Saturday 28 September 2013

Short Term or Active Memory Why’s and How’s (understanding why we have so much frustration and occasional meltdowns) by  Dyslexia Dublin CETC © 2013



We only rely on our short term memory for storing up to seven things ( we can store large numbers but we pair them together, like a phone number 0863500564, would be stored as 086 35 00 56 4) for periods of 20 seconds. Information is then passed onto our long term memory.
Have you ever arrived into a room and forgotten the reason for going in there or maybe about to place an order for food and you can only remember some of the order?…you may have a short term memory problem. This could be short lived (caused by being ill or stress) or more permanent due to a learning need.
We have several areas that we can move information into - short term or long term storage and that is through our sensory channels…hear /say something, see something , touch something, taste something, smell something…all but our hearing happen very much without us realising. Reading this article will hopefully bring clarity and reduce the frustration bought on by a poor memory and also help avoid some of the meltdowns. 


Like what I write please tell your friends about our 
page/forum 
https://www.facebook.com/DyspraxiaGlobalDyslexiaDyscalculiaForumForAll

For many, poor memory when it comes to some aspects of learning or life, can be easily forgotten…these are generally areas that hold little interest and therefore become far easier to forget. One area that never ceases to amaze me is the power of the short and long term memory to retain information through the visual channel.
This is why so many struggle with maths at school, as for the most part it is numbers and not visually stimulating. Try bouncing on an exercise ball or playing maths snap and see the difference… retention is far higher.
I was at a teacher training session many moons ago and can still remember some of the names!
The main reason for this lapse or poor short-term memory is often attributed not so much to the ability of the brain to retain such information, but to the ability of the person to engage in a given task.


How many of you go into a venue and are met by a friend who introduces you to a few people and seconds later you have forgotten their names? It might not necessarily be down to a memory problem. When you entered the room you might well have been distracted by i’s fine architecture or maybe the decor or an intriguing character in the corner. You might be nervous and maybe anticipating awkward conversation, or maybe you weren’t listening when you were first introduced. Try playing a game with yourself by linking each one to a theme or maybe the way they are dressed, like ‘dashing Dan’ or ‘delightful Diana’… this will help you remember names and those other niggling things that are likely to cause awkward moments.


Train your brain everyday…it’s a large muscle and think what happens to our other muscles that get little use. Make sure you do things you find stimulating, this will aid retention and short sharp regular bursts of games or activities will help also.
Get in the habit of recording things…I encourage my students to keep a reflective diary…that way you will refresh your mind of the day’s events and names/places, etc. and a calendar for forthcoming events.
A good memory is key to our survival and one of the things that can also affect it is confidence. If you put yourself under pressure…many melt when the word test is mentioned and that can trigger a shutdown in our memory. This can also cause us to stutter, stammer over an important speech or reading out loud. Take the praise of others but also praise yourself when you achieve something… this raises confidence and self-esteem, which will also sharpen your memory.
When we pop to the shops quite often we make a list and this would be something we could introduce into many things we do…you can also try visualising a previous time to help you remember something you were going to do or even help you track something you have lost or misplaced. This is also a handy technique for doing something new. I remember taking my Motorcycle Test… I know I am dyspraxic and yes, you heard me correct, my Motorcycle Test! During the training I struggled to come up to the expectations of the instructor and was staring at a fail. After thinking it through, that evening I decided to try a different approach. The next morning I said to the instructor that I wanted to follow him, he was shocked but agreed. I was able to visualise all I needed to know and that afternoon much to his amazement I passed and passed well.
I am a very strong believer in short bursts of stimulation through the visual channel to help strengthen short term and long term memory.
The information we provide is for guidance purposes only and professional advice should always be sought.
Resources can also play a part in stimulating and improving short term memory. One such game we stock is the BrainBox range of Memory Training Games. Have a look at the various titles on our Online Resource Store, www.dyslexiadublin.ie


