Re: Apraxia & Dyslexia link????-

[Guest guest]

,

Does your nearly 5 year old have any typical signs of dyspraxia, or have you

pegged his issues as being all linked to dyslexia? Thanks for the links to

the dyslexia pages. has several of the warning signs noted - I'm

curious what the link between repeated ear infections (listed as a warning

sign)

and dyslexia is. Sometimes I think many of ' issues go back to his

non-stop ear infections, as that was what the first OT we saw thought, and

since I

also had similar issues as a kid and also had frequent ear infections

leading to my adnoids being removed. I was also encouraged that " The

Slingerland

Method " was listed as a good multi-sensory program, as that's the program that

the dyslexia school we're considering uses. In fact, is due to be

tested by the dyslexia school using a test produced by Slingerland in a couple

weeks.

In a message dated 2/7/2006 11:51:15 AM Pacific Standard Time,

claudiamorris@... writes:

My nearly 5 year old son is a completely different breed. It was hard to

tell early on that he had any issues - though we were worried about my

daughter by the time she was 3.5. He is also very clever, but he also " just

doesn't care " about reading as much as my daughter did. So he won't sit and

struggle for hours like she did. He will give it about 15 seconds of his

attention, and if its something he can't do - he's off. Not bothered at all,

or so it seemed. In the last few months it turns out that he really does

care, and is very embarrassed that he can't write his name - especially

since they have to do this at school. Its hard for him at school because the

other kids can do it. But the way he deals with it is acting like he doesn't

care. 'So busy with the apraxic 2 year old that I just haven't been able to

focus on him. But he is having even more trouble recognizing symbols than my

daughter was having at his age. So he is going into the active reading

clinic the summer before K - to avoid the Kindergarden failure my daughter

experienced. Key is preserving self-esteem. I don't really care if my 5

year old can read " CAT " , but I do care that he feels good about himself. And

with school performance its all tied together.

[Guest guest]

Well, one of the smartest students in my class in law school was dyslexic,

and he was also incredibly creative, funny, and great to have around, and he

spoke of a past that was strikingly similar to your husband's. I know that my

husband has a cousin who had a bunch of learning-related issues, but is now a

very successful computer programmer in Silicon Valley, and while no one has

ever said " dyslexia, " it's one of the dxs I've suspected.

I hear you on the ear infections. My sister is constantly reminding me that

her son, who is now doing very well at Yale, also had constant ear infections

but no learning issues. On the other hand, ' truly were constant and I

can't help but think that the two years he spent in daycare with constant ear

infections impacted his ability to hear the way he should have heard and to

grow and explore and comprehend what he needed to move forward. The

frustrating part of all of this is that I'll never know exactly what caused

" it. "

Probably never will.

I'm really curious about this:

" But having gone through this with my daughter - I'm not

stressing about it, because I know that he will be getting help soon. I'm

even spending LESS time trying to teach him letters myself (and more time

just reading) because I know I'm adding to frustration - its not working,

and with all my efforts with my daughter - she learned her letters and how

to read within 2 weeks of a different method of teaching...He needs a

different approach and I'm not trained sufficiently to do it...so happy

there are places to take him. "

I think this is in reference to your almost 5 yo who's not in OT, am I

right? Do you have confidence in the reading program that helped your daughter

so

much to address his needs, or is there another program that you're also

contemplating? If there is something else, and you could pass it along, I'd

love

to hear about it. ' issues are very similar - he doesn't have sufficient

control of his crayon or other writing instrument. He is learning to move

his wrist when he colors, and he is using his left hand cooperatively with his

right hand, and finally has a strong right hand dominance, but he really

cannot even trace letters and numbers yet. Meanwhile, my 3.5 year old goes at it

with glee. Pretty disturbing when both are at the same table working together.

And it's not lost on him - he sees what she does and wants to do it but

can't. Visualizing and copying are his key issues.

Also, just as an aside, a year ago at this time, also had trouble

with his phone number and address. He now knows them effortlessly - no

hesitation -but it took a long while to get there. He'd get the last half but

forget

the first half of the phone number, etc. He is also great with all his

letters and numbers. is a full year older than your little guy.

Sometimes I

have to remind myself of the progress - it may not be in some of the areas

that I worry most about, but it's there, and it's all coming together slowly.

The dyslexia school is testing at said the same thing about

dyspraxia/dyslexia overlapping. I'm really hopeful that it might be a good

compromise

for all the issues we're dealing with. Thank you again for passing along all

the excellent info that you have. It's hugely helpful and much appreciated.

