Understanding Your Child’s Difficulties

It is important that you understand your child’s learning difficulties. There is no substitute for your own first-person understanding of the challenges your child faces in learning. If you don’t understand what your child needs, how can you advocate for them? Although you can get information from your child’s school and teachers, remember that they are accountable to district and state education bureaucracies, so their goals are different from yours. You need objective, scientifically based information as a counter-balance so that you can advocate for your child’s specific needs.

You won’t be able to become an expert on all on all the challenges your child might be facing so begin with getting a good understanding of your child’s top 1 or 2 difficulties. You will learn more about what your child needs as interventions begin and you learn what works and doesn’t for your child. In addition to reading articles and books, one way to experience a little of the difficulty your child struggles with is to go through the simulations at Misunderstood Minds http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/misunderstoodminds/.

Question/Issue	Link to resources
Understanding Learning Difficulties	Types of Learning Disabililties Learning Disabilities: Signs, Symptoms and Strategies Most Common Signs of Learning Disabilities Summary of Successful Strategies for Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities
Understanding Your Child's Experience	Dyslexia simulation toolkit LD simulation Reading issue simulations Writing issue simulations Attention issue simulations Math disability simulations A day in the life of a dyslexic high school student Dyslexia expert watches dyslexic student go through the day, noting where a dyslexic student would be expected to have difficulty. Very informative. Suggestions for using technology to work around issues.
What Kid's Say About Having LD	The LD Journey: A College Student Looks Back What Kids Say About Living With Learning Disabilities Research Trends: LD From the Inside - Children's Voices
Specific Skill Disabilities/Difficulties	Reading Disabilities / Dyslexia Math Disabilities / Dyscalculia Writing Disabilities / Dysgraphia ADHD Emotional and Behavioral Aspects of Learning Difficulties
Executive Function Deficit	Executive Function: A Quick Look What are executive functions? Executive Function Fact Sheet Executive Function: A New Lens for Viewing Your Child Problems with Organization
Problems with Memory	Common Concerns about Memory and Learning Brief overview of the several types of memory problems that can cause difficulty for children in school. Problems Some Students Have With Memory Provides some details about how memories are encoded and retrieved. The Wires Of Memory: Connecting, Crossing, Humming This article by Priscilla Vail introduces the complexity of memory and shows how different tasks and differing expectations affect children in school. What Students Can Do to Increase Memory Strategies for older students, middle school and up. Strategies could be adapted by teachers for use with younger students.
Social Consequences of Learning Disabilities	Teaching Social Skills to Students with Learning Disabilities Social Acceptance of Students with Learning Disabilities