Dys – lexia, praxia, graphia and calculia, what now?!

Kim Autism 26 July 2024 one Comments

Have you heard these terms before?

Up until now I only knew what Dyslexia meant (a learning disability that disrupts how your brain processes written language).

In our parent evening at Edublox Learning Center, I heard these other terms and it made me want to find out more.

Dyscalculia:
A learning disorder that affects a person’s ability to understand number-based information and math.
Dyspraxia:
A common disorder that affects movement and co-ordination.
Dysgraphia:
A neurological condition in which someone has difficulty turning their thoughts into written language.

These are terms to describe specific challenges that kids may face, there is nothing wrong with them, they just learn in different ways.

Try not to be disappointed if your child is diagnosed with these, it’s not the end of the world, I promise. There are countless ways to assist all of these challenges and a remedial teacher, occupational therapist or speech therapist are the amazing angels who are best at bringing out the best in kids with these challenges. Do some research on Google, ask your child’s remedial teacher to help you understand, don’t give up, your child will still have a bright future and will still be a successful member of society when they grow up, there is still time.

Most of these kids will struggle in a mainstream schooling environment, just because teachers get overwhelmed with the numbers of children in their classes, and so it benefits these kids to get the extra assistance to thrive in their school career. It can feel overwhelming in the beginning, because, yes this wasn’t on your raising children bingo card, but the panic will subside when you discover how many people are rooting for you, and how much your child’s teacher, OT or speech therapist encourages and believes in your child’s ability to overcome their challenges.

We realised long ago that our boys have are not going to be those academic prodigies, and even though they both have above average math and reading skills, they are just regular kids living life and learning along the way. My husband and I have released the idea of them having to get a certain percentage for subjects, because we believe that in the end, your marks don’t matter, your tenacity, problem solving ability and intelligence (emotional included) are far more important.

My eldest did speech therapy for a short time, and the tools he learned helped him with his stuttering so much. His anxiety levels dropped because he knew he had a way to not feel “like a weirdo” in class when doing his orals and presentations in front of his class. Even now, at the Edublox Learning Center, he gets remedial classes as well as the Edublox classes and he is thriving and learning like never before!

So if your child’s teacher suggest an assessment for any of these challenges, don’t panic, this is the beginning of a journey to help your child thrive and make the most out of life. Research your area and ask other parents who they trust to assess their children, and you will quickly find that there is a whole community of parents out there who are full of love and support.