sensory processing disorder are oversensitive to stimulants in their environment. Common sounds may be painful or overwhelming. For example, the light touch of a shirt may chafe the skin causing unseen, distracting discomfort.

Children showing neurodevelopmental delay issues have underdeveloped nervous and reflex system causing underdeveloped motor and visual skills, hand eye coordination problems and perceptual skills. If left untreated, these physical inabilities will lead to frustration, hyperactivity, stress, hypersensitivity and, later on, emotional problems. These problems can affect the child's physical capabilities, learning, coordination and behavior. If the problem persists to adulthood, symptoms can include agoraphobia, excessive reaction to stimuli, anxiety, panic attacks, difficulty making decisions and poor self-esteem.

An auditory processing delay is a neurological defect that affects how the brain processes spoken language. This makes it difficult for the child to process verbal instructions or even to filter out background noise in the classroom. While their ability to hear is ok, there is a neurological basis for their impaired ability to listen. A child with auditory processing delay can often have the same types of behavioral problems as a child with ADD. However, using the techniques appropriate for an ADD child will not be very effective with a child suffering from auditory processing issues.

Imagine that every time you open a book, the page looks something like this: “Comeo n,” saidB et sy.”W eha vet opic kudth iscor n.W edon ‘thavea no therc anof boqc o rn.””A reweg oin gtoe atdo dcor ntha t’sbe enont heflo or,” askebS usan. “W ec answas hit” sai d Be tsy.T hech ilp rene nttow or k.Itto okalo ngti meto dic kubth ebopc orn.Th enth eyto okt hecor ntoth ek itche nan pwa she bit.

How motivated would you be to read? Would you still try your best, even if you know it will take you hours just to try to figure out what the words say?

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