In a message dated 2/9/2006 10:25:22 AM Pacific Standard Time,

claudiamorris@... writes:

Not sure how multiple ear infections fit in - but that is such a common

ailment of childhood, I wouldn't put to much on that alone. Many dylexic

(but not all) kids definitely have some component of dyspraxia (usually not

verbal, though). They can be very uncoordinated - often more a fine motor

than a gross motor problem - so not affecting football or soccer etc - but

no one can read their handwriting.

I never thought my older son had any issues with dyspraxia until more

recently - so not obvious when he was younger. (Like my apraxic 2 yr old's

dyscoordination was obvious from the beginning). But my older son has

always had a hard time drawing - his pictures are very immature, and now

that he is trying to copy letters - its painful to watch him. He is really

struggling. It hard for him to visualize and copy (so to figure out how to

write an S for example)...but then it is also literally hard for him to

control the pencil enough to write it. He has a hard time just hitting one

key on the piano (no lessons - just " playing " ). There's also no teaching him

his address or phone # at this point. I can see he is going to have some

problems at school. But having gone through this with my daughter - I'm not

stressing about it, because I know that he will be getting help soon. I'm

even spending LESS time trying to teach him letters myself (and more time

just reading) because I know I'm adding to frustration - its not working,

and with all my efforts with my daughter - she learned her letters and how

to read within 2 weeks of a different method of teaching. He needs a

different approach and I'm not trained sufficiently to do it...so happy

there are places to take him. There were so fewer options for my

mother-in-law when she went through this with my husband as a child. (She

finally got him evaluated and changed schools after it was discovered that

my husband - in 2nd grade - was so miserable at school that he was

disappearing during lunch time, and hiding until school was out - only to

reappear to walk home with his siblings. The school never even noticed he

was gone. This had been going on for months before he was discovered. He was

failing miserably and the teachers told him mother he was mentally retarded

and didn't belong in the school anyway. Pretty sad. Smart guy, MBA,

successful...and dyslexic. Strong genes too - since its been passed down to

all our kids. My husband & I have shared equally - he takes claim to all

the developmental issues and I've shared my asthma and allergic genes with

my kids. Equal partnership.

[Guest guest]

Not sure how multiple ear infections fit in - but that is such a common

ailment of childhood, I wouldn't put to much on that alone. Many dylexic

(but not all) kids definitely have some component of dyspraxia (usually not

verbal, though). They can be very uncoordinated - often more a fine motor

than a gross motor problem - so not affecting football or soccer etc - but

no one can read their handwriting.

I never thought my older son had any issues with dyspraxia until more

recently - so not obvious when he was younger. (Like my apraxic 2 yr old's

dyscoordination was obvious from the beginning). But my older son has

always had a hard time drawing - his pictures are very immature, and now

that he is trying to copy letters - its painful to watch him. He is really

struggling. It hard for him to visualize and copy (so to figure out how to

write an S for example)...but then it is also literally hard for him to

control the pencil enough to write it. He has a hard time just hitting one

key on the piano (no lessons - just " playing " ). There's also no teaching him

his address or phone # at this point. I can see he is going to have some

problems at school. But having gone through this with my daughter - I'm not

stressing about it, because I know that he will be getting help soon. I'm

even spending LESS time trying to teach him letters myself (and more time

just reading) because I know I'm adding to frustration - its not working,

and with all my efforts with my daughter - she learned her letters and how

to read within 2 weeks of a different method of teaching. He needs a

different approach and I'm not trained sufficiently to do it...so happy

there are places to take him. There were so fewer options for my

mother-in-law when she went through this with my husband as a child. (She

finally got him evaluated and changed schools after it was discovered that

my husband - in 2nd grade - was so miserable at school that he was

disappearing during lunch time, and hiding until school was out - only to

reappear to walk home with his siblings. The school never even noticed he

was gone. This had been going on for months before he was discovered. He was

failing miserably and the teachers told him mother he was mentally retarded

and didn't belong in the school anyway. Pretty sad. Smart guy, MBA,

successful...and dyslexic. Strong genes too - since its been passed down to

all our kids. My husband & I have shared equally - he takes claim to all

the developmental issues and I've shared my asthma and allergic genes with

my kids. Equal partnership.

