Learning Disorders

ABOUT THE SPECIAL NEED:

A learning disorder is a disorder of the nervous system that has a processing problem that prevents a person from learning a skill and using it effectively. Learning disorders generally affect people of average or above-average intelligence. There are five types of common learning disabilities. These are:

• Dyslexia also called a reading disability and affects areas of the brain that process language. Children have slow and labor-intense reading. It is a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words (decoding). Dyslexia affects 1in 10 children and is the most common learning disorder.

• ADHD stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. It is a medical condition that causes differences in brain development and brain activity that affects attention, the ability to sit still, and self-control. It affects millions of US children. The estimated number of children diagnosed with ADHD is 6.1 million up to age 17. Boys 12.9% are more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than girls 5.6%.

• Dyscalculia is severe difficulty in making math calculations. It affects about 7% of elementary school children and some research suggests it’s as common as dyslexia. It is estimated that 11% of children with dyscalculia have ADHD.

• Dysgraphia is a specific learning disability that affects written expression. Dysgraphia can appear as difficulties with spelling, poor handwriting, and trouble putting thoughts on paper. … Dysgraphia is a neurological disorder that generally appears when children are first learning to write. In elementary school settings, it’s estimated that approximately 4 percent of children suffer from Dysgraphia. By middle school — when the complexity of written assignments starts to increase dramatically — estimates can get as high as 20 percent.

• Processing deficits are problems with the processes of recognizing and interpreting information taken in through the senses. The two most common areas of processing difficulty associated with learning disorders are visual and auditory perception

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For more information contact your child’s pediatrician or your state's medical center.