The difficult task of learning to read and write

Sometimes dyslexia comes with pronunciation difficulties that usually appear when it comes to pronouncing words that are new or long, or that contain groups of letters of a certain type, that they find difficult to read.

Dyslexia is a main problem that usually occurs together with other learning disabilities, like dysgraphia (difficulties in tracing the letters correctly, in regard to the parallelism of the lines, the size of the letters and the pressure applied when writing), and, later, with dysorthographia (difficulty in using the orthographic rules correctly, from the most simple to more complex ones), and other syndromes from the `dys` family, that we are going to discuss henceforth.

THE FAMILY OF ‘DYS’ AND ITS RELATIVES

What are the symptoms that parents and educators must pay attention to?

Certain signs or details that could make us suspect that a child might be dyslexic can be observed from as soon as the preschool period.

Between 3 and 5 years of age, during the preschool period:

·         The child can display a delay in the development of speaking, having difficulties in pronouncing words and slow vocabulary acquisition.

·         We can notice unusual clumsiness in running, jumping and pushing objects forward; the child cannot control his movements and force very well; with respect to his fine motor skills, he makes great efforts to fasten his buttons and tie his shoelaces, open bottles and perform other activities that involve the coordination of  arms, hands and fingers, like writing or cutting with scissors.

·         They tend to be very riotous, find it difficult to pay attention and control their impulses, and prefer games that involve much movement.

·         They struggle to memorize the numbers, the vowels, the days of the week, colors and shapes.

·         On the one hand, they can act shyly, but they can also be irritable and display hostile attitudes that affect their social relationships with adults and other children.