Do you know the signs a child may be struggling with a Learning Disability?

By Angela .E. Rudderham

 A recent study called, “Putting a Face on Learning Disabilities”, used Statistics Canada survey data and focus groups with adults and children with learning disabilities, as well as with parents of children with learning disabilities. The results are that undiagnosed learning disabilities often lead to long-lasting psychological harm.

Without intervention, support or accommodations children are less likely to succeed in school, and adults less likely to graduate or be employed, and more likely to report suicidal thoughts, depression, or anxiety. When you have a learning disability it is not just a matter of “trying harder” - further intervention is necessary for the student to learn what he will need to achieve success.

It's not uncommon for students to struggle in or dislike school. It's not uncommon that a student may not excel in a particular area of school or not achieve marks that reflect their true potential. So how do parents and educators spot the sometimes subtle warning signs that a student may have a learning disability?

A learning disability doesn't mean the student is slow. So many times I hear people deny a child’s possible learning disability in statements such as, “No he definitely wouldn’t have a LD, he is very bright and intelligent.” This does not mean he is exempt from a learning disability. Plenty of highly intelligent people have been diagnosed with a learning disability. In fact one of the first steps professionals take in diagnosing a learning disability is to determine the  child’s potential (IQ) and compare it to the child’s performance. They do this through a series of tests called a psycho educational assessment.  They are looking for any issues in the learning process.

They will look at how the individual:

ü  Takes in information. There could be a problem with how the brain interprets what the eyes see; this is called visual perception disorder. It could be an issue taking in sounds; this is referred to as an auditory perception or auditory processing disorder.

ü   Makes sense of or processes information. Someone who has difficulty in this area may have trouble organizing their thoughts or struggle with the ability to infer meaning.

ü  Stores information. The individual may have deficits in the area of short term memory, working memory or long term memory.

ü  Is using or getting information out.  Difficulty coordinating the muscles of the hand (a grapho-motor problem) greatly affects a student’s hand writing. Getting thoughts onto paper can also be a problem for those who have trouble in this area. Language output issues, including problems organizing thoughts, finding the right words, and expressing themselves can be detected.

A very intelligent person can have a glitch in one or more of these areas. When trying to identify whether a child may have a learning disability leave intelligence out of the indicators and think about the following.

• Did your child struggle learning phonemes (individual units of sound) and graphemes (letters, numbers)? Or do they have difficulty learning how to blend sounds and letters to sound out words? Problems remembering familiar words by sight or difficulty with reading comprehension?
• Do they struggle with forming letters and numbers or have difficulty with basic spelling and grammar?
• Do they experience difficulties learning math skills and doing math calculations?
• Is it difficult for them to remember facts?
• Is organizing materials (notebook, binder, papers), information, and/or concepts a challenge?
• Do they have trouble understanding oral instructions and an inability to express them self verbally?
• Do they struggle with making, maintaining or repairing friendships?
• Do they often lose or forget materials, or do work and forget to turn it into the teacher?
• Do they struggle to plan out the steps and time lines for completing projects, especially long-term projects?
• Do they have difficulty organizing thoughts for written reports or public speaking?
• Have they developed behaviors that help them to avoid their school work?
• Do they frustrate easily?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions it is in the child’s best interest to have them assessed to discover or rule out the presence of a learning disability. Some types of LD are not apparent until middle school or high school. They only way to get a sure diagnosis is to have a psychologist do a psycho educational assessment. This can be done through your child’s school; however there is often a long wait. If you choose you can have this testing done privately through a psychologist for a fee. Regardless early identification can pave the way for children to get the support they need to experience success both now and in the future.

How does a learning disability affect the parents of a child?

By Angela Rudderham, Director of Turning Tides Community Outreach

Research indicates that parental reaction to the diagnosis of learning disability is more pronounced than in any other area of exceptionality. Consider: if a child is mentally or physically handicapped, the parent becomes aware of the problem in the first few weeks of the child's life. However, the pre-school development of the learning disabled child is often uneventful and the parent does not suspect that a problem exists. When informed of the problem by elementary school personnel, a parent's first reaction is generally to deny the existence of a disability. This denial is, of course, unproductive. The father tends to remain in this stage for a prolonged period because he is not exposed to the child's day-to-day frustrations and failures.