Monday 23 September 2013

’ Dysgraphia -The Whys and How’s’   Dyslexia Dublin CETC © 2013




Dysgraphia can affect many people in various ways…it is generally regarded as deficiency/learning difficulty in the ability to put pen to paper in terms of the written word. It can be a handwriting issue, or a cognitive issue (transcription difficulty)…taking thoughts from the mind and putting them down on paper, and can also be down to agraphia. 

like what we write...you can read more at https://www.facebook.com/DyspraxiaGlobalDyslexiaDyscalculiaForumForAll?ref=hl


We all have moments when our mind goes blank whilst writing or in conversation… with dysgraphia and agraphia this is more profound and on-going. One of the problem areas is the using of graphemes (single letter and often silent in writing – as in debt). Although this is thought to be very much of a cousin to dyslexia, it does not actually bear any relation in so far as many with Dysgraphia and Agraphia students have little if any problems with their reading or spelling. 

Dysgraphia is, as mentioned, a lack of connection from the information stored in our brain and the lack of moving that information when commanded by the brain to the hand (fine motor)…this can be seen as comorbid (exists with other conditions) as it can be seen in children/adults with poor motor skill, such as DCD…Verbal Dyspraxia…ADD…ADHD.


Agraphia, whilst having the same symptoms as dysgraphia, is often caused by damage to the temporal or parietal lobes and also in the motor cortex, which can be as a result of a stroke or other brain injuries. Although we talked about high intellect earlier, this can co-exist with dyslexia in some cases.


Poor motor skills can result in dysgraphia due in part to immature fine motor skills and poor co-ordination (dexterity)… the most common being weak hand/arm muscles. Poor posture can also add to this, especially in DCD children and adults…they tend to tire very quickly and their writing space becomes very crowded.
Students can often present with poor writing and this is down to spatial and even scoptopic issues (visual stress)…they can view the paper as if its tapered top to bottom and their writing moves away from the margin…or their writing simply gets bigger as they work across the page.


Taking down the written word requires huge concentration and you can often find that writing starts off fairly legible and then quickly deteriorates…it can also become slow and laborious due to poor retention of the information being dictated or from a whiteboard, etc. 


It is worth checking to see if your child is writing with the correct hand…I too often find that a left dominant student is writing with the right hand and this was never corrected at the early stage of learning to write.
Very often we put people in boxes (jump to the wrong conclusion) and in doing so miss diagnosing the actual cause of many areas such as dysgraphia. The student does not lack motivation or evade the learning process…it is important for all parents and teachers to observe students in their charge as vigilance will tell a lot. It is important to look out for:


Students who work head down covering their work…this is often through embarrassment (fear of their peers looking at their work and making negative comments).
Crabbing the wrist and fingers whilst writing…could also be a sign of using the wrong hand to write with.
Fingers tiring quickly (hand shaking) when writing even short passages of texts.
Constant correction of work (tipex-ing or rubbing out).
Moving to upper and lower case in the same word.
Letters growing in size or, as mentioned, moving away from the margin (visual stress).
Inability to keep up with teacher or peers dictating (writing speed).
Lack of attention to detail (just want to get it over with).
Constantly looking to the board to re-affirm words (also poor short term memory can cause this).
Faint and illegible writing (can also be due to poor coordination and pressure on the paper).
Poor handwriting (can so often lead people to believe that the student is dyslexic).
Poor Comprehension…unable to build a story from scratch.
Students often complain of feeling tired and will yawn a lot while writing.
How can Dysgraphia be helped:
By introducing gross and fine motor exercises…this will improve posture and also arm, wrist, hand and finger strength and as well as reducing fatigue.
Using whiteboards to practice on and gain correct tip pressure of pen or pencil.
Introducing pen and pencil grips or stubby pens and pencils.
Using a multi-sensory teaching package.
Having a test for visual stress and the possible introduction of filters and coloured writing books.
Students with learning difficulties put far more effort into everything they do even though on the flip side teachers will often disagree…these students are, as previously mentioned, very clever and will in usually excel in subjects other than those that involve writing copious notes.