[Guest guest]

I have not thought that my nearly 5 year old needs OT. I'm counting on the

dylexic program mainly to help him with symbols and letters & reading. Maybe

I'll change my mind about the OT thing once he's in kindergarden but I'm

going to give him some time. My dsylexic daughter drew beautifully even from

a young age - very artistic - but had very poor handwriting - couldn't keep

it on a line. Now, nearly 8 - her handwriting is really beautiful (as long

as its on lined paper). The reading struggle is more of what I worry about

mainly because this is the part that leads to low self-esteem and poor

school performance. Poor handwriting in a non-artistic boy really won't have

much of an impact on the way he feels about himself, and much of this will

improve with age. Because he'd rather go out and play soccer than draw will

never come back to haunt him. Plus with computers - one has a means to get

around the handwriting thing in the long run if it doesn't improve.

But if a child has dyspraxia that is really impacting performance - OT may

be really helpful. In my son's case, fine motor coordination won't be a

strong point - but not everyone excels in every aspect...and its not a big

enough problem to deal with right now for us.

A friend of mine who also has a dyslexic son who is brilliant gave me some

perspective: In the days before written word was commonly used - people

whose brains were " dylexic-wired " ...were the caveman problem-solvers. They

tend to be very creative and think outside the box. They have a " disability "

only because our society puts emphasis on written word and the structure of

our schools. These children " learn " very well and excel with alternative

learning methods. But they often also surpass their peers in IQ testing,

memory, problem solving skills etc. Their strengths lie in other areas that

often make them successful individuals (if they don't get the self-esteem

beat out of them before they are able to bloom). So " disability " really

doesn't seem to fit, but it certainly is a disability within the school

system.

My husband and I are so happy with the choices we made for our daughter -

and being so proactive despite reassurance from teachers that we should just

" wait and see' " - what, wait and see that she's failing and hates school???

At the time, we did what we thought would be best given my husband's

experience - but really had no idea what the outcome would be. Happy to

say, may daughter is a dyslexia success story, and " compensated dyslexia "

was exactly what we were aiming for.

-

Re: [ ] Apraxia & Dyslexia link????-

Well, one of the smartest students in my class in law school was dyslexic,

and he was also incredibly creative, funny, and great to have around, and he

spoke of a past that was strikingly similar to your husband's. I know that

my

husband has a cousin who had a bunch of learning-related issues, but is now

a

very successful computer programmer in Silicon Valley, and while no one has

ever said " dyslexia, " it's one of the dxs I've suspected.

I hear you on the ear infections. My sister is constantly reminding me that

her son, who is now doing very well at Yale, also had constant ear

infections

but no learning issues. On the other hand, ' truly were constant and I

can't help but think that the two years he spent in daycare with constant

ear

infections impacted his ability to hear the way he should have heard and to

grow and explore and comprehend what he needed to move forward. The

frustrating part of all of this is that I'll never know exactly what caused

" it. "

Probably never will.

I'm really curious about this:

" But having gone through this with my daughter - I'm not

stressing about it, because I know that he will be getting help soon. I'm

even spending LESS time trying to teach him letters myself (and more time

just reading) because I know I'm adding to frustration - its not working,

and with all my efforts with my daughter - she learned her letters and how

to read within 2 weeks of a different method of teaching...He needs a

different approach and I'm not trained sufficiently to do it...so happy

there are places to take him. "

I think this is in reference to your almost 5 yo who's not in OT, am I

right? Do you have confidence in the reading program that helped your

daughter so

much to address his needs, or is there another program that you're also

contemplating? If there is something else, and you could pass it along, I'd

love

to hear about it. ' issues are very similar - he doesn't have

sufficient

control of his crayon or other writing instrument. He is learning to move

his wrist when he colors, and he is using his left hand cooperatively with

his

right hand, and finally has a strong right hand dominance, but he really

cannot even trace letters and numbers yet. Meanwhile, my 3.5 year old goes

at it

with glee. Pretty disturbing when both are at the same table working

together.

And it's not lost on him - he sees what she does and wants to do it but

can't. Visualizing and copying are his key issues.

Also, just as an aside, a year ago at this time, also had trouble

with his phone number and address. He now knows them effortlessly - no

hesitation -but it took a long while to get there. He'd get the last half

but forget

the first half of the phone number, etc. He is also great with all his

letters and numbers. is a full year older than your little guy.

Sometimes I

have to remind myself of the progress - it may not be in some of the areas

that I worry most about, but it's there, and it's all coming together

slowly.

The dyslexia school is testing at said the same thing about

dyspraxia/dyslexia overlapping. I'm really hopeful that it might be a good

compromise

for all the issues we're dealing with. Thank you again for passing along

all

the excellent info that you have. It's hugely helpful and much appreciated.