Research conducted by Eleanor Whitehead suggests that the parent of an LD child goes through a series of emotions before truly accepting the child and his problem. These "stages" are totally unpredictable. A parent may move from stage-to-stage in random. Some parents skip over stages while others remain in one stage for an extended period. These stages are as follows:

DENIAL: "There is really nothing wrong!" "That's the way I was as a child--not to worry!" "He'll grow out of it!"

BLAME: "You baby him!" "You expect too much of him." "It's not from my side of the family."

FEAR: "Maybe they're not telling me the real problem!" "Is it worse than they say?" "Will he ever marry? go to college? graduate?"

ENVY: "Why can't he be like his sister or his cousins?"

MOURNING: "He could have been such a success, if not for the learning disability!"

BARGAINING: "Wait 'till next year!" "Maybe the problem will improve if we move! (or he goes to camp, etc.)."

ANGER: "The teachers don't know anything." "I hate this neighborhood, this school...this teacher."

GUILT: "My mother was right; I should have used cloth diapers when he was a baby." "I shouldn't have worked during his first year." "I am being punished for something and my child is suffering as a result."

ISOLATION: "Nobody else knows or cares about my child." "You and I against the world. No one else understands."

FLIGHT: "Let's try this new therapy--Donahue says it works!" "We are going to go from clinic to clinic until somebody tells me what I want to hear.!"

Again, the pattern of these reactions is totally unpredictable. This situation is worsened by the fact that frequently the mother and father may be involved in different and conflicting stages at the same time (e.g., blame vs. denial; anger vs. guilt). This can make communication very difficult.

The good news is that with proper help, most LD children can make excellent progress. There are many successful adults such as attorneys, business executives, physicians, teachers, etc. who had learning disabilities but overcame them and became successful. Now with special education and many special materials, LD children can be helped early.

Pointers for parents of children with learning disabilities:

1.   Take the time to listen to your children as much as you can (really try to get their "Message").

2.   Love them by touching them, hugging them, tickling them, wrestling with them (they need lots of physical contact).

3.   Look for and encourage their strengths, interests, and abilities. Help them to use these as compensations for any limitations or disabilities.

4.   Reward them with praise, good words, smiles, and pat on the back as often as you can.

5.   Accept them for what they are and for their human potential for growth and development. Be realistic in your expectations and demands.

6.   Involve them in establishing rules and regulations, schedules, and family activities.

7.   Tell them when they misbehave and explain how you feel about their behavior; then have them propose other more acceptable ways of behaving.

8.   Help them to correct their errors and mistakes by showing or demonstrating what they should do.

9.   Don't nag!

10.  Give them reasonable chores and a regular family work responsibility whenever possible.

11.  Give them an allowance as early as possible and then help them plan to spend within it.

12.  Provide toys, games, motor activities and opportunities that will stimulate them in their development.

13.  Read enjoyable stories to them and with them. Encourage them to ask questions, discuss stories, tell the story, and to reread stories.

14.  Further their ability to concentrate by reducing distracting aspects of their environment as much as possible (provide them with a place to work, study and play).

15.  Don't get hung up on traditional school grades! It is important that they progress at their own rates and be rewarded for doing so.

16.  Take them to libraries and encourage them to select and check out books of interest.

17.  Have them share their books with you.

18.  Provide stimulating books and reading material around the house.

19.  Help them to develop self-esteem and to compete with self rather than with others.

20.  Insist that they cooperate socially by playing, helping, and serving others in the family and the community.

21.  Serve as a model to them by reading and discussing material of personal interest. Share with them some of the things you are reading and doing.

22.  Don't hesitate to consult with teachers or other specialists whenever you feel it to be necessary in order to better understand what might be done to help your child learn.

Angela is a behaviour and social skills specialist who has developed programs for students, as well as support workshops for parents, teachers and other professionals. For more information or advice, please give Angela a call at 902-404-TIDE (8433).