Dyslexia Dublin.ie carries a huge range of resources to help with Dysgraphia and we ship worldwide.
Please feel free to comment on any of our posts…the information we use in our posts is that of our own opinion and research and occasionally will include the work of others. It is for reading and guidance only and should never be taken literally. 


check out at www.dublin-cetc.com   you can follow us on facebook at dyslexia dublin toby lee 
or on twitter @dyslexiadublin



Toby Lee Dyslexia Dublin CETC © 2013

Friday 20 September 2013

Dyscalculia - (revised) The Why’s and how to spot some of the Signs by  Dyslexia Dublin CETC © 2013


Dyscalculia can be described as an innate specific learning disability (in the mind) that prohibits various levels of understanding in mathematics. It is very similar to dyslexia and in some cases, children/adults can have both.

Like what I write then check out our new facebook page @   https://www.facebook.com/DyspraxiaGlobalDyslexiaDyscalculiaForumForAll?ref=hl

The main difference between the two is the difficulty in understanding numbers, ie. 5 back to front and getting sums reversed (54 x 4 can be read as 45 x 4), learning how to manipulate numbers, learning maths facts and a number of other related symptoms. As with dyslexia, Maths disabilities can also occur as the result of some types of brain injury (apraxia), in which case the proper term is acalculia, to distinguish it from dyscalculia which is of innate, genetic or developmental origin.
Although maths learning difficulties can be generic, occurring in children with low levels of academia, dyscalculia also affects people from across the whole IQ range and sufferers often, but not always, also have difficulties with telling the time and measuring (eg. cooking). 

Many find counting numbers going forward in a particular patter, however they have problems with reversing numbers especially those that have a sequence involving two's and three's
Estimates of the population with dyscalculia range between 3 and 6%.  around 50% of those with dyslexia have dyscalculia and the remainder are generally quite good at mathematics.

Dyscalculia can cause problems with the written maths and indeed for those with dyslexia and dyscalculia, algebra can cause particular problems as the calculations and written word become entwined…however, not so with physical maths (eg. counting with fingers or an abacus) as this is visual. Learning Maths through the visual channel is very important (games , etc.). Also, I find that some, but not all, children are no longer being taught by rote (ie. memorising through repetition)…children with specific learning needs would benefit from this method.
Children suffering from visual stress can also have a problem with writing down sums, as they have a problem in forming columns and rows.
Symptoms of dyscalculia could be if you throw down a number of coins or counters in a random fashion the child/adult would have difficulty in arriving at the correct value/number. They would have a far greater chance of accuracy if they were in rows. Also, with varied objects i.e. one of each…cow, pig, horse, dog for example…they would then use their visual image side to great effect and gain the correct answer and with increased speed too.
Reading a clock is also difficult, especially analogue as opposed to digital…again games can speed this up. Also, going in up in 5’s is good (5, 10, 15 mins) and avoid the ‘to the hour’, just use past the hour, ie. 10,20,30,40 mins past, etc. ‘Quarter past/to’ and ‘half past’ can be introduced later on. Also time keeping can be a problem – it’s beneficial to use minutes when giving instruction, ie. we’re going out in 10 minutes, it’ll be time for bed in 20 minutes, as they will find this easier to understand.
As with Dyslexia, left and right is a problem - with map reading people often turn the map towards the direction they need to head.
Other symptoms are an inability to process multiple requests, difficulty in multi-tasking. Also, problems with reading music and with visualisation in general.
Many adults with dyscalculia have learnt to adapt their world to allow them use their strengths. Being creative for the most part, many become writers and artists
Software intended to intervene and improve children and adult’s academic ability is now widely available.
Multi-sensory educational therapy is a very effective way of increasing academic (ability) age up to a person’s chronological age range.


