03/21/2024
Dyslexia does not suddenly show up in grades 4, middle school or high school.
This post is super important. Society has overlooked the importance of early help long before a child starts to read.
The early language needs of the child are often overlooked from ages 18 months to 6 years. Society has not yet grasped that dyslexia is a language-based learning disability.
We do not offer easy access to early intervention services around the world.
Parents can put in enormous efforts to request help and get their concerns “ denied” by the preschool, health care agencies, early intervention centers and more.
People often only pay attention to that language-based learning difference when the child struggles to read. Dyslexia was there before the child was needing to learn how to read.
Sadly, most of society only pays attention to very severe language struggles. They do not understand the more subtle aspects of language. That’s why some people will say “ the child talks fine, too shy, stubborn, late bloomer, they talk all the time , they are the most verbal in class .” A skilled speech and language pathologist would be able to see the less obvious language struggles( both understand and expressing one’s self).
Why does this matter ? The entire wait-to-fail system is built upon not giving children proper support from ages 12 months to 6 years. We only help when needs are super severe so kids do not get proper early intervention.
Parents, caregivers, grandparents, day cares and even health care providers may avoid and deny the need for early intervention supports because society created a stigma around help.
The health-care industry wants to save money so the process to get help is hard. The school system also makes the process hard for kids who finish the state mandated early intervention programs from birth to 3 years.
Not all SLPs give in-depth enough evaluations. Not all preschool teachers understand the early signs of dyslexia. Not all pediatricians offices are set up for looking at the developmental needs of the children.
Many parents express concerns and are told not to worry by people who are less informed.
Some parents advocate for help and are turned down by the early intervention school or health care system.
Sadly, wrong advice is given to parents by preschools, healthcare providers and school systems who are not fully informed. This results in delays or denial of key services. That is why each USA state has a parent information center.
It’s a full time job helping your child get proper evaluations and help.
People tend to say “ they are not that far behind, they will catch up later, so cute and smart, the baby is fine, each child develops at their own rate, give it a few more months “ as they don’t grasp the value of the early intervention process. The very same statements are made by the elementary schools.
So the child misses out twice.
First they miss early intervention which would work on language processing, word finding , vocabulary, auditory/visual processing, sensory regulation, fine/gross motor skills , play social skills and all pre-literacy skills. They miss getting a strong foundation of supports in preschool or at home.
They miss laying down the foundation for pre-literacy skills unless one of the parents happens to be an SLP , strong advocate or the preschool hires SLPs /OTs to train the teachers.
Some parents/caregivers end up paying for private evaluations and tutors. Equity is an issue.
That means the child starts kindergarten with delayed skills in all areas required for play, social activities, language , sitting at a desk, tying shoes, holding a pencil, processing language in a large group setting and taking in the academic lessons.
Most people do not notice the delays because our society looks for “ severe” needs and not the more subtle needs that exist for bright, creative dyslexic students. Many can see the subtle signs when looking back years later.
A skilled Occupational therapist and Speech and Language Pathologist would be able to observe in kindergarten and see signs that many others would overlook.
Some wealthy towns have a transitional kindergarten year for kids who are not ready for first grade. The SLPs/OTs have very high caseloads in less affluent towns. Equity.
Some countries have free daycare, preschool and early childhood help. The USA struggles with this.
Overall, we are missing helping kids ages 12 months to 6 years. Why ? Parents struggle to navigate early intervention help from ages 12 months to 3 years. Kids miss out on getting the SLP and OT/PT therapy. Services are denied due to staffing shortages and a complex process. The pediatricians office needs to screen and coordinate the referral. Working families can find this hard. It’s not an easy process.
Even worse. Public schools are not set up to serve kids from ages 3.5 to 6 like the laws say they should. Only the kids with the most severe needs may get help. They don’t have the space, time or desire to support most kids ages 3.5 to 6 so they use the wait-to-fail model in grade 3 and 4.
Ideally, early intervention centers would be better equipped to help children as they have the play equipment, space, time and knowledge. It would be better if they helped until kids enter kindergarten. Currently, the USA ends the EI services at age 3 years. So a massive gap exists from ages 3 to kindergarten unless the parent hires private help and pays for a private evaluation.
As a society, we are just “ winging it “ and hoping it all works out. We are not evaluating the speech and language skills, fine and gross motor skills, sensory regulation skills until a child has a learning crisis which eventually becomes a mental health crisis in many cases.
A stigma exists around early help which must change.
A huge financial cost can be avoided by schools when they use wait to fail. Hiring enough SLPs, OTs, PTs and literacy experts would be costly. So the child pays the price.
Years ago we did not identify deafness or hearing loss until ages 4 or 5 years. Now we can test for hearing loss at birth or infancy. Early help matters.
Imagine a day when kids with dyslexia are identified very early. They get early speech and language help through play activities that support preliteracy skills. The parents also get coaching to know how to better facilitate stronger language, vocabulary and overall learning skills. The preschools hire SLPs and OTs for better play skills that are needed long before kindergarten. All teachers will be trained in all learning differences so they have the skills to identify and support kids in need.
The entire wait-to-fail system started long before the child was struggling to read.
Too many parents /caregivers ask for help and those requests are denied , delayed or caught up in a tangled process.
Too many parents find the school-based evaluations are not thorough enough, miss key subtests or are designed in ways that make the child “ not qualify” for proper help.
Parents/caregivers with a family history of dyslexia find the system is not working.
Entire books are written about this.
If society wants to help kids with dyslexia, we need to start before kids are required to read, write, spell and do math.
1. See SLP Guide to Dyslexia
2. SLPs Role in Language and Literacy
3. Vivido, LLC
4. EarlyBird Education
5. Reach Every Reader
6. Language and Literacy Solutions
7. American Board of Child Language and Language Disorders
8. Child Language and Literacy Lab
9. Speech and Language Literacy Lab
10. Dr. Pamela Snow, SLP has many excellent articles : http://pamelasnow.blogspot.com/
11. Mrs Speechie P, NeuroWild
12. Learning Disabilities Association of America
13. Cox Campus has a resource for early childhood workers.
