Dyslexia

Cau yon reab mwat I aw mriting? If yon caunot reab it waybe is is decanse this is hom a persou with byslexia wight reab somethiug. A person with dyslexia has a very difficult lifestyle to live. To understand dyslexia you must be aware of the causes, effects strategies, and teaching methods for coping with the disease. "Dyslexia means having difficulty with words in reading, spelling and writing - in spite of having normal intelligence and ability" (Make the Connection).

Scientists have been interested in dyslexia for a long time. For instance a scientist by the name of A. Kussmaul started researching this disorder in 1881. He came up with a theory of a certain inability as "word blindness" (history of dyslexia). The word dyslexia was first mentioned in 1887 by a professor by the name of R. Berlin. Scientists to this day are still unsure on what causes dyslexia, although they have a good idea of some of the factors that could have something to do with dyslexia. The only sure thing scientists do know about dyslexia is that there is no cure. Some causes of dyslexia are thought to be genetic factors, emotional problems, and defects of the nervous system. Even though these are thought to play a role in dyslexia, many experts are not convinced that these factors are causes of dyslexia (Make the connection). Dyslexia can occur at any level of intellectual ability. It is not the result of poor motivation, emotional disturbance, sensory impairment or lack of opportunities, but it may occur alongside any of these (Information on Dyslexia).

Identifying a child with dyslexia often takes a lot of time and tests. Many cases can often not be identified until the child is ten years of age. The reason for this is because a ten year old with dyslexia would only be able to read a few words or maybe a small sentence. Some studies have shown that monitoring responses of infant sounds could determine whether or not a person is going to develop dyslexia or not. Researchers have precisely picked 92% of dyslexics out of 186 children who were monitored 36 hours after their birth. After these conclusions were made, every two years until the child reached the age of eight, the children underwent a series of IQ and comprehension tests. This method, however, is not completely accurate. Five out of twenty-four children were found to have good reading skills by the time the child reached ten years of age. The British Dyslexia Association welcomed these findings with care, stressing that the interesting new research would further endorse the fact that the dyslexic brain is different, and emphasizing a unique focus on language skills at a young age to help dyslexic children when they begin reading and writing (Make the Connection).

Children with dyslexia give many signs to help identify them. Some of the clues include, not knowing whether to use the left or right hand after being reminded repeatedly, leaving out capital letters or losing using them in the wrong places reading a word correctly but does not comprehend, forming letters numbers badly, and forgetting to dot I's and cross t's (Make the Connection). They may spell the same word several different ways if they don't have the visual memory to know what is right or the kinaesthetic memory for it to feel right as they are writing (Information on Dyslexia). These are some clues to look for in writing. Some other indications are late developer, easily distracted, problems with tying shoe laces, problems telling time, short term memory problems, holds pen too tightly, and has problems with sequences. Some examples of sequences that a person with dyslexia might have trouble with include alphabet, months of the year, and nursery rhymes. Some dyslexics are also good at other things that may be traits of having the disease such as, good long term memory, good visual eye, and very imaginative and skillful with hands (Information on Dyslexia).

Dyslexia is also linked to behavioral problems. Attention deficit disorder or ADHD may also resemble dyslexia. Researchers suggest that these behavioral problems may stem in part from deficiencies of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids; these substances are critical for brain and eye functioning. "In one such study a researcher by the name of B. Jacqueline measured the function of eye cells, which are rich in docosahexaenoic acid, omega-3 fatty acid." Comparing eye function among ten dyslexics and ten controlled subjects, researchers found dyslexics show impaired adaptation to low light. This study shows that dyslexics have poor rod functioning. Rod cells are known as eye cells. Researchers have also done studies to find what would cause lack of coordination in dyslexics. "Researchers have investigated the effects of fatty acid supplementation on the coordination skills of dyslexics." One of the studies that the researchers have done on this topic is all out of fifteen children enrolled in the study of fatty acids showed impairments of motor skills. After four months of supplementation these motor skill problems improved. Another study shows that boys with ADHD had lower concentrations of key fatty acids in their blood than did children that were not dyslexic. A gene that appears to play some kind of role in dyslexics has been chromosome 6 associated with the immune system. This builds up the fact that dyslexia is a syndrome caused by several environmental and inherited factors. Some researchers claim that there is evidence suggesting that dyslexia ran in families. (Dyslexia, Behavioral Problems: A Fatty Acid Link?").

Teaching methods are a big