Helping learning-disabled children by ending bullying

Occasionally, we'll share stories from around the world that focus on learning, disabilities, social skills and other challenges students and adults face in the world.  This is a terrific commentary by a mother about a new initiative that is starting in Missouri, which aims to end bullying by raising awarness of disabilities. 

Guest commentary: Help learning-disabled children by ending bullying

By Patricia Harrison

STLtoday.com | Posted: Wednesday, October 5, 2011

 

"What is wrong with you?" "Can't you read this?" "Focus." "Stop disturbing others at your table with questions." "Let's not hang out with him anymore." "He's weird."

For a child with a learning disability, attention deficit disorder or other disabilities, these statements are a daily mantra invading their lives from peers, teachers and parents. Our lack of understanding and patience with these disabilities affects their self-esteem, their friendships and their education. Our news is filled with tragic stories of young people taking their lives after being bullied. Many of those children were different and struggled in the classroom and social settings.

Their differences made them a target of the majority who did not identify with them or preyed on their unusual nature. Children taunting children to death. Bullying requires immediate intervention with education being a key element to changing the behavior. To stop the taunting, children must empathize with their target. For the bystander to move from watching to intervening, he must feel empowered to stand up for what is right. This problem must be addressed at home and in the schools.

Missouri has taken steps for schools to stop the bullying by declaring October "Disability History and Awareness Month." Missouri law requires each school district to provide instruction on the history of the disability rights movement and contributions of disabled persons. Schools must now create educational cultures that nurture safe and inclusive environments for students with disabilities in which bullying is discouraged and respect and appreciation for students with disabilities is encouraged. Moreover, teaching that disabilities are a natural part of the human experience; we are all more alike than different.

To be successful, families have to be educated too so the conversation continues at home. Schools need to update parents on the curriculum being taught during this month so we can further discuss at the family table the history of the American with Disabilities Act or the guest speaker who came in to share how she became successful in spite of personal challenges. We have many conversations at our home about disabilities as our oldest has dyslexia (a disorder that affects reading, spelling, writing and comprehension).

While he attended public school, the transition from learning to read to reading to learn proved very challenging for him. He could not read out loud without skipping around the page, missing words or full sentences. We asked that he not be required to read out loud as the kids teased him and he was embarrassed. We were advised it was good for him to practice out loud.

Further, when we asked that his teacher review his homework notebook before and after school to ensure he wrote things down correctly, we were advised he needed to be more responsible and suggested he have a peer review his work. The humiliation was too much. So, we moved him to Churchill Center & School, a school that understands how disabilities impact the whole child and whose curriculum fully encompasses disability awareness and self advocacy.

Bullying a disabled child can be very subtle. When kids would say "why can't you read" or he was forced to read in front of the class, it felt like bullying. But, empowering him through education that Winston Churchill and Albert Einstein were learning disabled inspired him to believe he could be somebody and his disabilities did not limit him.

When he visited websites such as "Disabled World" and watched inspiring videos about those whose disabilities did not limit their possibilities, it inspired him to go for his dreams. When we learn that prior to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 disabled persons were forced to attend separate schools, received no accommodations for physical disabilities on pubic transportation or housing and discovered there were no protections in the work place, it creates empathy and emphasized the importance of basic civil rights.

Our children need to be exposed to the challenges their peers face who sit right next to them in the classroom. My son's disability cannot be seen in his physical appearance. And, you would not know he struggles in school by talking with him. But having his individual needs met and being at a school where his disability is openly discussed, embraced and supported, his self confidence has grown and he has learned to ask for what he needs when he is struggling.

I am hopeful this new curriculum will teach all of Missouri's children in public schools how the history and awareness of disabilities requires us to end the discrimination and bullying that frequents our hallways for disabled kids. And that such education will continue the conversation at home.

Patricia Harrison is an assistant clinical professor of law at St. Louis University School of Law.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/article_81b9a207-d3b6-531c-af86-19c911b3a034.html#ixzz1a6j4VH1B

Understanding the behaviour of students with a learning disability

Educators and parents want to help students reach their full potential.  It has been my experience that one of the biggest challenges in working with some students who have a learning disability is trying to figure why they behave the way they do. 

