Could My Child Have a Learning Disability?
One of the most difficult things about being a parent is knowing if the difficulties your child is facing are typical or not. When do you begin to seek support for academic difficulties you are seeing in the classroom and at home? How do you know if your child’s academic struggles warrant further testing and intervention?
The National Center for Educational Statistics states that in the 2017-2018 school year 14% of public school students, approximately 7 million students aged 3 to 21, were being served with special education services. Of the students receiving services, 34% were identified with specific learning disabilities. A specific learning disability is defined as a disorder in one or more of the basic learning processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest in significant difficulties affecting the ability to listen, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematics.
Most children struggle with school and homework from time to time. However, when the problem is consistent, requires a great deal of effort and time, and results in continued difficulty completing the skill independently; it may be time to ask for an evaluation to rule out the possibility of a specific learning disability.
Signs of a possible learning disability include:
difficulty with memory
poor organization
difficulty sequencing letters or events
Rate of learning is significantly slower than peers
Difficulty expressing self
Difficulty copying letters or words
Difficulty with multi-step directions
Repeatedly asking about a concept already explained
Repeatedly losing place while reading
Behavior problems when asked to complete work
Difficulty with sustained attention
Inconsistency between performance in different subjects (i.e. math, reading)
Children can struggle in one or multiple subject areas, including math, writing, and reading. If your child is struggling and you would like further, more detailed information broken down into specific age ranges from preschool to high school years, click here.
If you are unsure about whether or not your child should be evaluated for a specific learning disability, please contact our educational advocates with questions. You can visit our website at www.collaborativecorner.org to contact all the panelists today, free of charge. You will get a response within 24 hours. Additional information about how to ask for an evaluation will be shared in a blog post next week.
Collaborative Corner for Exceptional Children
jessica@collaborativecorner.org