Dyslexia
Information taken from American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA)
WHAT IS DYSLEXIA?
Dyslexia is a developmental reading disorder caused by the brain’s decreased recognition of symbols (i.e., numbers and letters). A child who has dyslexia mostly has difficulty with the written word; however, he / she may have difficulty with both the spoken word and written word.
WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF DYSLEXIA?
A child with dyslexia may have difficulty with the following areas:
- Learning new vocabulary
- Understanding questions
- Following directions
- Reading and comprehending material
- Learning words to songs and rhymes
- Letters and numbers
- Learning the alphabet
- Identifying the sounds that correspond to letters
- Mixing up the order of letters in words
- Mixing up the order of numbers in math calculations
- Spelling
- Memorizing time tables
- Telling time
WHAT CAUSES DYSLEXIA?
Dyslexia is often found to be hereditary and is caused by a difference in brain structure resulting in difficulty recognizing and processing written language.
OUR APPROACH AT KEY THERAPIES:
We will develop an individualized treatment plan for each child based off of his / her current needs. We will work on improving comprehension skills by teaching phonological awareness (awareness of the sound structure of words) and utilize strategies to teach successful reading skills. A home literacy program will be taught to caregivers so that follow-through can be completed at home. Furthermore, we also work with children with a wide range of reading problems from language-based learning disabilities to those who need extra support with reading. We work on improving reading comprehension, increasing rate of reading, and phonological awareness.