I was wondering if anyone else has a child with dyslexia? And how they deal with it professionally in their place of work. My 9 year old son was diagnosed in June at the end of year 4. The problem is I feel very guilty and angry with myself because I work in his school as a TA and I have known that he has been struggling for years.In fact I approached his year 2 teacher but was told he could be bright but he was just lazy! I felt so humiliated that I just left it, I also thought that she knew best as the professional. (This was before I worked in the school.) I feel guilty because I didn't push the school hard enough because I worked there and I didn't want to seem if I was making a mountain out of a mole hill and trying to make my son a priority.It took me nearly a year politely trying to get him assessed. Please if anyone else knows how I am feeling can you let me know as I am sure I can't be alone in this.

Please do not blame yourself, hopefully the help will now come and things will get better

I worked with a boy who I suspected was dyslexic but the class teacher told me to stop interferring as I was not a trained professional. Mum was the one that brought it to our attention. When he left and got into Y3 he was diagnosed and got all the help he needed. he is now doing very well.

I am sorry you have had a bad time of it and hope things look up from now

dyslexic learners are very good at having coping strategies so it is not always obvious, dont blame yourself, as he will now get the help he needs from all of you

use this to make sure he has all the help and resources he needs, not to worry about what has happened im sure you have looked at all the sites and will be knowledgeable about his needs in the future and that can only be a bonus

Thanks. I know I shouldn't blame myself but that is what us mums do! You are right about coping stratagies, I can't believe how many he has, and how I missed them!! I have found an awful lot out about it and my HT has arranged a training session for the rest of the staff, which is great news.
I do have to say that the coloured overlay has proved to be a huge benifit to his reading and therefore his comprehension. He actually enjoys reading now and he can't wait for his tinted glasses!

Up until recently it has been very hard to get a child assessed in our school as the only person who could do it was the DH. This has all changed now that another TA and I have taken on the job and we can do 2 children a week. Hopefully now you son has been assessed things will go more smoothly, it's surprising how quickly children can catch up once the right support is available.

Dont feel guilty!!! My son has dyslexia and the school senco always has and still does say there is no problem (even though his literacy is 3 years behind the rest of his work).
I knew, because his difficulty, and especially his emotional state, is quite severe, and I had to get him assessed privately at first (when he was 8 although I had known years before).
But even now teachers keep telling me he is not that bad.
But every time he has been assessed by educational psycologists or staff from the education office they confirm what we already know.
I think a big problem is funding as it is almost impossible to get a statement for dyslexia, and they do not normally cause disruptions in class, and as a parent if you say anything about what your child cannot do, it looks like you are unsupportive, negative and over anxious.
So nobody from school is likely to approach you if your child is dyslexic.
This is only my experience, and people I am in touch with who are parents of dyslexic children but not necessarily true for all schools.

Thanks for your reply. It is nice to hear from someone who actually knows how I feel.To be fair on the school, now that my son has been diagnosed they are falling over themselves to help. They have bought in this fantastic reading scheme called Rapid.It has software so that he can read aloud and the computer corrects any mistakes and prompts on tricky words. He also gets 20 minutes individual help each day and will soon be embarking on the Beat Dyslexia course. Although I do feel that this is a kneejerk reaction because at the first staff meeting of the new Year our HT said that two children had slipped through the net in the past few years and they were both children of staff members. The school secretary and myself, a TA. Both were diagnosed Dyslexic and unfortunately for the other lad he had to on to secondry school a couple of months later. It does seem to be difficult to get dyslexia recognised, but you will understand like me, it is not just a 'reading problem'. There are some behavioural problems but for my son these only manifest at home where he can be himself. Sorry to rant on but I really do feel that I let him down more than the school.

Hi Lisa jane

can you give me some details of the Beat Dyslexia course..is it only for primary?

and dont blame yourself, it can happen to all of us, and all mums feel guilty!!!

Hi Dancing Queen. This is a bit of a garbled explanation as I am not too good at tis type of thing, (explanations that is). The Beat Dyslexia programme seems to be quite good. I already work with a group of pupils on it at the same school. None havebeen diagnosed dyslexic but all have strong symptons.We have only just started so I don't know too much yet.
I'm not sure of the age range. all of my info is at school. could let you know Monday.
The first thing we start on is the alphabet arch. Knowing the names and form of the upper case letters. It was incredible that they really struggled with this.
Handwriting is as big thing. The programme uses the cursive style and teaches it as it progreses. We have only worked on't' so far. We are learning the sound, name and how to write. The pupils also have to recognise hearing it in words, in any position. Each letter is also given a picture clue. For 't' it is tent. This is so the pupil can visualise a tent but hear 't'.(I think the reason is dyslexics tend to think in pictures).
As we learn more letters they get put together to make words so spelling then comes into it.
It seems to a back to complete basics, but the pupils really seem to enjoy it and can now order the alphabet, which none could do before and now know both name and sound for each letter.
It is a very visual and kinaesthetic approach.

thanks for the info!! i will look into that

what year are your children Lisa-jane?

Hi Caroline. I do the programme with 3 year fours and 2 year three's.

.

Quote:

This is a bit of a garbled explanation as I am not too good at tis type of thing, (explanations that is). The Beat Dyslexia programme seems to be quite good. I already work with a group of pupils on it at the same school. None havebeen diagnosed dyslexic but all have strong sympton

Can you tell me how, EXACTLY, these children were 'taught' reading in YR/1?

dq,

Beat Dyslexia is a painfully slow method of teaching children to read & write and has lots of unnecessary bits to it; like the alphabet arc, learning letter names and picture/sound cue cards.

If you are really, genuinely interested in the most effective way to help children who have been labelled 'dyslexic' then I would suggest that you look at programmes like Jolly Phonics, Sound Discovery & Read Write Inc which are based on what scientific research tells us about learning to read & write. And do some research into synthetic phonics.

I have taught Beat Dyslexia and synthetic phonics; the latter is far more effective.

I am prepared to put money on the fact that the children Lisa-Jane is working with were NOT taught systematic, explicit phonics in EY. I bet they followed the NLS

I didn't mean to post on here any more, as my views are so unpopular with everyone, but I feel so sorry for all those poor, mucked about little children...

i think everyone is entitled to their opinion Maizie, and you have found the one thing that works, and now all schools are using that... I am looking at phonics etc,

I dont see why that should deter you from posting, as we respect all members opinions even if others may argue against them, that is what a forum and discussion is all about. Lots of our members are using phonics everyday in school.

i am interested in looking at all methods to see the claims etc, purely on a professional basis, thats all, the time i have with my students is limited, and i use the methods that work for them...and many of them have been let down by their schools, labelled as lazy, and left...or pushed onto a course where the school doesnt have to worry about them

with some of them i am starting from scratch within that limited time scale and have to make sure i do my best to get them through the course, so they see that achievement and go onto something they want to do and will suceed at

so i am clutching at all knowledge to make sure my kids achieve, thats my job

Maizie, I respect your comments, as you are entitled to your opinion, but we do work with Jolly Phonics and our school has used a systimatic approach to phonics for years. We actually have an above average amount of SEN children in year 3 and 4. This does not mean they were not taught well lower dowm in the school. In fact the school is a very high achieving school, and we have recently achieved outstanding by Ofstead and also by the Church Schools Inspector. It is not always the schools fault that children struggle. Sometimes they have something called a 'learning disability'. Yes , I will agree that sometimes children slip through the net, I know that one from personal experience , but it definately cant always be blamed on the school failing. I am sorry to rant on but the children I work with have not been 'mucked around'!