It still surprises some people to hear that intelligence is not affected by a learning disability.  In fact, in order to be diagnosed with a learning disability, one must have an average or above average IQ.   This can add to the puzzlement of adults working with these students.  The key to understanding their behaviour is to distinguish between a performance deficit and a skill deficit.

A skill deficit is when someone has not learned how to perform a task. It’s not that they don’t want to please their parents, teachers and peers, it’s simply that they don’t know how to perform what they’re being asked to do.

Here’s an example of a skill deficit.  An eleven-year-old student I worked with used vocabulary that would leave his teachers scrambling for a dictionary. He also could recall anything that was said to him in any of his classes from any point in the year. The impression he left on those he met was that he had a superior intelligence and was very capable.  The problem?  The student could never get to English class on time. When he would enter his teacher would ask him, “Do you know what time it is?” The student would shrug and reply, “I don’t care”.  The student would be sent to the office and disciplined for being disrespectful. The very next day this student would be late again with no explanation. His teacher thought him unmotivated and disrespectful, and his parents took away privileges along with numerous other consequences. Nothing worked. 

As it turned out the English class was directly after lunch. When he re-entered the school, the student had to locate his locker and find the class that was in a section of the building he was not familiar with.  We soon discovered that he was unable to perform this task because he had a non-verbal learning disability. This disability can affect one’s sense of direction and their ability to find their way around.  It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be on time, he didn’t know how to be on time.  And when someone doesn’t know how to do something, no reward or punishment will magically teach them.  We call this a skill deficit rather than a performance deficit.

A performance deficit is when the student knows what is expected and has learned how to perform the expected behaviour but chooses not to. There are at least two possible explanations for this. One may be the student is experiencing a lack of motivation or payoff for performing the desired behaviour. All that may be required to correct the behaviour is to teach the benefits to the student for performing the behaviour and positively reinforcing the behaviour.  The reinforcement can be as simple as noticing when the student does what is expected.

Another reason for performance deficits may be the student may not be able to tell when to use the skill that they know how to perform.  One example I can think of is a grade 4 student who had difficulty using an indoor voice.  We discussed that when she was outside, it was appropriate to be loud; however, if she was inside she had to use a quiet voice. She worked very hard on this goal until her volume in class was no longer an issue.

Later that year, I found out her basketball coach had benched her because she had stopped communicating to her team mates on the floor. No one could hear her because she was lowering her voice; her games were inside. It was not that the student could not adjust her voice properly she had trouble understanding when and where to perform the appropriate skill.

We know that learning disabilities come with all kinds of deficits and can make the simplest tasks such telling the time, keeping track of belongings or even refraining from interrupting seem impossible even to super-intelligent students. It’s confusing to parents to know that their son/daughter could win first place in the science fair, yet not understand that it’s rude to grab an object out of someone’s hands.

When the majority of the student population experience a skill deficit, it’s usually due to not being exposed to the skill, or not having an opportunity to learn the skill. For a student with a learning disability, a behavioural or social skill deficit is not acquired even after correct modeling and opportunities to learn - direct instructing is needed. No amount of scolding or punishing will miraculously give the student the knowledge they need to understand the skill.

Walker, Colvin, and Ramsey (1995) recommended a nine step process for teaching skills to children with learning disabilities. The steps include:

1.      Definition of the skill with guided discussion of examples,

2.      Modeling or video presentation of the skill being correctly applied,

3.      Modeling or video presentation of incorrect application (non example),

4.      Review,

5.      Modeling or video presentation of a second example with debriefing,

6.      Modeling a range of examples, coupled with hypothetical practice situations,

7.      Modeling or video presentation of another positive example if needed,

8.      Role playing, and

9.      Informal commitment from student to try the skill in a natural setting.

So next time your child or student is not performing the expected behaviour, stop and do some detective work before reacting.  Ask yourself three questions:

1.      Have you even seen the student perform the skill in this setting before?

2.      Do you know enough about how the student’s learning disability affects this particular skill?

3.      Does the child perform the skill only after being offered a big reward?

If you answer no to these questions then stop scolding and start teaching.

If you're interested in finding out about our upcoming workshops on behaviour or need additional support getting a handle on behavioural challenges you're facing, please call Angela at 902-404-TIDE (8433)