Need resources to support those struggling with maths then visit our online store at www.dyslexiadublin.ie

NB. this information is from personal research and also partly sourced through the work of others and is purely for improving the understanding of dyslexia…we do not make any suggestions in our posts. Toby Lee Dyslexia Dublin CETC © 2013

Saturday 14 September 2013

‘How Can They say Dyslexia is a Gift?’  by Dyslexia Dublin © 2013
Have you ever heard people say, That’s a half brained idea!’… contrary to the belief of many, our brain is divided into two halves.  We will look in more depth at how we fall into the category of a left or a right brained person.  Have you heard of this before?...  maybe you already know which is your side?  Perhaps you have taken a test?... there are many and also online tests like the one I took the other day which confirmed my thoughts…I am dyslexic and right brained and very happy with that!
Like what I write, follow me on www.dyslexiadublin.blogspot.ie

Okay so how is this played out!
We know of many around the world who are right or left brain dominant and we know from extensive research that we get different things from different areas of the brain, which allows us to store information in our long term memory banks.
Many who have researched cognitive preference/behaviours, strongly believe that we have a particular way of achieving objectives and would process information through preferred channels and media.  It’s strongly thought that left side is very much a linear path and would have a very analytical and logical way of reasoning/doing and the right brain is more open, less analytical and reactionary, often goes with the gut feeling and would be considered thoughtful.
I would point out that there are exceptions to any rule.  It is thought that Einstein was right brained and was purported to have dyslexia yet, as we know, was a great thinker and a brilliant mathematician.  However, it is also possible for people to have equal left and right brain, as well as those that would have a dominance.
There has been much research done, even so far as separation of the left and right sides of the brain, like that of Nobel prize winner Roger W. Sperry.  We know that this doesn’t really solve much as we need both sides to work even if one is sub par, as there are certain parts that control motor, speech, hearing, etc.  I was recently in hospital for a suspected TIA and in the Stroke Ward I gained a valuable insight into much of this research.  After a stroke many are left with speech and motor skill problems, but they have their hearing and sight intact …how is this?  The right side of the brain is the last part to become starved of blood as the main supply goes up the left side and into the left side first.
We can see from the above how the left and right sides differ, indeed Sperry noted that language was driven by the left side and many could identify objects from the right side, but were unable to put a name to such objects.
Many dyslexics would have some problems with maths, however there are others that do not struggle with maths and have problems with dyslexia, this seems to be more word related than numeric.
We are continually taught by many to the left side of our brain, which for left brained and left and right brained is just fine… they like to read and take down notes and listen to monologue presentation’s and can gain all they need to pass exams and go on to University and hold down good jobs.  You will find few left brained students venturing into a domestic science class or art and music… it’s just not there scene, but throw them into Maths or English or maybe Business and Economics and they are at home… most will flourish.
If the right brain was fed information as often as the left we would have a greater number of gifted scholars and this would greatly benefit the world.  Indeed, chances are we would be further developed than we are at present… this is due to our ability to be creative and expressive.
How many of you are like me?...  I pop into IKEA and photograph the display model from all angles and this is far easier for me when building my flatpack, compared to reading complicated  instructions.  In fact in the garage is my classic motorbike which I worked on a few months ago… I took the engine apart piece by piece, taking photographs along the way and a week or so later put it back together again using the photos, not an instruction manual in sight!
We are able to remember information in picture format for years and many wouldn’t question the power of our memories.  We can take one look at a face and know if we are getting the full picture (honesty),  we are generally very good at drama and the arts in general and make very good cooks/chefs.
We only have to look at the list of successful dyslexics/dyspraxics/dyscalculics to see how we make up 33% of the world’s entrepreneurs… many household names.
So where do we go from here?   Teachers need to be given more room to develop their lessons from a more imaginative curriculum, more subjects taught through images and role play, etc.  This would be quite easy to do in English literacy… let the students play out the parts.  Maths could have a far greater reach by turning numbers into fact finding exercises, like the demograph of a Stones concert against that of One Direction.
Lessons would take on a whole new dimension, the students would learn far more and the teachers would have far more fun and reward by teaching this way.
Finally, it’s a win win!  To conclude… being right brained and dyslexic is a gift and one I never want to part with.

