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Addressing Anxiety-This is a complex topic, but one way to address anxiety is by boosting self esteem. Students with learning disabilities often experience low self esteem. One way to combat this is by praising a student's effort, rather than only focussing on the outcome. Another is to help them identify their strengths, whether they are in the same subject, or a different subject. Another is to combat negative self talk.

Having the right accommodations is key for helping students with Dyscalculia succeed. These can include:

Access to a calculator during class and tests

Extra time on tests

A quiet space to work

The option to record lectures

Access to the teacher’s notes

Time in the math resource room (if the school offers one)

In-school tutoring or homework assistance

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Dyscalculia is a learning disability that affects people's ability to process number based information, and effectively to do math. In the same way that Dyslexia disrupts the parts of the brain that relate to reading, Dyscalculia disrupts areas of the brain that relate to numbers. This condition can be and often is diagnosed during childhood, but can remain undiagnosed well into adulthood. In some cases it can also begin during adulthood.

Dyscalculia often manifests itself in children between the ages of 6 and 9, and is estimated to affect around 7% of people worldwide.

People with dyscalculia are classified as Neuro Divergent. This means their brains work differently than someone who does not have Dyscalculia. Early Symptoms of Dsycalculia may include:

Counting upward.

Connecting a number to that many of an object (for example, connecting the number 4 to that many marbles in front of them).

Recognizing numbers and math symbols.

Organizing numbers, such as largest to smallest or first to last.

Recognizing and using number lines.

Learning using money (such as coins or bills).

Symptoms for older students, such as teenagers, may include:

Counting backward.

Solving word problems.

Breaking down problems into multiple steps to solve them.

Measuring items.

Measuring quantities (such as for cooking/baking recipes).

Using money (coins and bills) to pay for items, exchanging bills for coins (and vice versa) and making change.

Understanding and converting fractions.

People affected by Dyscalculia often experience anxiety when they need to do math, particularly in front of other people, such as in front of a class.

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This involves learning to count a group of objects by assigning one number to each object and counting each object only once. This helps students to develop a sense of number values, and the understanding that when counting a group of objects each object can only be counted once. This also involves the four counting principles, which are: each number can only be assigned one number name, numbers must be used in a fixed order, the idea that it doesn't matter which object is counted as first or last, there will always be the same number of objects, and that the "number name of the last object determines the total.

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Number sense is somewhat of an umbrella term. It refers to understanding quantities, grasping concepts such as "more" and "less" and "larger" and "smaller", understanding that numbers/symbols represent actual quantities (knowing that 8 means the same thing as the number eight), number comparisons (knowing that 8 is more than 7), and more. Number sense is generally a strong indicator of early math learning disabilities, as it is foundational for understanding math.

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Recognizing numbers is a large aspect of very early (Kindergarten) Elementary School Math. A common issue in this age range is confusing numbers that look similar to each other, such as 6 and 9, 2 and 5, 1 and 7, and more. It is also common for students to struggle to remember which digit comes first in two digit numbers, which falls under the same category as number recognition.

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Students with math-based learning disabilities can struggle with the following: trouble recognizing numbers, number sense, not understanding one to one correspondence, and trouble learning the rules and order of math operations.

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Inclusive strategies and accommodations for students

Observation - Make sure kids understand and write down assignments correctly to help avoid confusion.

Modeling - Be a good speech model for the students to follow. Model correct speech patterns and avoid correcting speech difficulties. It will help students to build their confidence and the feeling of safety.

Differentiation - Substitute written papers or projects for oral presentations, or allow a student to demonstrate learning one-on-one with the teacher.

Scaffolding - Use linguistic scaffolding techniques that involve a series of questions. Teachers could break down complex questions into smaller steps.

Communication - Focus on interactive communication, listening and speaking,  between the teacher and the students or the peers between the students. Besides, Reinforce communication attempts (e.g. their gestures, partial verbalizations) when the student is non-verbal or emerging verbal.

Exclusive strategies and accommodations for students

Seat setting - Move kids closer to you. Having kids sit closer to the front of the class makes it easier to help them with questions and assignments. Kids also may need to sit closer to you if they have a hearing problem.

Technology - Use technology to make learning easier. This may include having real-time captioning on any videos used in the classroom and using voice-recognition software on computers.

Extended time - Give extra time to complete assignments or make-up work when needed. It can make the students feel not anxious and be confident to finish the assignment that the teachers provide.

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Strategies for Encouraging Your Child's Speech and Language Development

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Articulation - Articulation problem refers to incorrect pronunciation of students that causes confusion of speech.

Certain sounds (like "r", "l", or "s") may be consistently distorted or changed (such as making the 's' sound with a whistle).

Errors may make it hard for people to understand the person (only family members may be able to understand a child).

Congenital physical defects, such as hearing impairment, cleft lip, cleft palate or cerebral palsy, etc.

Other factors include developmental delay.

