By Understood
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People with dyslexia don’t all struggle in the same way. Some have a hard time with reading skills like sounding out words (decoding). In other cases, some read words and sentences fine, but they have trouble understanding what they read.
Dyslexia can also look different as kids get older. Learn common signs of dyslexia at different ages and how to help.
Transcript provided by YouTube:
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– Even before kids start reading,
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you may be able to spot early signs of dyslexia.
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That’s because dyslexia can affect language skills
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that are the building blocks for reading.
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Let’s start with preschool.
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Signs of dyslexia in this age group
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include mispronouncing words,
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like saying “beddy tear” instead of “teddy bear.”
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Struggling to name familiar objects,
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and using general words like “thing” and “stuff” instead.
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Having trouble learning nursery rhymes
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or song lyrics that rhyme.
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Having trouble remembering sequences,
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like singing the letters of the alphabet.
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Telling stories that are hard to follow
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or having trouble talking about an event
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in a logical order. And having difficulty remembering
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and following directions with multiple steps.
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The signs of dyslexia can be easier to spot
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in grade school as kids are expected to learn to read.
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Let’s look at kindergarten through second grade.
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Signs of dyslexia in this age group include
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having trouble learning letter names
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and remembering the sounds they make.
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Like “k” makes /k/, and “t” says /t/.
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Confusing letters that look similar, like “b” and “d,”
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or letters that sound similar, like “f” and “v.”
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Struggling to read familiar words like “cat,”
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especially if there aren’t pictures.
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Substituting words when reading aloud,
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like saying “house” when the story says “home.”
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Having trouble separating the individual sounds in words,
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like separating the three sounds in “sit”: /s/ /ǐ/ /t/.
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Having trouble blending sounds to make a word,
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like blending /s/ /ǐ/ /t/ into “sit.”
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And also, struggling to remember how words are spelled
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and how to apply spelling rules when writing.
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As kids move into the later years of grade school,
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they’re expected to read and write more.
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This can be very challenging for kids with dyslexia.
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Let’s look at grades three to five.
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Signs of dyslexia for this age group include
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confusing or skipping small words like “for” and “of”
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when reading aloud.
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Having trouble sounding out new words.
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Having trouble quickly recognizing common words,
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called “sight words.”
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Struggling to explain what happened in a story,
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or answer questions about key details.
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Frequently making the same kinds of mistakes,
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like reversing the letters,
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such as writing “b” when you meant “d,”
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or writing “m” when you meant “w.”
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Having poor spelling, like spelling the same word correctly
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and incorrectly in the same exercise.
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And avoiding reading whenever possible,
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or getting frustrated or upset when reading.
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In middle school and beyond, the signs tend to look the same
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for these older age groups.
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For tweens, teens, and adults,
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the signs of dyslexia include reading slowly,
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leaving out small words and parts of longer words
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when reading aloud.
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Struggling to remember common abbreviations,
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including ones that are often used on social media,
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like “IDK” for “I don’t know.”
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Often searching for words or using substitutes,
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like “gate” instead of “fence.”
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Often not “getting” jokes or puns.
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Taking a long time to complete reading assignments,
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and having an easier time answering questions
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about a page of text if it’s read out loud.
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Having these kinds of challenges
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can be tough on kids and adults.
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They may think they’re not smart enough
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because they’re struggling when most people aren’t.
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But trouble with reading doesn’t mean someone isn’t smart.
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That’s one of the many myths about dyslexia.
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Struggling readers often feel like they’re the only one
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having difficulties with these skills.
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But dyslexia’s a very common learning difference,
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and many kids and adults need extra help learning to read.
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The good news is, there are successful ways
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to teach struggling readers, and skills can improve.
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Want more information?
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Here are three key resources we link to
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at the bottom of this page.
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Our article, “I Think My Child Has Dyslexia. Now What?”
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offers step by step advice for families of school-age kids.
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Think you might have dyslexia?
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Check out our article,
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“How Dyslexia Is Diagnosed After High School.”
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It helps adults find out where to get tested,
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and how to get dyslexia support in college
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or the workplace.
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We also have a download called
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“Dyslexia Signs at Different Ages.”
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This one-page version of the information in this video
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is designed to be shared with teachers or family members.
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You can scroll to the bottom of this article
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to access these resources.
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Thanks for watching.
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For more helpful information, keep exploring U.org.
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Photo credit: Screenshot from video
