My teenage son is now in his first year of MBO. It seems an eternity ago that he was diagnosed with dyslexia. But actually we were quite late with this diagnosis because the dyslexia symptoms were not really recognized as such by his teachers. This while we had already been ringing the bell for years. Only in group 7 did he get the Dyslexia stamp. Better late than never of course, especially since they had indicated to Opdidakt that he belonged to the 10% 'worst cases'. That was a bit of a shock and also quite special since the teachers could never confirm our feeling. But at least we could take action now. I take you into our story.
Table of contents
I'd like to say first that I don't blame his school. What I do find annoying is that we have not followed our gut feeling before. In retrospect I sometimes think 'if only I had'. Purely because we recognized the symptoms of dyslexia earlier and Luc could have been helped years earlier. And the sooner you are involved, the better children learn to deal with their dyslexia.
Why didn't we take action before? Well, good question. The only thing I can hide behind is that - because he is the oldest - we actually had no comparison material. I felt like a bad mother for quite some time. We just found it really hard to tell if he was really showing symptoms or if this was normal for kids his age. Especially because Luc was born at 33 weeks, we used to have regular moments when we doubted whether certain things might have had to do with his premature birth. So are difficulties with reading.
So for every parent who doubts whether his or her child has dyslexia, here is a list of the possible symptoms of dyslexia. And are you still in doubt? Then have your child take a test with people who know about it, such as at Opdidakt.
You can recognize possible dyslexia in children by keeping an eye on the following symptoms:
Perhaps there are more symptoms to recognize dyslexia, but the above are at least the things that we noticed about Luc. By the way, do you have an idea how children with dyslexia see a text? In this article you will find a link that shows what a child with dyslexia sees. Very enlightening!
It was a great relief for us that Luc was finally diagnosed with dyslexia. Despite the fact that you are not waiting for it, it was a confirmation of what we often thought. In retrospect, it is also quite strange that he was able to stretch it to group 7 with his diagnosis. Yet you hear that more often. If a child continues to perform well (Luc was an expert at maths, for example), then the other dyslexia symptoms sometimes just don't stand out enough.
In addition, they 'have to' get a bad score on all parts at school if they want to be eligible for a dyslexia test at all. They only start at school when the averages are too low.
I personally think the latter is a bad starting point. In fact, children must have fallen very far in their averages to be eligible for help. While -if they are helped earlier- they don't have to descend that far. They maintain their level better and probably also get through their school period more easily. This is the standard procedure by the way, it doesn't just work like this at our primary school. So good to know.
Hence my advice. If you recognize symptoms of dyslexia in your child, don't wait too long. Is your child not yet eligible for the test through school? Please contact us for an investigation into dyslexia. You better get there early.
Anyway, when the bullet was finally through the church for us, it suddenly went very quickly. The examination of Luc's dyslexia revealed that he had severe single dyslexia (EED). No other disorder was present, it is 'pure' dyslexia. Because he was also one of the 10% who have a hard time, the treatment of his dyslexia was also reimbursed. From the moment his research was completed, things suddenly went very fast.
Every week someone from Opdidakt came to the school to help him with his dyslexia. The treatment of dyslexia does not change the symptoms but gives the child tools to deal with text and reading in a different way.
The biggest surprise? At Opdidakt, the treatment starts with conversations with your child about his self-esteem and self-confidence. The first lesson your child "learns" is that his or her dyslexia has absolutely nothing to do with intelligence. The rattles in your head just work a little differently than with other children, making the standard teaching method less suitable for you.
They therefore learn to deal with words, sounds and the rule structure through a different approach. And Luc caught up with 2 years of level in reading and spelling in one year of supervision. Very nice of course! In addition to the treatment at school, there was of course also regular practice at home, because that structure and repetition are so very important.
After the diagnosis of dyslexia, the symptoms do not simply disappear. However, the right way of practicing and regular practice ensure that the child learns to deal with his or her dyslexia better. But dyslexia never goes away. Your child has to learn to live with it. And Luc does that just fine. He will never become a high flyer in terms of texts and language, but he doesn't have to be. He has plenty of other qualities .
It is true that the diagnosis of dyslexia has helped him to fight the symptoms and to accept himself as he is. He also opens up easily to others and feels no shame. That is one of the most important lessons for us that he has learned during his treatments. In addition, it is of course nice for someone who has dyslexia that they can show a dyslexia statement during their further school career. This gives them just a little more time for their tests because reading is slower.
Do you recognize some of the symptoms of dyslexia from my story in your child? Be aware of it and take steps. I'm sure you'll help your child with this!
More information can be found at Opdidakt.
