How Do You Know if Your Child has a Learning Disability?
Jacqueline Egli, M.S.

Is your child succeeding in all aspects of learning at school? Does your child follow directions well, have success with memory related tasks, and successful eye hand coordination? Many parents mark "Success in School" with the progress monitored on a report card, only to be shocked when they receive a notice in the spring time that their child is recommended for possible retention. How can this be? How can a bright child, who has shown signs of success, suddenly be recommended for retention?

The symptoms of learning difficulties are often overlooked as a child begins the formal school experience. Many parents are unaware of the "soft signs" that there can be a looming problem that will cause a child to hit an academic plateau when the demands of learning begin to increase in the later grades. Do you know what to look for?

The most frequently displayed signs are as follows:

Short attention span: This does not apply to a child's favorite games or outside activities. While many children can spend hours on the interactive electronic games, these activities often have high arousal factors for keeping an individual engaged. Lots of rewards and a fair degree of challenge will allow a child to stay engaged for long periods of time. The 30 second sound/visual stimulus "bytes" are intentionally designed to keep an individual engaged. Reading, Spelling word practice and math homework don't yield the same excitement for many children with suspect learning deficits and attention and focus on tasks that are not easy. The "Homework Battle" becomes a common pastime in the evening hours for these learners.

Poor memory: Does your child fail to remember short term activities such as a list of chores you wish for them to accomplish? Can he/she remember his/her phone number and address? Memory is a required cognitive skill that must be used in all learning tasks.

Difficulty Following Directions: It may seem simple for the adult brain to remember a sequence of steps to complete, but imagine being the child in the classroom who can't follow simple directions such as "Open your math book to page 42, and complete parts 1, 2, and 3." Not being able to follow specific directions given in class, in note taking or on the job can compromise success significantly!

Inability to discriminate between/among letters, numbers or sounds: Many parents know their child can't discriminate between sounds, letters and numbers and are assured that the child will "outgrow" this learning issue. Not true! If a child enters kindergarten still using "baby talk" and saying things like "psgetti" for spaghetti, can't rhyme, or drops endings of sounds and talks with immature language he or she is in a very high risk category of having many challenges with reading, spelling and written language tasks.

Poor reading and or poor writing abilities: Parents often celebrate when their child can "sound out" new words and demonstrates the ability to read. Decoding, or the ability to sound out words is only one aspect of reading. Understanding what is read, or comprehension is also a critical skill. Some children who can decode any word, but has little understanding of what is read can have a tremendously difficult time with reading tasks and creative writing. Children who can not sound out new or novel words may have a phonological deficit that can require special instruction with a focus on decoding.

Eye hand coordination problems: As a young child learns to hold a pencil, crayon or begins to cut with scissors, observing the motor control of these tasks can be key to determine if your child will be successful in written tasks, keyboarding and copying from the board. Can your child cut his or her own sandwich in half? Can he cut his own meat? Can she button her jacket or secure her lunchbox. Don't overlook these simple but telling motor related tasks as a sign that there may be a motor skill or eye-hand coordination issue.

These skill sets that are listed above are just a few of the key tell tale signs that a learning difficulty or learning disability may exist. Other signs can be as follows:

If you believe your child has some challenges with learning, you may find more about how to help your child by doing the following:

Consult your pediatrician, vision specialist, or audiologist if you believe your child has significant signs of a learning disability or deficit.

Have your child evaluated by a speech and language professional or an academic specialist, psychologist or learning specialist. The initial evaluations can be done at your local school. Schedule an appointment to speak to your child's teacher(s) and the guidance counselor to arrange for testing and ALWAYS put your requests in writing. Keep copies of all conference notes and forms.

It is never too early to seek help for your child, but waiting too long to identify what is holding your child back from success in school could be very harmful. Knowing what signs to look for, and what resources your community and school can provide are the next steps to getting help for your child.

Websites and recommended reading:
LDA-Fl.org Learning Disabilities Association of Florida Organization Website
IDA- International Dyslexia Association Website
LDOnline.org
Schwablearning.org

Books:
All Kinds of Minds by Mel Levine
Overcoming Dyslexia by Sally Shaywitz
Like Sound Through Water, by Karen Foli
It's So Much Work to Be Your Friend, by Richard Lavoie

Jacqueline Egli has been a Learning Disabilities Specialist in the central Florida community for 30 years. She has taught in both public and private school in Seminole County and is the parent of two children who were diagnosed with learning difficulties, such as dyslexia and auditory processing deficits.