Fluency - Fluency problem is mainly about the rhythm and flow of speech. Stuttering is the most common type of disfluency.

Repetition of sounds, words, or parts of words or phrases after age 4 (I want...I want my doll. I...I see you.)

Putting in (interjecting) extra sounds or words (We went to the...uh...store.)

Making words longer (I am Boooobbby Jones.)

Pausing during a sentence or words, often with the lips together

Tension in the voice or sounds

Frustration with attempts to communicate

Head jerking while talking

Eye blinking while talking

Embarrassment with speech

Voice - The voice impairement occurs when the child’s voice has an abnormal quality.

Hoarseness or raspiness to the voice

Voice may break in or out

Pitch of the voice may change suddenly

Voice may be too loud or too soft

Person may run out of air during a sentence

Speech may sound odd because too much air is escaping through the hose (hypernasality) or too little air is coming out through the nose (hyponasality)

Language - When children have language impairment, they have problems expressing needs, ideas, or information, and/or in understanding what others say. It includes expressive language disorder (difficulty in expressing ideas or needs), a receptive language disorder (difficulty in understanding what others are saying), or a mixed language disorder (which involves both).

improper use of words and their meanings,

inability to express ideas,

inappropriate grammatical patterns,

reduced vocabulary,

inability to follow directions.

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Speech and language disorders refer to problems in communication and related areas such as oral-motor function — sucking, swallowing, drinking, eating. There are many kinds of speech and language disorders that can affect children. Here are four major areas in which these impairments occur:
- Articulation
- Fluency
- Voice
- Language

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Early Identification of Reading Struggles

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Early Identification of Reading Struggles

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Early identification is crucial for assisting children with reading struggles. Parent observation is critical, for providing information for interventions.
Some indicators are:
* Infants, being late to talk;
*Preschool or Kindergarten having difficulty manipulating sounds in words, or detecting differences in speech sounds, or trouble making associations between sounds and letters, an assessment would benefit these children, with intervention scaffolding to assist their learning.

Other indicators include:
Difficulty rhyming
Difficulty hearing individual sounds
Difficulty following directions
Difficulty re-telling a story
Struggles to sound out most words
Avoids reading out loud

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Even as babies, kids build reading skills that set the foundation for learning to read. Here's a list of reading milestones by age. Keep in mind that kids develop reading skills at their own pace, so they may not be on this exact timetable.

Babies (ages 0-12 months)

Begin to reach for soft-covered books or board books

Look at and touch the pictures in books

Respond to a storybook by cooing or making sounds

Help turn pages

Toddlers (ages 1-2 years)

Look at pictures and name familiar items, like dog, cup, and baby

Answer questions about what they see in books

Recognize the covers of favorite books

Recite the words to favorite books

Start pretending to read by turning pages and making up stories

Preschoolers (ages 3-4 years)

Know the correct way to hold and handle a book

Understand that words are read from left to right and pages are read from top to bottom

Start noticing words that rhyme

Retell stories

Recognize about half the letters of the alphabet

Start matching letter sounds to letters (like knowing b makes a /b/ sound)

May start to recognize their name in print and other often-seen words, like those on signs and logos

Kindergartners (age 5 years)

Match each letter to the sound it represents

Identify the beginning, middle, and ending sounds in spoken words like dog or sit

Say new words by changing the beginning sound, like changing rat to sat

Start matching words they hear to words they see on the page

Sound out simple words

Start to recognize some words by sight without having to sound them out

Ask and answer who, what, where, when, why, and how questions about a story

Retell a story in order, using words or pictures

Predict what happens next in a story

Start reading or asking to be read books for information and for fun

Use story language during playtime or conversation (like "I can fly!" the dragon said. "I can fly!")

Learn spelling rules

Keep increasing the number of words they recognize by sight

Improve reading speed and fluency

Use context clues to sound out and understand unfamiliar words

Go back and re-read a word or sentence that doesn't makes sense (self-monitoring)

Connect what they're reading to personal experiences, other books they've read, and world events

In third grade, move from learning to read to reading to learn

Accurately read words with more than one syllable

Learn about prefixes, suffixes, and root words, like those in helpful, helpless, and unhelpful

Read for different purposes (for enjoyment, to learn something new, to figure out directions, etc.)

Explore different genres

Describe the setting, characters, problem/solution, and plot of a story

Identify and summarize the sequence of events in a story

Identify the main theme and may start to identify minor themes

Make inferences ("read between the lines") by using clues from the text and prior knowledge

Compare and contrast information from different texts

Refer to evidence from the text when answering questions about it

Understand similes, metaphors, and other descriptive devices

Keep expanding vocabulary and reading more complex texts

Analyze how characters develop, interact with each other, and advance the plot

Determine themes and analyze how they develop over the course of the text

Use evidence from the text to support analysis of the text

Identify imagery and symbolism in the text

Analyze, synthesize, and evaluate ideas from the text

Understand satire, sarcasm, irony, and understatement

Keep in mind that some schools focus on different skills in different grades. So, look at how a child reacts to reading, too. For example, kids who have trouble reading might get anxious when they have to read.

