There are several indicators of disabilities presented in early childhood. Starting with coordination problems, unaware of physical surroundings, difficulty in learning new skills, or memorizing class, remembering things that happened, confusing basic words, lack of concentration, troubles with phonetics, reading errors such as inversions, transpositions, substitutions and letter reversals, problem solving simple math problems, impulsive behavior, and so on.
Disabilities are qualified in different types:
Dyslexia: The student has difficulty learning to read.
Dysgraphia: Is a deficiency in the ability to write primarily in terms of handwriting, but also in terms of coherence.
Dyscalcula: Students have problems reasoning and solving math problems.
These disabilities affect students learning skills directly, through study skills, reading and writing skills, oral and social skills, and math skills. They are unable to finish assignments on time, and they have frequently grammatical errors. They might have impulsive behavior and disoriented in time. Teachers need to be patient. There is also ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), which is the behavioral condition also associated with learning disabilities because kids with this condition present difficulties concentrating enough to learn and study. They are easily distracted and have problems focusing. They are very active and can’t control their impulses.
Lets put our selves in this student shoe. First of all they know that they are different than the others and they cannot control their situation. “Learning disabilities are problems that affect the brain’s ability to receive, process, analyze, or store information” according to The Nemours Foundation. These problems don’t let students with these disabilities learn at the same rhythm as a regular student. These students get frustrated because friends are playing while they have to read over and over again being unsuccessful in learning, understanding, or memorizing what they are reading. They think is unfair, and they get appointments with the psychologist, teachers, and parents, not understanding why they can’t be like the others. Once they know that they have a problem they will probably feel worried, and they are going to ask themselves if they are going to be that way forever, and if they will always be unsuccessful in life.
Now days, there are a LOT of students affected by many kinds of learning disabilities, some of the students have more than one kind. Researchers have some theories, but we’re not exactly sure of what causes it. The theories they developed are basically three: Genetic influences (it runs in the family), brain development (brain development before and after birth, with low birth weight problems, lack of oxygen, head injuries and so on), and environmental impacts (environmental toxins, poor nutrition).
Guess what? Learning disability can be controlled!
Once we diagnostic a student with these kind of problems, we implement strategies and they get some medicine treatment to help them cope with the disability. While going through the process, students are going to restore their self-esteem and confidence.
Lets give it a try!
Put yourself in those children shoes!
