Signs of Dyslexia (Secondary school age)
Tunbridge Wells, Kent
Information taken from the British Dyslexia Association
Dyslexia is a combination of abilities as well as difficulties. It is the disparity between them that is often the give-away clue. A Dyslexic learner, despite certain areas of difficulty, may be orally very able and knowledgeable, creative, artistic, or sporting. Alongside these abilities will be a cluster of difficulties – these will be different for every person.
Dyslexia can only be diagnosed through a Diagnostic Assessment. However, there are indicators which can help you to identify a young person who may be Dyslexic.
Written work
• Has a poor standard of written work compared with oral ability
• Has poor handwriting with badly formed letters or has neat handwriting, but writes very slowly
• Produces badly set out or messy written work, with spellings crossed out several times
• Spells the same word differently in one piece of work
• Has difficulty with punctuation and/or grammar
• Confuses upper and lower case letters
• Writes a great deal but ‘loses the thread’
• Writes very little, but to the point
• Has difficulty taking notes in lessons
• Has difficulty with organisation of homework
• Finds tasks difficult to complete on time
• Appears to know more than they can commit to paper
Reading
• Is hesitant and laboured, especially when reading aloud
• Omits, repeats or adds extra words
• Reads at a reasonable rate, but has a low level of comprehension
• Fails to recognise familiar words
• Misses a line or repeats the same line twice
• Loses their place easily/uses a finger or marker to keep the place
• Has difficulty in pin-pointing the main idea in a passage
• Has difficulty using dictionaries, directories, encyclopaedias
Numeracy
• Has difficulty remembering tables and/or basic number sets
• Finds sequencing problematic
• Confuses signs such as x for +
• Can think at a high level in mathematics, but needs a calculator for simple calculations
• Misreads questions that include words
• Finds mental arithmetic at speed very difficult
• Finds memorising formulae difficult
Other areas
• Confuses direction – left/right
• Has difficulty in learning foreign languages
• Has difficulty in finding the name for an object
• Has clear difficulties processing information at speed
• Misunderstands complicated questions
• Finds holding a list of instructions in memory difficult, although can perform all tasks when told individually
Behaviour
• Is disorganised or forgetful e.g. over sports equipment, lessons, homework, appointments
• Is easily distracted. May find it difficult to remain focused on the task
• Is often in the wrong place at the wrong time
• Is excessively tired, due to the amount of concentration and effort required
A cluster of these indicators alongside areas of ability may point to possible Dyslexia and further investigation is recommended.