What is Dyslexia???
Dyslexia is a specific learning disability due to defects in the brains processing of graphic symbols. It alters the way the brain processes written material.
Two common misconceptions of Dyslexia are: 1) Children who have it, see letters backwards and 2) Individuals who suffer from Dyslexia tend to lack intelligence. These two generalizations lack credibility and are far from accurate. In fact, most dyslexic people are very intelligent, and many that are extremely dyslexic, are indeed brilliant.
Dyslexia Simple definition: Dyslexia is an inherited condition that makes it extremely difficult to read and write in your native language, despite at least average intelligence.
Revised definition from the International Dyslexia Association: Dyslexia is a neurologically based, often familial disorder which interferes with the acquisition and processing of language. It varies in degrees of severity. It is manifested by difficulties in receptive and expressive language, including phonological processing in reading, writing, spelling, handwriting and sometimes arithmetic. Dyslexia is not a lack of motivation. The actual brain is different from normal readers. Individuals with Dyslexia have a larger hemisphere in their brain.
Why is dyslexia a gift?
Dyslexic people are visual, multi-dimensional thinkers. We are intuitive and highly creative, and excel at hands-on learning. Because we think in pictures, it is sometimes hard for us to understand letters, numbers, symbols, and written words.
We can learn to read, write and study efficiently when we use methods geared to our unique learning style. (R. Davis)
Testing
No single test can diagnose Dyslexia. It ranges from mild to moderate to severe or profound. Usually, 10-12 tests in order to determine if an individual suffers from Dyslexia. Public schools do not test children for Dyslexia; they only test for Learning Disability, due in large part to how expensive the testing is, as well as availability of diagnosticians who actually administer the tests.
