Does your child often write letters in the wrong direction, such as the letter "b" being replaced with the letter "d"? Are there letters missing when writing? These symptoms aren't the only things to determine if a child has dyslexia. Let's get to know dyslexia further.
Dyslexia is a term that is often used when a child has difficulty learning and processing language due to a lack of ability to read, spell and write. Difficulty in reading is caused by difficulties in connecting the letters on paper/books with the sounds that should be produced when reading these letters. Children with dyslexia have a good level of intelligence so that reading difficulties are not caused by intelligence problems or vision problems.
The symptoms of dyslexia begin to appear when children learn to read, but a diagnosis of dyslexia can only be made when a child is 7 years old or at school age. Before entering school age, the signs that your child has dyslexia are as follows:
- Late speaking ( speech delay )
- Slow to learn new vocabulary
- Problems in pronouncing/pronouncing a word
- Problems remembering or saying letters and numbers
After that, when entering school age, signs of dyslexia are as follows:
- The ability to read below the ability of his age
- The grades at school are far below the ability of his intelligence
- Has difficulty understanding instructions or when teachers dictate at school
- Difficulty in remembering sequences, such as when given multilevel instructions
- Difficulty seeing similarities or differences in letters or words
- Problems with pronunciation, inability to pronounce unfamiliar words
- Difficulty in spelling words
- It takes a relatively long time to complete a task that involves reading or writing
- Avoid activities that involve reading activities
Why does a child have dyslexia?
The cause of dyslexia is still not known with certainty, but there are several risk factors that can cause dyslexia in children:
- There is a history of family members who also have dyslexia or we can call it a genetic factor
- Children born prematurely or born with underweight
- During pregnancy exposure to nicotine, certain drugs, alcohol, or infections that affect brain development in the fetus
- There are individual differences in the part of the brain that is in charge of reading ability
Can dyslexia be cured?
Until now there is still no medicine to treat dyslexia. However, early detection and intervention play an important role in the process of developing reading skills in children with dyslexia. Interventions that can be done for children with dyslexia are by doing remedial therapy and also making individualized education programs ( IEP). Undetected dyslexia disorders can cause complications as follows:
- Problems in the learning process at school. The ability to read is a basic ability that is used in various subjects at school, so that dyslexia can cause children to have difficulty achieving lesson targets at school.
- Social problem. This reading problem can lead to low self-confidence in children, behavioral problems, anxiety, aggression, and withdrawal from the school environment and parents.
- Problems when Reading difficulties can limit a person in developing their potential optimally.
Article written by Maria Dwindita, S.Psi., M.Psi (Child & Adolescent Psychologist at EMC Hospital Tangerang).