[Guest guest]

Great to hear about how successfully things have gone for your daughter,

. And I admire the way you are putting your son's emotional well-being

above over-emphasizing fine motor skills. ' fine motor impairments are

clearly more significant than your son's, and he's a year older which makes

them that much more worrisome, although we seem to have him pretty much up to

speed with gross motor now (which also sounds like a non-issue for your son).

He'll never be a great athlete, but he can throw and catch a ball reasonably

well, runs well, and can ride his bike and motorized tractor fearlessly. What

you wrote below is exactly on par with what the vision therapist we'll soon

be seeing had to say about dyslexia. He, too, is dyslexic, and put a lot of

emphasis on how much harder it is on kids who are " differently wired " to keep

up with the expectations for early reading/writing that are part of K and 1st

grade requirements today. He also emphasized that it's not about what a child

is fundamentally lacking, but what our school system is now (in his opinion)

inappropriately expecting too early and too rigidly.

In a message dated 2/9/2006 2:11:05 PM Pacific Standard Time,

claudiamorris@... writes:

A friend of mine who also has a dyslexic son who is brilliant gave me some

perspective: In the days before written word was commonly used - people

whose brains were " dylexic-wired " ...were the caveman problem-solvers. They

tend to be very creative and think outside the box. They have a " disability "

only because our society puts emphasis on written word and the structure of

our schools. These children " learn " very well and excel with alternative

learning methods. But they often also surpass their peers in IQ testing,

memory, problem solving skills etc. Their strengths lie in other areas that

often make them successful individuals (if they don't get the self-esteem

beat out of them before they are able to bloom). So " disability " really

doesn't seem to fit, but it certainly is a disability within the school

system.

[Guest guest]

your a inspiration claudia. keep up your fabulous work!!!!

chris

<claudiamorris@...> wrote:

I have not thought that my nearly 5 year old needs OT. I'm counting on the

dylexic program mainly to help him with symbols and letters & reading. Maybe

I'll change my mind about the OT thing once he's in kindergarden but I'm

going to give him some time. My dsylexic daughter drew beautifully even from

a young age - very artistic - but had very poor handwriting - couldn't keep

it on a line. Now, nearly 8 - her handwriting is really beautiful (as long

as its on lined paper). The reading struggle is more of what I worry about

mainly because this is the part that leads to low self-esteem and poor

school performance. Poor handwriting in a non-artistic boy really won't have

much of an impact on the way he feels about himself, and much of this will

improve with age. Because he'd rather go out and play soccer than draw will

never come back to haunt him. Plus with computers - one has a means to get

around the handwriting thing in the long run if it doesn't improve.

But if a child has dyspraxia that is really impacting performance - OT may

be really helpful. In my son's case, fine motor coordination won't be a

strong point - but not everyone excels in every aspect...and its not a big

enough problem to deal with right now for us.

A friend of mine who also has a dyslexic son who is brilliant gave me some

perspective: In the days before written word was commonly used - people

whose brains were " dylexic-wired " ...were the caveman problem-solvers. They

tend to be very creative and think outside the box. They have a " disability "

only because our society puts emphasis on written word and the structure of

our schools. These children " learn " very well and excel with alternative

learning methods. But they often also surpass their peers in IQ testing,

memory, problem solving skills etc. Their strengths lie in other areas that

often make them successful individuals (if they don't get the self-esteem

beat out of them before they are able to bloom). So " disability " really

doesn't seem to fit, but it certainly is a disability within the school

system.

My husband and I are so happy with the choices we made for our daughter -

and being so proactive despite reassurance from teachers that we should just

" wait and see' " - what, wait and see that she's failing and hates school???

At the time, we did what we thought would be best given my husband's

experience - but really had no idea what the outcome would be. Happy to

say, may daughter is a dyslexia success story, and " compensated dyslexia "

was exactly what we were aiming for.

-

Re: [ ] Apraxia & Dyslexia link????-

Well, one of the smartest students in my class in law school was dyslexic,

and he was also incredibly creative, funny, and great to have around, and he

spoke of a past that was strikingly similar to your husband's. I know that

my

husband has a cousin who had a bunch of learning-related issues, but is now

a

very successful computer programmer in Silicon Valley, and while no one has

ever said " dyslexia, " it's one of the dxs I've suspected.

I hear you on the ear infections. My sister is constantly reminding me that

her son, who is now doing very well at Yale, also had constant ear

infections

but no learning issues. On the other hand, ' truly were constant and I

can't help but think that the two years he spent in daycare with constant

ear

infections impacted his ability to hear the way he should have heard and to

grow and explore and comprehend what he needed to move forward. The

frustrating part of all of this is that I'll never know exactly what caused

" it. "

Probably never will.

