Discovering Kids’ Hidden Strengths

Hey there, amazing parents! You’re the real superheroes when it comes to understanding your children inside out. From their quirks to their dreams, you’ve got it all covered. But let’s talk about something close to home: raising a child with a learning disability. We know it’s no walk in the park, but trust us, there’s a bright side!

ADHD: More Than Meets the Eye

Unlocking Hyperfocus 

Kids with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) might struggle with focus and impulse control, but they’ve got a secret weapon: hyperfocus! When they dive into a task, they can laser in like no other. Whether it’s sports, art, tech, or something else, they shine when they channel their energy.

Mastering Self-Awareness 

Navigating ADHD symptoms teaches kids to read their own attentiveness levels like pros. They’ve learned to think differently and become info-ninjas, zooming in on important details. This superpower makes them creative achievers.

 

Social Butterflies

Notice how chatty and friendly your kiddo is? That’s typical for kids with ADHD! Their verbal skills and vocabulary often soar above their peers. Storytelling, public speaking, and debating? They ace them all!

Dyslexia & Dysgraphia: Unleashing Creativity and Problem-Solving

Creative Geniuses 

Dyslexia challenges reading, but it unleashes a wave of creativity. These kids thrive in abstract thinking and holistic, “big picture” ideas. They’ve got a different kind of intelligence that’s equally amazing.

Problem-Solving Powerhouses 

Reasoning, problem-solving, and persistence are their strong suits. Dyslexic kids tackle challenges head-on and find ingenious solutions.

Dysgraphia’s Listening Skills 

Dysgraphia affects writing skills, but it sharpens listening prowess. These little conversationalists remember details like no one else, making them great storytellers and problem solvers.

In a nutshell, learning disabilities come with their own set of superpowers!  While they may face some hurdles, remember to look at the “glass half full” side. Your child’s unique ways of learning, understanding, and expressing themselves are major strengths. Embrace the journey, superhero parents!

#LearningDisabilities #ADHDStrengths #HyperfocusSuperpower #SelfAwareness #ADHDSocialSkills #DyslexiaCreativity #DysgraphiaProblemSolving #ListeningSkills #ParentingJourney #ChildrenWithSuperpowers #EmbraceUniqueness #SuperheroParents

Visualization as a Cognitive Tool Pt. II

As previously discussed in part one, visual prompts, tools, and strategies can help learners who may struggle with linguistic presentations. Whether attentive issues, behavioral struggles, or deficits in auditory processing are the obstacle, visualization methods can assist with students whose needs vary in and out of the classroom.

 

Reading/Writing/Literacy

  • Use visuals to provide context for vocabulary terms. Teachers can boost memory and recall by pairing terms with images that explain or represent the definition. For example, science teachers may want to accompany terms for the parts of a flower with a diagram that depicts each part. They could use photos or time lapse videos to demonstrate how organic matter decays or decomposes. In history or world studies, students can benefit from seeing locations, countries, and landmarks that they are studying so that they have a better grasp of its importance. Instead of simply discussing Tanzania, teachers will want to show Tanzania on a map so that students can conceptualize its location with background knowledge of the surrounding areas.
  • For practices involving phonics and fluency, obviously pronouncing new words for students to chime back is beneficial to start. However, when working independently to decode, students may find that visual cue cards for prefixes/suffixes are more helpful for their visual approach to reading. For example, struggling decoders might find it helpful to see how words are segmented or broken down into parts and then physically put them back together like a puzzle. Visually speaking, words like “cub” versus “cube” could be confusing to beginning readers or English language learners. Teachers should provide opportunities to use letter cards or scrabble pieces to match “cub” with the photo of a baby bear; then add the “e” to match the word with an image of an ice cube. The physical manipulatives, combined with the images, help young readers visualize the proper spelling while also solidifying pronunciation and definitions.
  • Similarly, teachers and parents can help beginning readers by incorporating visual aids into sight words. As a memorization tool, basic flashcards only go so far. Instead, think about how the letters of the word could be constructed or decorated with images that relate to the word’s meaning. For example, the sight word “look” could be spelled using googly eyes for the double “o” to demonstrate someone looking at something. Perhaps the word “play” could incorporate athletic equipment to form the letters, with “p” resembling a basketball, “L” formed by a hockey stick, and “y” in the shape of a tennis racket.

 

Additional Concepts

  • If content involves a process or step-by-step explanation, consider using flow charts, mind maps, or other visual diagrams to help students conceptualize the process. For differentiation, teachers may ask advanced students to create their own flow chart using their text or class notes, while struggling students may use a word bank/concept bank to complete a fill-in-the-blank flow chart. Either way, the objective is the same; students are demonstrating knowledge of a specific process by constructing a visual/diagram.
  • For essays, written responses, and notetaking, teachers should instruct and encourage students to utilize graphic organizers to visually compose comprehensive outlines of their drafts. In spider diagrams, the main idea of the written response is the spider’s body, while the legs connect to supporting details, quotes, and examples, which helps students visually compose a well-supported argument or claim as a prewriting activity.

Besides standard images or symbols to help students, teachers can expand upon the idea of visuals to include videos, films/documentaries, art, graphic novel excerpts, artifacts, and video games. The more engagement and connections to prior knowledge that visuals can offer, the stronger the learning experience will be.

