Category Archives: Personal Stories

Don’t deny – defy dyslexia

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The day Steve Jobs died my son came home from school and asked me:

“Can I also please be dyslexic like Steve?”

Dumbfounded I stared at him as he rambled on about Steve Jobs, about Mac and how “awesome” it was.

Technological icon Steve Jobs left behind a silver bitten apple, a legacy of hard work and most importantly a realisation that learning differences are a gift – not a stigma.

The problem

Nobody truly knows the origins of learning differences. The spectrum is wide and deep, ranging from low attention span, weak memory, speech problems, auditory issues, literacy and numeracy challenges, vestibular and cognitive development and social interaction to behaviour issues this wide umbrella is widening at a startling pace and deepening at an alarming rate. Genetics, diet, environment, academic pressures and competition are all contributing to this increase. Yet the most resonating factor is denial from parents.

Read all about it HERE

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Senators discuss dyslexia

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Citing phone calls from frustrated parents, a Senate committee discussed a bill to help identify and effectively teach dyslexic students Thursday.

Sen. Steve Abrams, R-Arkansas City, the author of the bill, said the concerns were raised last year as well, but state education officials said dyslexia is a medical condition and therefore difficult for a teacher to diagnose.

So this year he rewrote the bill to focus on aiding students who have already been diagnosed by a medical professional.

“I think that’s probably the biggest frustration the parents have talked to me about,” Abrams said during a committee hearing Thursday. “For those that have gone and received a medical diagnosis of dyslexia, for them to be ignored by the school system, that is a frustrating situation. To say, ‘You don’t know, the doctor doesn’t know, we know better about how to train your child,’ — that is exceptionally frustrating for a lot of these parents.”

Read all about it HERE

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Dyslexia and the Rockefellers

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One of the great ironies of the Progressive Education Movement is that its leaders were able to convince John D. Rockefeller, Jr. that he ought to give his sons a good progressive education and donate $3 million to the Lincoln School, a new experiment in social education in accordance with John Dewey’s radical new ideas. So he put Nelson, Laurence, Winthrop, and David in the school, which turned them all into dyslexics, proving that progressive reading programs can cause dyslexia.

Unfortunately, Rockefeller’s four sons were some of the earliest victims of school-induced dyslexia, a condition they had to deal with for the rest of their lives.

Read all about it HERE

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The Dyslexic Advantage

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Over the holidays I have been reading, between wrapping packages, decorating the tree and visiting with friends and neighbors, the book, The Dyslexic Advantage:  Unlocking the Hidden Potential of the Dyslexic Brain,” by Brock L. Eide and Fernette F. Eide.  While reading this book I have yelled in enthusiasm, cried real tears, wondered what might have been, and have been sad and positive in the same moment.  It is a very positive book about dyslexia.  It’s about hope and opportunities for those that have this type of brain.  I’ll write more about this book in a future blog.  What i plan to write today is an individual’s background being a dyslexic–me.  Problems, hopes, techniques, the sadness of it all…

The earliest I remember being in school was in second grade in Harrison, New York.  I knew early on I was different–I had troubles with spelling words, with reading and in doing “my numbers.”  That’s all I remember of the class except that the female teacher was big.  Not fat, but a large grandmotherly type who was not friendly.  That’s what I remember.  I also remember wanting to do well.

Read all about it HERE, HERE and HERE

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How does dyslexia contribute to your professional success?

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Three years ago I started contemplating this question after reading about a study finding that 35% of American entrepreneurs have dyslexia. The study suggested that some adults with dyslexia develop coping strategies that are useful in the business environment, such as the ability to delegate and build teams. We have all seen lists of famous dyslexics, usually presented as people who managed to beat the odds and overcome their condition. But I have come to believe that many of us thrive in our chosen fields because of our dyslexia, not in spite of it.

Since November 2009, a group of adults with dyslexia have met periodically to explore this idea, and to help each other achieve more professional success.  My experiences with theProfessionals with Dyslexia group, as well as conversations with other adults with dyslexia and dyslexia researchers show me that we really do have some advantages in the working world.

Read all about it HERE

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The Reality of Dyslexia: Millions Struggle

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“The Upside of Dyslexia,” by Annie Murphy Paul (Sunday Review, Feb. 5), rightly points out that while all people with dyslexia struggle with reading, some demonstrate unique strengths. What this research does not underscore is the extent to which this learning disability negatively affects millions of lives.

Nearly two million students in our public schools struggle with reading because of dyslexia. Learning to read with accuracy, fluency and comprehension greatly increases the likelihood of high school graduation, enrollment in college and career success. Dyslexia presents real obstacles to these students.

Read all about it HERE

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