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Chaotic mess of Lego - Pixabay image by Rick Mason

Does This Sound Like Your Child?

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  • Disorganised

  • Irresponsible

  • Poor time management skills

  • Impulsive

  • Emotionally unstable

  • Resistant to change

  • Struggling to focus, easily distracted

  • Talks a lot but with a wide vocabulary

  • Asks a lot of questions

  • Is socially awkward

  • Freezes under pressure

  • Clumsy (unco-ordinated)

  • Better at reading than mathematics - or vice versa

It is more common than you think:

 

Do you or your child find learning difficult? 15 – 20 % of people do.​

 

If some (or all) areas of learning (reading, spelling, comprehension, maths or physical co-ordination) are a challenge....

The Learning Disabilities

  • Dyscalculia -  difficulty with mathematics, time or money

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  • Dyslexia – difficulty with words: reading, spelling, writing, speaking

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  • Hyperlexia – great reading ability but poor comprehension

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  • Non-Verbal Learning Disability – great verbal skills (vocabulary) but poor comprehension and difficulty understanding non-verbal cues (like body language, facial expressions, gestures)

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  • Dysphasia - difficulty understanding spoken language; poor reading comprehension

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  • Dysgraphia - difficulty with spelling and writing, grammar, punctuation, letter reversals, omission of words or letters, difficulty organising ideas.

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  • Dyslogia - difficulty expressing ideas verbally due to weak ability to reason or think  logically

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  • Dyspraxia – Sensory Integration Disorder - poor hand-eye co-ordination and dexterity, difficulties  with balance and proprioception (body awareness) leading to clumsiness    

                                 

 …..the under-lying problem is probably some form of brain processing issue.                                                                                                        

If strong ability (even giftedness) in one area is being undermined by inability in other areas...

If learning frustration and anxiety are leading to emotional and behavioural issues....

If you (or your child) have been diagnosed as having a Specific Learning Disability or Disorder...

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The good news is that a brain can be “re-wired”.

 

It is possible to build new pathways to make learning easier by improving processing. Given time, understanding, help, support, patience and perseverance, the brain can change its structure and functioning.

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This is called brain- or neuro-plasticity – the ability to improve cognitive skills, and  restore (or maintain) them if the brain has been affected by congenital development disorders, brain trauma (injury or stroke), inadequate enrichment or neurological disease (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's etc.)

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Brain plasticity allows new brain connections to be created and neural circuits to increase, improving their function. Accepting new, challenging tasks creates and establishes new neural connections. The more a neural circuit is used, the stronger it becomes. This can be achieved through a programme of specified exercises and activities that train the brain to gain improved processing abilities.  

There is Hope

There is hope - we have a solution

“Processing” is the way information (received through the senses) is interpreted by the brain.

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A “processing disorder” is confusion, blockage or inefficiency somewhere in the processing system, so that sensory information is not effectively interpreted or retained in the memory.

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Processing Disorders include various forms of:

  • Visual and spatial processing – despite good eye-sight         

  • Auditory processing – despite good hearing 

  • Language processing 

  • Motor processing (for co-ordination and dexterity) 

  • Sensory processing 

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Any single cognitive processing problem (or a combination of them) will impact not only learning, but how well we function in our daily lives. Each of us processes uniquely, and we all have strengths and weaknesses in the various areas of brain processing – but when an area of weakness is so troublesome that it hampers our ability to cope, or negates our areas of strength, we need help to overcome this disability.

' Cognitive Processing' Anchor

Implementation of a successful programme requires:

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  1. An accurate, detailed assessment to determine exactly which processing difficulties are involved.

  2. An individualised programme of exercises and activities specifically designed to train the brain to gain the skills it currently lacks.

  3. Patient and compassionate understanding and support from family, friends and educators who accept that the problems faced are real, and who are prepared to work with the student in a team-effort to overcome the processing problems.

  4. HOPE - belief that the brain can be re-wired – which inspires and motivates the student to put in the effort required to achieve this goal.

Research shows that early intervention and specialised programmes are vital in helping those with learning and associated behavioural challenges to achieve their full potential.

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