10 facts about dyslexia

I know it from the first hand – how hard it is growing up with dyslexia . In elementary school, I spent hours with a school psychologist because they did not understand why I still do not read fluently and do not write correctly like my peers. Or why everything I write is full of grammar errors. I started to read only at the age of 10, and this was exclusively due to a motivation. Namely, during the summer holidays I got a brand new fancy bike … it was red, it had 21 gears and it was a “dream come true”! Attention: for one hour on a bike, I had to read out loud for an hour … certainly today’s pedagogues would have frowned upon this method, but it worked in my case. Of course, after one hour of reading, I spent the entire afternoon cycling and in autumn, when I went back to school, I was able to read much better.

Dyslexia followed me all the time and by the time I graduated from high school I was struggling with many subjects. I was often poorly assessed. Unfortunately, none of my high school teachers could be convinced that I have a disorder called dyslexia, because I am gifted in many other areas. That’s exactly why I decided that my books for children will be “dyslexia friendly”. Even if I help only one child with dyslexia to learn to read or love a written word, my heart will be happy.

1. What is dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a problem in decoding a written language that is related to brain activity.

With the help of modern brain scanning technologies, scientists have found that brain activity during reading in dyslexic and non-dyslexic readers appears in other brain areas / centers. They confirmed that the brain of the dyslexics processed the written language differently.

2. Why does my child have dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a genetic disorder and is hereditary.

It has been proven that dyslexia is hereditary. Scientific research shows that it is not responsible for a single gene, but a group of them. Therefore, it is not possible to expect genetic treatment in the future.

3. Does dyslexia affect everyone in the same way?

The degree of dyslexia is different for each person.

Dyslexia is slightly different in every individual. In other words, the degree of disturbance is different from the individual to the individual.

4. How many dyslexics are in the world?

It is estimated that 10% of all people have dyslexia. (Source: British Dyslexia Association)

The exact estimate of the number of people with dyslexia is unknown because different studies indicate different numbers. The fact is that many people with dyslexia do not even know they are dyslexic. Namely, years ago, people looked at people who had trouble reading and spelling differently, and most were never tested for dyslexia or specially treated.

5. I have dyslexia. Will my child have it as well?

If you have dyslexia, it is likely that your child will have it.

Dyslexia is hereditary, but the rules of her inheritance are more complex than in recessive or dominant genes.

6. Can dyslexia be due to environmental impacts?

It has been shown that dyslexia is not associated with low intelligence, laziness, lack of motivation or poor parenting.

Dyslexia is not associated with the environment in which children are grow up.

7. How to cure dyslexia?

Dyslexia can not be cured. But we can learn to live with it and perceive it as a gift and not an obstacle.

The most difficult period of tackling dyslexia occurs when a child enters school and eventually finds out that he is lagging behind it’s pears in reading and writing skills. Dyslexia needs to be identified and then dealt with learning the reading in a different (dyslexia appropriate) way.

8. Can dyslexia be relaxed?

The brain’s plasticity makes it possible for the brain of the dyslexics to better process the written language by exercising (reading, reading and reading).

With reading drill, over time, the brain learns to activate in other areas to compensate for lower brain activity in centers that are otherwise responsible for processing the written language. Therefore, for the same person, the degree of dyslexia can change with time and mend.

9. How to help a child with dyslexia?

A child with dyslexia needs to practice reading regularly, encouragement and awarding. The reading material must be suitable for readers with dyslexia. It is very important that the child is properly led with a great deal of patience…

Unfortunately, for children with dyslexia learning to read can be a very unpleasant and frustrating. That is why it is of utmost importance that dyslexia is identified as soon as possible. The child with dyslexia needs adequate help in the learning process at school and at home.

10. Can a person with dyslexia be successful? In what?

Dyslexia can be a gift. People with dyslexia have a more active right front frontal cerebrum with centers for “creativity and art”. Many successful and famous people are dyslexics.

Positive motivation is extremely important for all children with dyslexia. It is also important that they are aware that they will be able to succeed in life, despite dyslexia and learning difficulties, which usually go hand in hand with dyslexia.