Dyslexia or normal?

[MosMom]

I should preface this by saying Mo just turned 7 and started the first grade so she is still pretty young and just learning reading & spelling...

However, when I review her work from school there are several letters, numbers, words that are backwards or have letters switched around. On one paper she spelled Quack kcauQ. The entire word was backwards. Her numbers are often written backwards (particularly the 6 and 3) and letters end up backwards at times. I haven't heard anything from her teacher yet.

Is this normal and something more practice will solve? I'm such a nervous nelly!

 

[jrydberg]

My daughter is 6 and does frequently write certain numbers backwards (3 and 6 among them). She also tends to just write out the letters of a word without thinking about space, so sometimes it'll go straight down, sometimes diagonally, etc. I'd just say keep an eye on it and work with her on how it should be, but don't get freaked out or anything

 

[minniepumpernickel]

I don't like to talk about it much, but I was dyslexic as a child. I got help early and ended up scoring two years ahead of myself on the IQ test in fifth grade. Imagine that, because one teacher that I had even called me retarded. They weren't very politically correct back then, and that term apparently must have been socially acceptable. Here comes the mad smilie

I went on to go to college, etc. It can't hurt to have her checked out, just to see what they have to say....good luck!

 

[C.Ann]

I'd have it checked - or at least mention it to the teacher to see if it's common at that age..

Better to be safe than sorry and catch it at an early age - IF there is a problem..

 

[Pete's Mom]

My son started doing this when he was around 5, I think just to drive me nuts. I thought for sure he was dyslexic. His teachers explained to me that this is quite normal at that age and that you really can't test for dyslexia until around the 2nd to 3rd grade.

Of course, Pete knew this wigged me out and began to do it deliberately especially with his name. Hello, meet my son Etep. He could actually spell words faster backwards.

He started getting it right around the middle of first grade. If it really bothers you, talk to Mo's teacher about testing. Good luck!

 

[debster812]

I would not really worry about it just yet. I was VERY concerned when DS was in Kindergarten, because there were certain numbers that he would ALWAYS write backwards. I spoke to the director of the Center, and she told me 2 things:

1.) It's pretty normal up until children are 7 or 8 for them to transpose, and write things backwards.

2.) He was TOTALLY consistent, I mean, every single #5 he wrote was backwards, so in his head he thought it was right.

It cleared up by the middle of First Grade.

I would mention it to her teacher in passing, maybe ask the teacher if there is anything you guys can do at home to help practice it, but otherwise, I would sweat it too much at this point.

Debbie

 

[jrydberg]

Originally posted by Pete's Mom
My son started doing this when he was around 5, I think just to drive me nuts. I thought for sure he was dyslexic. His teachers explained to me that this is quite normal at that age and that you really can't test for dyslexia until around the 2nd to 3rd grade.

Of course, Pete knew this wigged me out and began to do it deliberately especially with his name. Hello, meet my son Etep. He could actually spell words faster backwards.

He started getting it right around the middle of first grade. If it really bothers you, talk to Mo's teacher about testing. Good luck!

LOL, my daughter did the same with her name... she was almost proud of coming home with a paper with "Assyla" on it

 

[Mom2Ashli]

My DD (5) does these kind of thing. She started doing it when she was around 3 or 4 and I talked to her Dr. about it. They said it was normal. She had been writing her name fine until one day she showed me her name and it freaked me out she was so proud of it ILHSA. Just like the above posters she also does her 5's backwards alot.
I will continue to keep an eye on it and ask her Kindergarten teacher about it.

 

[padams]

Ask her teacher to keep an eye on her. It's probably nothing other than a learning stage but the teacher can reassure you. DS now 8 did that in kindergarten and into 1st grade. I was concerned when he would spell his name backwards on papers, etc. With enough writing practice, he stopped doing it by the middle of 1st grade.

 

[DisneyJules]

I remember writing some letters and some numbers backwards as a kid, I think most kids do. My half sister and brother did the same thing as well. Though it bothers you, you can always get it checked

 

[MosMom]

Well, I just called her teacher and left a voice mail. I went and looked up some signs and Mo has a few others on the list so I just want to get the ball rolling and at least see if her teacher is feeling the same. The big sign that stood out is difficulty with directionality. She really has a hard time with understanding first, last, middle, over, under, etc. It was her only ongoing problem she couldn't overcome in Kindergarten. I never even knew it was a sign of dyslexia. However, some of the signs they list she can do well like typing on a keyboard, tying her shoes.

I guess we will just see what her teacher says.

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

My DS10 is severely dyslexic. Dyslexia is any difficulty with reading whether it is small or great. Reversal of letters is only one small part of the disorder. My son never reverses his letters.

Your IQ Score will be the same regardless of therapy. It is your Achievement Score that should improve with therapy and intervention.

