Children with learning difficulties have the best chance of living a more normal life without troubles than adults who are diagnosed later in life.
There is no current consensus for the current proportion of children with learning disabilities, but reports range from 10% to nearly half of all American school-aged children. As a result, parents are often concerned about the presence of a learning difficulty. While learning difficulties are not curable, they are treatable. Alternately, the longer the duration between beginning school and identifying a learning disability, the higher the likelihood that a snowballing effect will compromise the performance and well-being of a child.
Learning disabilities are most often identified during school age due to the fact that the condition is most prominent in an academically rigorous environment. Parents should be especially mindful of atypical behaviors or aptitudes that may indicate a learning disability. For example, if a child has problems with coordination, reverses letters within words often, or seems to have problems understanding simple instructions while appearing otherwise normally or highly intelligent, he or she may have a learning difficulty.
If a child exhibits tendencies that may be indicative of a learning difficulty, it is imperative that the child is taken to a specialist that can make a formal diagnosis. Whereas such characteristics may suggest the presence of a problem, it may not be a learning difficulty, but rather the result of trauma, emotional difficulties, health problems, or the presence of another disorder. An example of this could be a child who has difficulty in school with an otherwise typical intellect, but also seems to have trouble paying attention or sitting still; in this instance, a child may have attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder rather than a learning difficulty and may need to be on medication.
The most important factor that must be kept under consideration is how children perceive the presence of a learning difficulty. Rather than treat a child with a learning difficulty as though he or she has a disorder or is in some way problematic, the learning difficulty itself should be presented as a characteristic difference rendering the child unique. Indeed, most children with a learning difficulty who receive proper treatment go on to live normal and even extraordinary lives; thus, it is unnecessary to treat the children as though they are in some way dysfunctional.
Tips for Parents
Parents with children who have learning difficulties should play an active role in the children’s lives in order to ensure that the process is as painless as possible. Ways that a parent can be proactive are:
- Frequent praises
- Exploration into effective pedagogical techniques
- Inclusion of the children in household duties
- Prioritizing homework
- Attentiveness to mental health and stability
- Networking with other parents of children with disabilities
- A positive and open relationship with children’s teachers
Tips for Teachers
Although there are many provisions already available within the education system, there are still various approaches that a teacher can make if he or she has a class that includes children with learning difficulties. These approaches include:
- Presenting both verbal and written directions
- Rendering tasks as small and incremental as possible (without compromising assignments)
- Garnering alternative resources (such as audio textbooks) in the classroom
- Allowing students to use tape recorders or borrow notes from classmates
- Equipping classrooms with computers that have helpful software installed