Up to 1 in every 10 children in the UK has some degree of dyslexia
International Literacy Day takes place on the 8th September each year and recognises the critical importance of literacy across all countries and cultures. For children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities ("SEND"), Learning Disabilities and/or Specific Learning Difficulties ("SpLD") can have difficulties processing linguistic information leading to challenges in aquiring the necessary literacy skills.
A common example is the SpLD of dyslexia, which mainly impacts lanuage aquisition in the areas of reading, writing and spelling. Unlike a learning disability, dyslexia, being an SpLD does not affect cognitive ability. It is thought that as many as 10% of children in the UK have some degree of dyslexia; an estimated 1.2 million children. It is usually diagnosed by an Educational Psychologist, though can also be diagnosed by specialist teachers.
There are many ways to support pupils with dyslexia, and increased awareness can help schools to become more proactive in providing dyslexia support tools and techniques, such as by incorporating more multi sensory activities which stimulate the brain in different ways. Combining reading with another sensory activity, makes it less stressful and easier for dyslexic children to contribute to classroom activities. Providing a range of learning resources also allows children to have more choice in their education. Some may prefer to draw their understanding of a listening task, whilst some may prefer physical movement integrated in their learning.
Because reading is so closely entwined with writing in our education system, another barrier to literacy can be dysgraphia. Dysgraphia is essentially impaired handwriting, caused by difficulties with memory processing which affect the fine motor skills necessary to write clearly and cogently, and it can also involve difficulties with spelling. Many, but not all, children and young people with dyslexia also struggle with dysgraphia and vice versa. More information on dysgraphia, which is relatively little known can be found here.
If your child or young person has difficulties with literacy and/or handwriting, whether they have a formal diagnosis or not SEND Advocacy can provide advice and support to help you secure the educational provision they need to succeed. If you need someone in your corner to help you secure the education your child deserves, contact us today.
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