Does she know all of her letters and the sounds that they make? Can she rhyme words with ease? Our neuropsychologist said that those 2 things are used to screen children at a young age.

He wouldn't test my son before he turned six. Research has shown that the earlier the disorder is diagnosed and intervention received, the shorter the amount of therapy that is required and it is less difficult for the child to learn. The longer you wait the harder it is on the student and therapy takes much longer.

It sounds like you are on top of things concerning your daughter. I know you made the comment that E may learn things before your daughter so I know it has been bothering you. My daughter has such an easy time academically and it breaks my heart to see my son struggle. I know that it is a brain disorder and by learning he has to create new neuropathways for information to travel through his brain but it doesn't make it any easier when I see him struggle. Good luck and PM me if you have any questions.

Lori

 

[klmklm]

I freaked out when my daughter started school and brought home a paper with her entire name written backwards, as if in a mirror -- until I saw that the worksheet was from an old mimeograph, and had been copied backwards. My daughter had just followed the lead of the worksheet's mirror-printed "Name___."

 

[MosMom]

Lori,

Does he have problems with directional concepts such as over, under, first, last, middle, etc.? When I was reading the signs this really struck me because Moira has had some big problems with understanding these concepts. I could hold three fingers up to her right now and ask her to show me the middle and she probably wouldn't. She guesses and sometimes she is right and sometimes she isn't.

 

[hipporina]

Reversals are extremely common in young children. I worried about DS 8 for the same reason but most of his is clearing up already. Just watch it and wait. It is probably not a problem.

 

[robsmom]

I had my ds 5 checked out for similar stuff. the child development team had some sort of miscommunication about my question because when we go to the meeting they said they couldn't even test for dyslexia yet. They told me writing backwards is very normal as they are learning. DS would right his entire name in mirror image on day and normal the next. when asked why he would tell me because he felt like it that day. I would talk to the teacher, keep an eye on it, ask you child if they see/understand the difference but not lose too much sleep about it yet.

 

[janette]

My 10yo DD has a reading disability diagnosis, we'll be doing some additional testing this year for a official dyslexia diagnosis.

It can be diagnosed young but it is harder, my DD had great difficulity learning to recognize the alphabet & numbers. She was doing addition and substraction before she could recognize all the numbers 1-10. Most kids aren't that severe and have varied symptoms. There are several variations. She does receive help at school and is in special education for reading / writing. Many kids with dyslexia don't qualify for special education, there has to be I think a 1.5 or 2.0 gap between their IQ and their abilities.

She transposes numbers & letters still, d & b are the worst. She really has to concentrate to be able to correct it but if I tell her to check she can usually find the mistake. The other day she was reading something for me and kept reading "a" for "the" and the other way around. Many of the reading errors just don't make sense to me but it is obvious that her mind does work differently. She meets almost the complete criteria for dyslexia except for motor skill, she has always had better fine & gross motor skills than most kids here age.

You are doing the right things, keep up with it and watch to see if the issues correct themselves. If they don't ask the school for help, sometimes you have to push for help.

This is an informative website that explains it pretty well:
Bright Solutions for Dyslexia, LLC

 

[princess pooh]

Six kids in my Grade 1 class spelled their names backwards today. They don't always do it that way but it happens. That kind of thing usually goes away by the middle of the year.

I think it's great that your being so proactive MosMom. My brother had a learning disability and I think having a caring and supportive mom got him to where he is today.

 

[mickyzzzzz05]

My 20 year daughter is dyslexic. We had her tested at the Reading Center in Rochester MN when she was in 1st grade. She stayed in the regular classroom for the majority of her elementary schooling and I would tutor her after school. We home schooled for 1 1/2 years when she was in 7th and 8th grade.

With a lot of hard work on her part and suggestions from the Reading Center she was able to graduate with honors from high school and is in her Junior year in college. She has been on the Dean's list every semester.

I believe that early and aggressive intervention is the key to dealing with this disability - if they aren't given the help they need it is like asking a near-sighted child to go to school without corrective lenses.

Follow your gut feeling. I wish you all the best.

 

[pirateofthecarolinas]

Originally posted by MosMom

Lori,
Does he have problems with directional concepts such as over, under, first, last, middle, etc.? When I was reading the signs this really struck me because Moira has had some big problems with understanding these concepts. I could hold three fingers up to her right now and ask her to show me the middle and she probably wouldn't. She guesses and sometimes she is right and sometimes she isn't.



Yes, he does. Some of the things we work on at home is: put your right hand on your left knee, if a car was coming towards you and it turned right, which way did it go?

I taught 2nd grade and a few of my students still did reversals at the beginning of the year. By January there weren't but 1 or 2.

If she is learning to read without difficulty I probably wouldn't worry. My son didn't learn his letters and sounds until he was 7. We had to put him in a private school specifically for learning disabilities. He read a 4 syllable word the other day and I cried. I never thought he would learn to read.

Lori