Questions and Answers

Can dyslexia be ‘cured’?
Dyslexia is not a disease or illness.  It cannot be cured, but being taught strategies to help the dyslexic person will raise self-confidence and self-esteem and allow them to be on a ‘level playing field’ with their peers.

What age does dyslexia become a problem?
This is a hard question to answer, as girls are often better at ‘masking’ it than boys. Girls tend to develop coping strategies and aren’t always identified until the end of primary/middle of secondary school, whereas boys tend to be diagnosed earlier as it can lead to behavioural problems. However, for some children it can be easily identifiable when formal education begins and they learn the letters and words, and it can then become noticeable.

Does dyslexia cause behavioural problems?
Some dyslexic children have behavioural problems which may be the result of, but not caused by, dyslexia. When the self-esteem and self-confidence of dyslexic children are improved by enabling them to access an appropriately structured, cumulative, multi-sensory teaching for reading, spelling and writing then they see themselves as a ‘learner’ and their self-esteem is improved.

Does dyslexia stop you having a successful career?
No, not at all, the dyslexic individual will have a pattern of strengths and weaknesses. They may excel in arts, creativity, computing, engineering and sport. A dyslexic knowing and understanding their strengths can allow them to focus on a career that will suit them and help them to develop the relevant skills. Dyslexia has actually helped many people become successful, for example, Sir Richard Branson, Agatha Christie, Steve Jobs etc.

Can my G.P. assess my child for dyslexia?
Unfortunately not. Dyslexia can only be officially diagnosed by an Educational Psychologist or a Level 7 Specialist Dyslexia Assessor.

What do I do, I keep being told that my child is slow and lazy?
A child with dyslexia can often be labelled as ‘lazy’ – this is far from the truth, as people with dyslexia often work considerably harder than their peers to try and keep up. They often take longer to process information and can sometimes appear to be ‘lazy’. The amount of effort required can have a detrimental effect on the dyslexic child’s confidence and self-esteem. An official diagnosis of dyslexia will highlight specific strengths and weaknesses and then specific strategies can be put into place to support the child.

Can my child have tuition during the day?
Yes, the child can, sometimes it is beneficial, as the dyslexic child has to work harder to keep up with their peers and they tend to be more tired after school. Also, legally, a child can be withdrawn from school for specialist tuition. It can be recorded as ‘Education otherwise than at school’.

What will my child do in a tuition session?
Each tuition session incorporates lots of fun learning games. Your child will have an ‘assessment for teaching’ at the start (which is equal to three sessions). This allows an in-depth analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of your child and then for the steps to be put into place to help them succeed.

My child has had a dyslexia screening test carried out at school. What do I do?
Dyslexia screeners can flag up the probability of a pupil having dyslexic tendencies, but they are not 100% reliable as they do not take your child’s underlying ability into account. They also do not give your child’s strengths and weaknesses.

Not all teachers have received sufficient training to fully understand the limitations of these tests. Also many schools do not have the budget for children to have a full diagnostic assessment, hence why many parents choose to go private.