Chapters
1. What emotions do people with dyslexia experience?
2. What is the best way for a dyslexic person to study?
Is your child struggling to study due to their dyslexia? This guide will help you support your child with the best practices they can use to study.
Before you can help your child study, it’s important to know about their learning disability and how they're feeling as they struggle with it. Only then can you be truly empathetic in your approach. ❤️
Dyslexia is the term used for those who have trouble learning to read. The NHS defines it as a common learning difficulty that can cause problems with reading, writing and spelling. Children with dyslexia may experience the following:
❇️ Children might not be able to remember what they’ve read. This means that even word problems in maths can be difficult to solve.
❇️ Public speaking can be a struggle for students with dyslexia. They might not be able to find the right words to express themselves.
❇️ Spelling and writing is also difficult for children with dyslexia. They can mix up the letters in a word or words may blend together and spaces become lost.
Just because they may struggle with reading and wriitng, children with dyslexia don’t necessarily have a low IQ.
They most often are bright students and can also be gifted students, with a lot of motivation to learn.
What emotions do people with dyslexia experience? 🤔
👉 Anxiety
Children with dyslexia can often suffer from mental health conditions like anxiety. The struggles of dyslexia can make them nervous about academic failure and they may find it tough to overcome the fear of learning something new. 😟
👉 Anger
Learning in a regular classroom can be frustrating for students with dyslexia which often produces anger. 😡
Students might bottle up this anger at school but at home they could often release it on unassuming parents.
👉 Weak Self-Image
Dyslexia can slow students’ academic progress, which can weaken their self-confidence.
👉 Depression
Unfortunately, children with dyslexia are at a higher risk of depression.
Unable to cope with the demands of their learning environment, they tend to be very hard on themselves - causing intense feelings of insecurity and failure. 😕
Don't forget that teaching happiness to your child can also motivate their learning!
What is the best way for a dyslexic person to study? 🤔
👉 Minimize distractions
Students with dyslexia have to put in extra effort to learn.
It's important to provide them with a study space that is distraction-free. This means they need a quiet space that is organised with all their study materials and free from non-educational electronic devices too.
Other ways students can limit distractions is by using noise cancellation earphones, listening to light music or choosing to study early in the morning or late at night.
👉 Goals and rewards
Students with dyslexia can get overwhelmed by regular classroom learning and homework assignments.
A great way to motivate children is by building small academic goals and rewarding them they achieve them! 💪
👉 Take advantage of technology
Children with dyslexia might struggle with improving their handwriting for legitimacy. To avoid missing information from a class, children should reach out to their teachers or their peers for help.
It's also a great idea for them to digitize their notes using smart tablets or smart pens that have in-built audio recorders.
They can later transcribe their notes which will also help them memorize their lessons more efficiently.
Remember, each child with dyslexia is different. Some will prefer to type their notes while some will prefer to record classes using an audio device. It might take a little trial and error for your child to figure out what works best for them.
👉 Be aware of extenuating circumstances
Students with dyslexia are often granted more time than their peers to finish tests as they require more time to demonstrate their knowledge of the subject. Make sure that you are aware of your child's rights when it comes to exam time. Reach out to their school for guidance on extenuating circumstances.
👉 Bonus tips
People with dyslexia often stuggle with reading because the words appear to swim around on the page. Some people find that by covering parts of the text, or using a ruler to guide them, the reading process becomes much smoother.
For those of us that don't live with dyslexia, it can be difficult to empathise with the difficulties people with dyslexia experience, especially when it comes to reading and writing.
Check out this video to experience what it looks like to read with dyslexia:
These tips are sure to give students with dyslexia the academic success they deserve! 💪
If your child is struggling with dyslexia, there are plenty of organisations in the UK that you can reach out to for further support. The British Dyslexia Association describe themselves as being the voice for dyslexic people in the UK. They have events, advice and also a helpline you can reach out to if your child needs extra help.
Also be sure to check out The Dyslexia Association who have information specifically for children with dyslexia on their website.
At GoStudent we believe in being inclusive. We have tutors specialised in dyslexia to help students overcome their learning hurdles. Book a trial session with us here! 🚀