Want great resources to help www.dyslexiadublin.ie

All our articles are for advice and guidance only, professional opinions should be sought.
You can follow us on twitter at dyslexiadublin and facebook at dyslexia dublin
you can check out information on Dyslexia and the 4 DY’s at www.dublin-cetc.com

Toby Lee

Saturday 7 September 2013

‘Why is life so damn hard?’ (living life as a Dyspraxic) by , Dyslexia Dublin CETC © 2013



We always believe others before we believe ourselves. We find so many negatives in our life and for those parents who have specific learning needs themselves, you have been there. For those who are parents, you are there or on the way through your children who have specific learning needs. How can we overcome the negativity given by others and on occasions induced by us?

When you have problems relating to day to day events and you are so called ”mainstream”, you can analyse most events in your life. If you have specific learning needs, your confidence is already damaged and you believe that you are illiterate, useless, no good at anything, a burden on others... however, this is so far from the truth. We have to realise that yes, this is difficult, but we really do bring different things to the party.

All too often the only voice we hear is the one in our own head and we let it dictate to us, even when others are kind of making sense, we fail to hear them.

We hold grudges from previous comments and that makes us believe our own thoughts even more, so we are in a vicious circle. How do we step off this mind blowing, soul destroying merry go round?

Like what I write then visit us at www.dyslexiadublin.blogspot.ie


"When you doubt your power, you give power to your doubt.” Honore de Balzac

You can’t do it! You’ll never be good enough! You’re going to fail!
I was the ’under’ child/adult - Underachiever... Underdog... Underactive.

I remember to this day being told by my father that I couldn’t have football boots because I couldn’t play football, so guess what?... I follow rugby and he hasn’t the first clue about rugby and therefore he cannot judge me… the power of positive thought!

I wanted to paint but was told I never would… if you have a passion for it go for it… I did!

I always enjoyed poetry and guess what?... all who knew me, knocked me and yes, I write poetry!

I wanted to learn a foreign language but I was constantly negatively corrected, so ended up leaving it. Years later, when I had gained enough confidence, I realised others had misjudged my ability to learn and I did take up learning some languages.
So often I used to refrain from doing something I had an interest in because of self-doubt put into my head by others… I had almost become conditioned.

Self-doubt will creep into the minds of all who exist, but those with sky high confidence can put it to the back of their minds, shake it off and move forward, even if only till it raises its head again. However, there are those (I count myself as a former one) that find it almost impossible to let go.
You need to find a way, don’t let it beat you at any cost. Take a positive approach to new tasks and those you currently struggle with . Remember the words of that song “Don’t stop believing”... it’s the only way to ensure a positive healthy life.
I can remember trying to do my shoe laces and failing and thinking I was stupid, but a girl from our road believed in me and took the time to show me how to tie them and showed all the patience in the world… I succeeded, even though it took most of the day!
Find confident and understanding people to be around, move away from negative self-doubters.
You have many strengths, start now by writing them down. What a list!... see, did you realise you were good at so many things?
I have had so many knocks to my confidence as you can see from reading the above and could never figure out why... those who lack belief in you fall into two categories, those who are jealous and those who don’t understand you.
I was told constantly by my teachers and my family that I was lazy, lethargic, stupid… to name a few.
I always wanted to give something back to others and teaching beckoned, but I was resistant due to all the negatives thrown at me over the years… one of the messages I portray to others is to believe in yourself and see through others that insist in standing in your way… you will quickly recognise those who are genuine.

At one point I was asked what I wanted to be (around 5-6 years old), I replied “a dog”’… my entire family laughed at me and do you know what, they still remind me of it to this day. Looking back, the reasoning behind my choice was simple… people seem to under the dog, whereas few (if any) understood me. Little is expected from dogs and they are shown affection and understanding. Dogs are levellers and will always be happy to see you know matter what the days, months and years bring… they never pre-judge and if they out live you, they will morn your passing for the rest of their days.

We are prone to believing much of what we are told by parents/siblings/peers and teachers… we internalize so much. There will come a time when you will decide (Thomas Edison’s childhood so resonates with me).

How many children/adults do well in exams and yet some people will always look at the points you lost… .80% in your exam… what did you get wrong!

I remember watching Jacque Cousteau on the TV and he used to get up to everything with his underwater adventure documentaries. His motto was ‘Face your fears, trust your judgement and have a go… don’t spend a minute of your life living with regret’.

