I have homeschooled my 10 year old daughter for over 6 years now. She is very smart with most subjects and enjoys learning immensely. From the time she has been vey smally, she seems to have a way of losing her answers between orally answering them and writing them down. Her handwriting skills are poor; as her manual dexterity is regarding tying shoes, managing locks, and such. So as not to hold her back from learning, I would write her answers then have her rewrite them on her own. She has been able to look at math problems, like fractions and just answer them aloud without writing any work. If I have her do the written work, it becomes very frustrating for her and she gets them wrong. Is this a learning disability? Her reading comprehension is excellent, as she reads real novels from the 1800s and enjoys them. Any advice you can give, would be greatly appreciated. She has a hard time hoding the pencil properly and forms her letters upside down although they come out right. She does a typing class and enjoys that. She is the oldest of 5. Her size is also smaller than those her own age. Her coordination is also lacking in other areas. Pleas Email me! Thank you.
Re: Is this problem a LD?
I agree with Brenda. It does sound like a problem with fine-motor skills which is affecting her handwriting. Fortunately, her reading skills are not affected, and that’s wonderful. Some many kids with dysgraphia have dyslexia as well, and that’s a double whammy.
BTW, how are her spelling skills? Can she spell out loud with no trouble? Can you tell from her handwriting if she is at all able to spell on paper?
Yours truly,
Kathy G.
Brenda wrote:
>
> Sounds like she has problems with fine motor skills.
> Maybe she should see an OT (occupational Therapist). It is
> great that she loves to learn, that is the best thing.
> Brenda
Re: Is this problem a LD?
To me it sounds like your daughter’s difficulties are worth looking into. At present, we just finished having our 9 y.o. son tested at the school which is your right as a member of the school district. I’m very thankful ours was a good experience. My son sounds similar to your daughter. He has does much better at oral work than written work. As I looked back through his first grade math book when I was putting together a portfolio of his schooling at home, I was surprised at how much I had him dictate answers to me. We could finish a page of math in 5-10 min.if I wrote the answers down verses a good 30-60 min. on his own. My son also has reading and spelling difficulties with many different types of reversals. His processing speed is slow which was varified by the testing. All these signs are seen in kids with dyslexia. He was just diagnosed LD, and will be seeing a physician who specializes in dyslexia. (This is a medical diagnosis, so schools can not come out and say that a child is dyslexic even if that is what they are thinking.) Since every child presents with different signs/ symptoms, you might want to visit www.interdys.org (the International Dyslexia Organization web site). Look under “ABC’s of Dyslexia”. They have a lot of information and give different things to look for in children and adults. My appologies. I’m trying to fit everything I have been learning over the past few years into a nut shell and I can’t do it. I pray that this helps you at least a little. Be encouraged. It’s not always easy trying to teach our children at home when they have a difficulty in learning, no matter in what area it may be.
In Christ, Kim M.
Re: Have you considered a developmental optometrist?
The letter reversals at age 9 are a red flag for developmental vision delays (which are associated with reading and spelling delays). Unfortunately, regular opthalmologists and optometrists get no training in developmental vision and tend to dismiss it as a possibility.
You can find certified developmental optometrists at http://www.covd.org
If you visit the homeschooling bulletin boards at http://www.vegsource.com, try doing a search at the Reading and Math bb on “vision therapy”. You will pull up quite a few posts from different parents who have been through it.
Mary
Sounds like she has problems with fine motor skills. Maybe she should see an OT (occupational Therapist). It is great that she loves to learn, that is the best thing.
Brenda