Black Friday CountDown 1

11 November, 2007

Spotting Specific Learning Difficulties in school failure

As schools re-opened for a new term, many children and parents alike feel apprehensive. Some of them recall the struggle they go through with homework, tests and just the day-to-day learning. It becomes even more frustrating when the child is obviously bright and has all the necessary tools to succeed. Then why is s/he not coping with schoolwork?

At risk for Learning Disabilities:

  • Language delay  the child starts to speak later than 2 years
  • Delay in development of milestones
  • Problems at birth
  • Very irritable and difficult during infancy and toddlerhood
  • Positive family history
  • Recurrent otitis media or ear infections
  • Early signs of Learning difficulties - preschool
  • Difficulty with tying shoelaces or buttoning
  • Delayed speech.
  • Problems with pronunciation
  • Problems with rhyming words and learning rhymes
  • Difficulty with learning shapes, colours and how to write their own name
  • Difficulty with retelling a story in the right order of events
  • Poor pencil control or dislike of colouring
  • Difficulty in picking up the alphabet
  • Delay in recognising colours and shapes

Symptoms in primary school children:

  • Problems with reading a single word.
  • Regularly confuses certain letters when writing, such as 'd' and 'b' or 'm' and 'w'.
  • Regularly writes words backwards, such as writing 'pit' when the word 'tip' was intended.
  • Problems with grammar, such as learning prefixes or suffixes.
  • Tries to avoid reading aloud in class.
  • Doesn't like reading books.
  • Reads below their expected level.

Symptoms in high school children:

  • Poor reading.
  • Bad spelling, including different misspellings of the same word in one writing assignment.
  • Difficulties with writing summaries.
  • Problems with learning a foreign language.
  • All children with LD dislike going to school and may resist doing homework.
  • Diagnosis

If you suspect that your child has SLD or Specific Learning Difficulties then first talk to his or her class teacher. Then if necessary seek professional advice. The evaluation may include testing a range of factors including:

  • Cognitive (thinking) skills
  • Memory
  • Vocabulary
  • Literacy skills
  • Intellectual ability
  • Attention control
  • Language

Dr. Rajeshree Singhania; MD, PhD, MEd, Neurodevelopmental Paediatrician;

Dubai Health Care City; P: 04 4298498; Email: singhaniaclinic@yahoo.com

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