If you are reading this as a parent that struggled through childhood like me, break the mould… it’s old… past! It’s best, like so many of those who doubted us for so many years, to share your life with those who believe in you and are there to witness your success and, believe me, failures will be few.
Embrace your children’s success and help them when things go wrong, they don’t need to be put in a bubble or taught to look at life through rose tinted glasses, but be positive even when there is little to be positive about, you will always find something they are doing a 100% and it’s no harm to remind them of that, as this will help increase their self-confidence.

Be assured there will come a time, maybe not now, but sometime in the future when they will make you so proud and when they do, make sure you are ready to say,” I knew you could do it!”.
Remember… dreams CAN become reality if enough belief is shown by others.
Does this sound like you… or anyone your know?...

You can get more about us and our resources at www.dublin-cetc.com

Thursday 5 September 2013

Launched on May 30th,  Dyslexic Brains Learn Differently is a new Irish-produced book about dyslexia for children. It is written by children for children, and has been created by the students of our specialist Reading Class (for pupils with severe dyslexia). 
This is a 40-page book where each child tells their own unique story from discovering that they have dyslexia to learning how to cope with it. It illustrates their many talents and abilities. The Foreword is by NEPS psychologist Richard Egan and there are information pages for parents and families, including recommended websites and apps. A unique feature of the book is that readers can scan a QR code on the cover to hear an audio-recording of the stories.
This new book is designed to give hope to children with dyslexia, their parents and teachers. It clearly illustrates that these children can thrive with the correct interventions and an environment which recognises that their brains learn differently.  
The book is available for purchase online @ www.dyslexiadublin.ie 

Tuesday 3 September 2013

‘Dyslexia…From the Teacher’s Perspective’ by, Dyslexia Dublin (CETC) © 2013


 I have worked as a teacher/practitioner with children and adults for many years and, in my experience, teachers are well aware of the variations in ability within in the classroom.  That is also the case with many siblings within or passing through the same school… many times I was compared to my brother who preceded me and indeed to my younger brother also.  I remember my elder brother was much better at soccer than I was and not a week went by that this was not mentioned to me by one or more teachers!  So… why are we with dyslexia so different?

I, along with many children and adults with dyslexia, have are and will often have to face so many challenges in the classroom.  We are far from alone as the challenges we face, bring fresh challenges for those that teach us.  Many who have taught for years follow older styles of teaching (traditional), which for many have brought great success stories… but there are also many that would love to do more and get greater success rates.

In education, be it junior infants to adult education, we have classes full of dyslexics and those with LDD (literacy deficit disorder).  They are confused and want to learn… how do we bridge that gap and help teacher’s embrace all in their class/group?

There is little or no support from the governments of this world to fund change and supply resources to meet that change.

We are seeing increasing numbers at our intervention centres… why is this?  Parents are digging deep into their pockets to fund additional support in academic areas, with one aim, to give their child the best chance with their education and allow them chase ever elusive jobs when they become adult.  Class sizes are getting bigger and this is acceptable with more mature teens and adults, but the contrary at junior level where there is a greater demand on building strong academic foundations.
It is well known that literacy deficit and dyslexia are the main causes of low exam pass rates for many students.

Understanding Dyslexia and LDD

It is so important to understand what dyslexia and LDD is all about and how it inhibits learning within the classroom and wider academic environment; however, this is not the case in all subject areas.  For those who closely monitor their students, it can be somewhat confusing that they are alert one minute and lethargic the next… this is down to levels of stimulation within a given subject.  Dyslexia varies in severity and will affect some to a greater degree than others (reading, spelling and retention)… they can have good days where they make lots of progress and other days where they appear to go backwards.  This can often be down to confidence levels and the pressure they feel they are under, as waves of new information hits them (learning/lesson content).  It is so important to plan content to incorporate much of what the student already knows and a small percentage is fresh (new words), this will help have a positive effect with their confidence and will also help with retention (memory). The thing that should remain uppermost is these students are confused at times and are far from lazy, some days they would feel like a non-swimmer being thrown into the deep end of a swimming pool and other days well able to float.  You should always gauge the individual before asking them to read out loud in class as this could rock their confidence and in some cases put them back years… you might find this odd as they may have read to their resource teacher and she said his/her reading is fine, however in a larger group lack of confidence and pressure to perform could kick in.  It is so important that we as teachers find new and improved ways to raise their confidence and give them a greater chance of success.

