Learning Disabilities

What does it mean to have learning disabilities?

While most children with learning disabilities are as smart if not smarter than others, having a learning disability can be frustrating for them and their parents. We will try to remove the mystery from these disabilities and help kids find their strengths within their differences.

 

Can a learning disabled child learn?

Despite having the word “disability” hanging on the end, a learning disability does not have to be a deficiency for your child.*

 

Most people with learning disabilities are very intelligent, but have trouble learning the “traditional” way. We now know that many very intelligent people who have been very successful in life have had to struggle with learning disabilities. Leonardo Da Vinci, Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Henry Winkler, Tom Cruise and Charles Schwab are just a few of the people who have achieved so much despite a learning disorder.

 

In fact, it may be because of the learning disorder that they achieved so much. One thought is that people with learning disabilities have to work harder for their education and actually learn the subject better than those who study just before a test and forget all they learned after it’s over.

 

Another less known fact about people with learning disabilities is that they tend to be much more creative. That creativity helps them overcome obstacles in their learning by finding new and different ways to learn, and most importantly, that creativity helps them find success in their future. A creative mind is what leads to new technology, new discoveries in all disciplines and a brighter future for all.

 

So what exactly IS a learning disability?

A learning disability is a difference in the way the brain takes in and assesses information. Sally Shaywitz, M.D., the co-director of the Yale Center for the Study of Learning and Attention, performed scans of the brain as people with and without learning disorders read, and found that a different part of the brain is activated for people with learning disabilities.

 

While a learning disability is a lifelong issue, the support from parents, teachers and friends can make it easier to cope with. There are also many programs available to help students succeed with reading, math, and other school subjects. The No Child Left Behind Act also requires schools to step up intervention programs. There’s still a long way to go with that, but parents who are vigilant will succeed in getting their children the help they need.

 

The most common learning disabilities are dyslexia (difficulty reading), dysgraphia (difficulty writing), and dyscalculia (difficulty with math concepts). There are also memory, auditory and visual disorders which are not dysfunctions of the senses but in how the brain processes the information gathered. Attention disorders and hyperactivity usually accompany learning disorders.