StepIN

Learning Disabilities 

Learning Disabilities has following is a list of common characteristics of an LD student. Conditions must be persistent over a long period of time. Presence of these conditions does not necessarily mean a person is learning disabled. 

• Conditions

Learning disability has four types which are -Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia, Dyspraxia. These are a group of disorders that inhibit the brain’s ability to receive, process, store, respond to, and communicate information.

Reading skills- Poor decoding skills, poor reading fluency, difficulty identifying important ideas in context, difficulty recognizing high frequency words, Difficulty controlling eye movements across the page etc.

Spelling skills- Phonological awareness is noticeably stronger than spelling ability, frequent spelling errors of high frequency words, extreme difficulty with homonyms and/or regular spelling patterns, no understanding of the relationship of phonics to written language etc.

Written expression skills- Poor writing fluency, unable to compose complete, grammatical sentences, difficulty organizing written information, and poor handwriting, inability to take notes or copy information from a book or the board.

Oral language skills- Inability to hear small differences between sounds, not attributable to a hearing loss, particularly vowel sounds, difficulty articulating thoughts or ideas orally, difficulty pronouncing words, inability to blend sounds together to form words, difficulty listening and responding to a series of directions etc.

Mathematical skills- poor mathematical fluency, difficulty memorizing multiplication tables, difficulty identifying multiples and/or factors, poor basic calculation skills, difficulty understanding word or application problems, poor understanding of mathematical concepts etc.

Learning Disability Treatment

OT can help children with learning disabilities to improve their performance at school and learn more easily. OT is an allied health discipline that targets improving an individual’s independence to ensure they can engage in their chosen occupation or everyday tasks/activities, and with their community, as they desire. An occupational therapist can help children who have problems with attention or concentration, difficulties recalling spelling and writing letters or numbers correctly. Often, these problems are indicative of critical issues with visual perception, motor problems, or attention difficulties.