I'm really curious about this:

" But having gone through this with my daughter - I'm not

stressing about it, because I know that he will be getting help soon. I'm

even spending LESS time trying to teach him letters myself (and more time

just reading) because I know I'm adding to frustration - its not working,

and with all my efforts with my daughter - she learned her letters and how

to read within 2 weeks of a different method of teaching...He needs a

different approach and I'm not trained sufficiently to do it...so happy

there are places to take him. "

I think this is in reference to your almost 5 yo who's not in OT, am I

right? Do you have confidence in the reading program that helped your

daughter so

much to address his needs, or is there another program that you're also

contemplating? If there is something else, and you could pass it along, I'd

love

to hear about it. ' issues are very similar - he doesn't have

sufficient

control of his crayon or other writing instrument. He is learning to move

his wrist when he colors, and he is using his left hand cooperatively with

his

right hand, and finally has a strong right hand dominance, but he really

cannot even trace letters and numbers yet. Meanwhile, my 3.5 year old goes

at it

with glee. Pretty disturbing when both are at the same table working

together.

And it's not lost on him - he sees what she does and wants to do it but

can't. Visualizing and copying are his key issues.

Also, just as an aside, a year ago at this time, also had trouble

with his phone number and address. He now knows them effortlessly - no

hesitation -but it took a long while to get there. He'd get the last half

but forget

the first half of the phone number, etc. He is also great with all his

letters and numbers. is a full year older than your little guy.

Sometimes I

have to remind myself of the progress - it may not be in some of the areas

that I worry most about, but it's there, and it's all coming together

slowly.

The dyslexia school is testing at said the same thing about

dyspraxia/dyslexia overlapping. I'm really hopeful that it might be a good

compromise

for all the issues we're dealing with. Thank you again for passing along

all

the excellent info that you have. It's hugely helpful and much appreciated.

[Guest guest]

Hi Mia,

I first learned about the dyslexia school from a really great mom who's on a

California dyspraxia list that I'm on and happens to live only about an hour

away from me. The dyslexia school is just 30 minutes away. I called the

school and talked at length to the intake administrator. She told me that many

of

the kids dxd with dyslexia also have horrible handwriting and other

commonalities with dyspraxic kids. There's a book called " The LCP solution:

Dyslexia,

Dyspraxia, ADHD " which also discusses a link between these syndromes (and

describes how omegas can help). Meanwhile, I keep reading about how

" multisensory " approaches to learning are best for kids with motor delays -

whehter

visual motor or fine motor. So that's how I became interested in the dyslexia

school, and the intake worker has been really encouraging, as has the

principal. goes in for testing on Monday, and then they'll decide if he's

a

good match for the school. Even if we don't enroll him there full-time in the

fall, he can still benefit from tutoring and also a summer program they sponsor

that I've heard great things about. They youngest they take kids is first

grade, so he basically would " skip " kindergarten, although that's where he

should be now anyway - we delayed it a year.

I hope this helps! I'll know more after Monday about whether or not it's

truly a good fit for (who just turned six, by the way). I'd love to hear

about how things turn out with your visit on Thursday. Good luck!

Best,

In a message dated 2/11/2006 3:41:35 PM Pacific Standard Time, mia@...

writes:

,

I saw that you are considering a dyslexia school. That is what I am

considering for my son who is 6. They have small classes and use

the Orton Gilliam(sp) approach to reading. I am not sure if my

child is dyslexic but I know he is apraxic and he is not going to

get it using a traditional approach to reading. I am going to visit

it this thursday. Is your son dyslexic and is that why you are

considering it?

Mia

[Guest guest]

,

I saw that you are considering a dyslexia school. That is what I am

considering for my son who is 6. They have small classes and use

the Orton Gilliam(sp) approach to reading. I am not sure if my

child is dyslexic but I know he is apraxic and he is not going to

get it using a traditional approach to reading. I am going to visit

it this thursday. Is your son dyslexic and is that why you are

considering it?

Mia

[Guest guest]

I'm in Northern Cal, Valery. Its Valley Oaks School in Turlock. (Central

Valley)

In a message dated 2/12/2006 4:36:12 PM Pacific Standard Time,

valerychamberlin@... writes:

Hi ,

I live California and I was wondering which Dyslexia school you are

considering. We have

two near to us in Los Angeles.

-Valery

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I live California and I was wondering which Dyslexia school you are considering.

We have

two near to us in Los Angeles.

-Valery