What is a learning disability?

Learning disability ; Difficulty in using skills in listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, problem solving or mathematics. It also causes the person to have difficulty storing, processing and producing information. Although it is observed more frequently in children, learning disabilities are also seen in adults. In some cases, it may not be noticed whether a person has a learning disability or not, and the person may live his life with it.

Symptoms of learning disabilities

Preschool symptoms:

• Significant delay in starting to speak,
• Difficulty or slowness in pronouncing words and learning new words,
• Slowness in the development of motor movements (e.g. difficulty in tying shoes or buttoning up buttons, clumsiness)

Primary school symptoms:

• Difficulty learning to read, write and numbers,
• Confusing mathematical signs (e.g. "+" instead of "x"),
• Reading words backwards (e.g. "and" instead of "house")
• Refusal to read out loud and write,
• Difficulty learning time,
• Inability to distinguish direction concepts (right-left, north-south),
• Slowness in learning new skills,
• Difficulty making friends,
• Dont forget your homework,
• Not knowing how it should work,
• Difficulty understanding facial expressions and body movements.
• Every child with learning disabilities is different and does not have the same characteristics. Therefore, a detailed evaluation is needed to identify the features and make a diagnosis.

What causes learning disabilities?

Although the cause of learning disabilities is not known for certain, research indicates that it is related to functional differences in the brain structure. These differences are congenital and hereditary. If the parents have a similar history or if one of the siblings has a learning disability, the likelihood of the other child also increases. In some cases, a problem experienced before or after birth (such as alcohol use during pregnancy, lack of oxygen, premature or low birth weight) may also be a factor in learning disabilities. It should not be forgotten that economic difficulties, environmental factors or cultural differences do not cause learning difficulties.

Learning disability diagnosis

A clinical evaluation is made by a specialist, taking into account the childs birth history, developmental characteristics, school performance and the socio-cultural characteristics of the family. It is found under the name Specific Learning Disorder in DSM 5, which is published by the American Psychiatric Association and is a source for determining diagnostic criteria. According to the diagnostic criteria, difficulties in learning and using school skills, as indicated by the presence of at least one of the following symptoms, must have persisted for at least 6 months despite the necessary interventions;

• Reading words incorrectly or very slowly and requires effort,
• Difficulty understanding the meaning of what is read,
• Difficulty speaking and writing letter by letter,
• Written expression difficulties,
• Number perception, number facts, or calculation difficulties
• Numerical reasoning difficulties.

Specific Learning Disability; It is divided into three subtypes: reading disorder (dyslexia), mathematics disorder (dyscalculia) and written expression disorder (dysgraphia). Subtypes may appear together or separately.

How is learning disability treated?

The first step when starting treatment is psycho-education. Educational therapy for the family, teachers and the child is of great importance in terms of making sense of the situation and determining what path to follow. For the next period, a special education and intervention program that will continue simultaneously at home and at school should be prepared.

How should the child with learning disabilities be approached at home?

All children need love, support and encouragement. Children with learning disabilities need all of these more. As parents, the main goal should not be to treat learning disabilities, but to meet their social and emotional needs in the face of difficulties they will encounter. Focusing on the childs positive behavior at home helps develop his or her self-confidence. Thus, the child learns how to cope with difficult situations, becomes stronger and his endurance increases. Children learn by seeing and modeling. Parents positive attitudes and sense of humor change the childs perspective and help him in the treatment process.

How should the child with learning disabilities be approached at school?

It is of great importance to cooperate and communicate with the school. In this way, it is ensured that teachers get to know the child and act according to their needs. Each child has different areas of success or difficulty. These differences manifest themselves in the visual, auditory, tactile or kinesthetic (movement) areas. Evaluating the area in which the child is developed and acting accordingly helps the treatment process. For children with strong visual perception, books, videos or cards can be used. For children with strong auditory perception, the lesson can be recorded audio-recorded so that they can repeat it at home. Encouraging them to work with friends can also help the process. For example, for a child who has difficulty reading numbers in mathematics problems, the areas in which the child is good can be evaluated and increased with solutions such as writing down the problems and presenting them to him.

Advice for families

• Focus on the positive aspects of your child,
• Do not limit your child only to school success,
• Encourage him to explore different areas where he can be successful (such as music or sports),
• Limit your expectations to what they can do,
• Give simple and understandable explanations,
• Remember that every child is unique.