National Handwriting Day: A Spotlight on Dysgraphia

Contrary to the common misconception, dysgraphia is a learning disability that signifies a more serious problem than a simple inability to write neatly or color inside the lines. Yes, dysgraphia often manifests itself in the form of “sloppy” or illegible handwriting; however, the difficulty arises before the pencil hits the paper. Dysgraphia is actually a processing disorder, meaning that the deficiency comes from the inability to receive input or construct output of information from the senses.

Each learner is different, so dysgraphia can present as a struggle to perform the physical, motor-controlled aspect of writing, or the mental, expressive aspect of synthesizing thoughts and organizing them on paper. It may help parents or educators to think of dysgraphia in terms of a quarterback on a football field—the disability might cause the QB to physically struggle to grip, hold, pass, or hand off the ball. However, he might also struggle with the mental or decision-making aspect of when to throw a pass versus make a run. Either way, the deficiency in sensory input or output can disrupt his success on the field, much like a student’s academic success in class.

Here are a few suggestions for addressing the physical aspect of dysgraphia:

For young writers with dysgraphia, the physical act of writing can be cumbersome. The deficiency does not come from a lack or care or effort. In fact, many students with dysgraphia are putting extra effort into their handwriting, but may still be coming up short. To help those who struggle with their motor skills when it comes to letter legibility, spacing, size, etc., parents, teachers and therapists can employ multiple strategies or best practices to help the child’s writing.

Some young learners may benefit from using paper with raised or perforated lines to assist with letter size and spacing. The tactile element helps to make children aware of the physical boundary lines between which their letters should remain. Similarly, tracing practices with raised outlines are also available. When students practice tracing either on paper or in the air using “imaginary letters,” encourage them to form letters the same way every time. For instance, when practicing the letter C, make sure that children start with their pencil at the top, arching counter-clockwise and down to form the letter. Repetition of movement is key when strengthening muscle memory to improve writing, so remind them to construct the letter C the same way every time.

Consider providing multiple shapes and styles of pencils or pens. Sometimes rubber pencil grips can help with the discomfort that children with dysgraphia experience. Some students find that hexagonal or three-sided pencils feel more stable than perfectly round pencils, or vice-versa.

Writing can be extremely frustrating, so motivate children by keeping writing practices or tasks brief and to the point. When hands and fingers become tired or cramped, writing can range from uncomfortable to painful—take a break long before any discomfort sets in to maintain effort and motivation. Encourage students to focus on one aspect of their handwriting at a time. Perhaps for one assignment, this means that a child will work primarily on his/her letter spacing within and between words. Next time, he/she might focus his attention on the sizing of capital letters and lowercase letters. Breaking up the writer’s goal can help make handwriting less daunting.

Handwriting Day: Helpful Hints for Parents of Struggling Writers

Sloppy handwriting can be frustrating for students, parents, and teachers alike. The writing is difficult to read and appears to exhibit a lack of effort on behalf of the “scribe” or writer. Dysgraphia, however, is much more complex than just a careless or sloppy writer. Dysgraphia is a neurological disorder or learning disability in which the person’s written expression is affected or compromised. Dysgraphia is characterized by difficulties with putting thoughts to paper in both an expressive sense and a physical sense. This means that children with dysgraphia may struggle with the thought process behind written spelling and sentence-writing or with the fine motor skills required to physically compose words on paper.

Obviously, this learning disability can be greatly frustrating due to its negative impact on children as learners. No matter the class, a child is going to need to write clearly, correctly, and somewhat quickly. Signs that a struggling writer may have more going on than simple sloppiness are below. Of course, when identified and treated, children are better able to achieve academic success. With the help of psychologists for language-based dysgraphia, and the assistance of an occupational therapist for mechanical or motor skills difficulties, children are far more likely to succeed academically.

Signs to be aware of:

Is your child’s writing not only illegible, but inconsistent as well? If letters are “sloppy” but also varied in terms of size, shape, upper/lower case, cursive/print, etc., this may be an indication of dysgraphia.

Does your child ignore lines or margins on the paper? This is likely more than just a “rebel” move to disregard neatness. Children who regularly neglect the designated lines and margins are likely exhibiting an issue with spatial recognition—which accompanies the handwriting issues aligned with dysgraphia. Another observation to note is if your child begins writing in the middle or bottom of a clean sheet of paper. Again, failing to start at the top left of the paper could be a spatial recognition issue.

Does your child’s grip seem exceptionally strange or labored? This could mean anything from gripping way down on the pencil, almost touching the paper, to strained or slanted wrist positioning. These types of grips and hand positioning are not only uncomfortable, but they can also further discourage a young writer. If children do not correct their grip, muscle memory will become more challenging during occupational therapy. Children with dysgraphia may also slant or position their paper oddly while writing.

Is your child’s writing speed painfully slow? This could also be an indication of a larger issue. Because of the physical and expressive difficulty, children may write exceptionally slowly. The motor skills, combined with the difficulty with representing thoughts in written form, makes writing or copying a sentence extremely arduous. A child with dysgraphia may also lean very closely to the paper or watch the hand that is writing.