Dyslexia caught, treate dearly can give a child success

Dyslexia affects one out of every five children. Despite the prevalence of this learning disability, the word dyslexia is still a cause of confusion.

A common misconception is that dyslexia is a problem with flipping letters. To add to the confusion, the education systems in the U.S. take different approaches to this reading and spelling disorder. For example, Texas, screens all struggling readers for dyslexia, while in Idaho, dyslexia is not a term commonly used. Teachers and specialists in Idaho use the term Specific Learning Disability to define a child with reading and spelling deficits despite adequate intelligence and adequate instruction.

Sally Shaywitz, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics at Yale University School of Medicine, has shown that dyslexia is a complicated problem rooted in the brain systems that give us the ability to understand and express language, which affect skills involved in accurate and fluent word reading and spelling. It is a learning disability characterized by difficulties in phonological awareness, verbal memory and verbal processing.

An inability to read and spell can create great problems in a child's educational process. Early signs of dyslexia can be detected even before kindergarten. A child is at risk if there is a family history of reading problems; or if the child has difficulty with rhyming and learning the alphabet or the days of the week. The earlier dyslexia is identified and treated; the sooner a child's life can be changed for the better.