Learning About Your Students

Students with Dyslexia and LDD have very high IQ.

One area that should be worked on is the spoken word… in resource classes a greater emphasis should be put on this as it’s one of the main areas that stimulates the brain in dyslexic students and aids retention.  Unlike those with a strong left side of the brain that can take information in through reading and writing, most dyslexics will be working far harder to retain information than their mainstream peers.  If you observe students (3-5 in an average class will have some form of dyslexia) yawning or looking around or out the window (distracted) it could well be that they have hit a mental roadblock and it is important at this point to introduce a change of tact.  Try introducing a tactile exercise or something very visual, even a short clip of say a film or play in your English lesson… graphs or maybe weighing something in a maths lesson… this will release them from that mental block and also raise their confidence levels.

An understanding of specific learning needs is paramount and needs to be shared between parent/child and teachers; it is easier to keep this low key from a teacher’s perspective if you are aware of a child’s shortcomings.  This should be voiced from teacher to parent or parent to teacher and never teacher to student unless you have the parents’ permission.  It is important that a teacher raises their concerns to the principal of the school and then the parent and, if the parent has a diagnosis or concerns, that these are listened to and if an IEP is in place, it is adhered to.

Many students will throw teachers in a certain subject or subjects and this is mainly in the core subjects such as English, Maths, etc. and thrive in non-core (practical subjects) like home economics or wood work, where there is a greater emphasis on learning through doing.

Students with Dyslexia have good long term memories and have the ability to spell multi-syllabic words and yet can trip over mono-syllabic words such as son…bun.  This is another area that confuses many and the reason for this is down to the student storing words through images such as mother, father, birthday, anniversary… they see these words constantly on cards for family members.
Quote from Liz Ball, teacher at the Foote school and a fellow dyslexic, “Dyslexics are lifelong learners. We often share an insatiable curiosity and commitment to figuring out the world around us that is unique in its intensity.  We are not only compassionate about learning—we are driven to analyse and critique the world around us—to turn arguments inside out, then right-side back again.  This, after all, is what dyslexics do well. We see the world from a unique perspective, and we are compelled to share our perspective with others. This is why we make great teachers”.

Dyslexic students require more fact content rather than less… and they are great with reciting statistics (letter and verse).

Students with dyslexia should be encouraged to take up subjects that use a lot of visual stimulation such as art and vocal such as drama… they will often astound you by remembering not just their lines in a play, but those of many others in the cast also.

 If they have no choice but to learn a second language, encourage them to choose Italian as this is one of the easier languages to learn for a dyslexic student, due to fewer word sounds and is also very expressive.

 The use of a multi-sensory approach is a positive mode of learning for those with Dyslexia.
 Remember dyslexia is for life… we never see the back of it but we can, with the right help, move around with it and if you look no further that people like Richard Branson… Stephen Spielberg… Henry Winkler… Jamie Oliver… Mollie King and many others, you will know this will not hold us back… at least not for long.

 “We always remember great experiences in our lives and school can be one of them, along with the very teachers that made school so interesting”, Toby Lee, Dyslexia Dublin (CETC)

 Let’s all remember you, the teachers that inspire a generation! 

The information above is for guidance purposes only and we always recommend that you seek professional advice. Toby Lee Dyslexia Dublin CETC © 2013

We are showing a Hollywood Film/Documentary, ‘The Big Picture: Rethinking Dyslexia’ a very moving and inspiring story of students with dyslexia who have struggled within education. Dates confirmed so far:  Glór, Ennis on Wednesday 9th October at 7.30pm.  Dates in North County Dublin soon.  Tickets can be purchased from www.dyslexiadublin.ie.