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Kids develop reading skills from the time they're babies. Learn about literacy development. See a list of typical reading milestones for kids at different ages.

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*Extended/Additional time for testing.
*Additional time for reading prior to class. Providing reading materials ahead of time.
*Technology oriented accomodations, watching videos or listening to text with Q/A answered orally.
*Read Aloud Accomodations, to show growth and fluency.

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Scaffolding:
Using Structured Literacy in the classroom:
Systematic: Reading skills are taught in logical order. Students master the basics before moving on to more complex skills.
Explicit: Teaching is clear and direct.
Diagnostic: Teachers assess students often to confirm mastering concepts. Instruction is individualized.
Structured Literacy focuses on 6 core skills needed for reading:
Identifying the sounds in spoken words
Connecting sounds to letters
Dividing words into syllables
Studying meaningful parts of words, (prefixes and suffixes)
Understanding sentence structure and order of words
Understanding the meaning of words/sentences.

Differentiation for inclusive learning:
*See all students as literacy learners. Have students participate alongside peers in meaningful activities.
*Create an environment that welcomes and challenges diverse learners. Use more visual support during lessons, create a word wall, communication centers with books, use of graphic organizers.
*Offer a wide range of reading materials,  adapting to individual needs. Integrate access to literacy based software.
*Use active listening, with games, small group work, drama, shared reading, etc. . Teacher can observe and informally assess during this time.

*Collaborate with other teachers by brainstorming, and plan with all team members, including OT, PT, Social workers, psychologists and administrators.

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23 Strategies to Support Kids With Dyslexia

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Spread the loveAre you looking for strategies to support kids with dyslexia? If so, keep reading. 1. Require all students in a small group to point, look, and listen when other group members read orally. 2. Get the learner to create a sight vocabulary of root words to be able to decode words with prefixes and suffixes and increase their word attack skills.

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Dyslexia has been used as a blanket reading disorder term, but falls under the category of a Specific Learning Disability as defined in the DSM-5-a diagnostic tool published by the American Psychiatric Associations (APA). DSM-5 defines a SLD as a Neurodevelopmental Disorder that impedes a person's ability to learn or use specific foundational academic skills, such as reading, writing or math.
Dyslexia is identified by testing by a licensed educational psychologist. Neurologists and other medical professionals qualified are to provide a formal diagnosis.

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Comorbidity refers to the coexistence of two or more conditions or disorders in an individual; for example, a student who has been diagnosed with both a learning disability and a speech and language impairment or a student with dyslexia who also has ADHD.  When a student has comorbidities, their presentation and challenges may differ from those who have only one of the conditions in various ways.

Complexity of Learning Needs - Students with comorbidities often have more complex learning needs due to the combined impact of their learning disability and speech and language impairment. These students may experience challenges in multiple areas, such as reading, writing, mathematics, comprehension, and expressive language skills. Their learning difficulties may be more pronounced and require comprehensive and targeted interventions.

Language-Based Learning Difficulties - In students with comorbidities, the speech and language impairment may exacerbate the challenges associated with their learning disability. For example, a student with comorbidities may struggle not only with decoding words due to dyslexia (learning disability) but also with understanding and expressing their thoughts verbally due to a language impairment. These language-based difficulties can impact their overall academic performance.

Communication and Social Interaction Challenges - Students with comorbidities may face additional challenges in communication and social interaction compared to those with only one of the conditions. They may struggle with receptive and expressive language skills, making it difficult for them to comprehend and convey information effectively. These difficulties can affect their ability to engage in classroom discussions, develop peer relationships, and participate in social activities.

Interplay of Interventions - Supporting students with comorbidities requires careful coordination and integration of interventions targeting both the learning disability and speech and language impairment. The interventions may involve specialized instruction, speech therapy, language support, and assistive technology, among others. It is essential to consider the unique needs and challenges arising from the combination of both conditions and develop a comprehensive and individualized intervention plan.

Comorbidities can present differently in each student. Their strengths, weaknesses, and support needs may vary even within the same comorbidity category. Therefore, it is crucial to conduct a thorough assessment and collaborate with professionals to develop appropriate interventions and accommodations tailored to the individual student's needs.

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Exclusive strategies and accommodations for students

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Exclusive strategies and accommodations for students

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Extended time - Students may need extra time to complete writing tasks. This can be provided through extended deadlines, breaks, or a reduced workload.

Oral presentations - Students may be able to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding through oral presentations instead of written assignments.

Dictation - Students may be able to dictate their writing to a scribe or use a speech-to-text app.

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Inclusive strategies and accommodations 

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Inclusive strategies and accommodations 

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Modeling - Teachers can provide examples of good writing, both in terms of content and mechanics, and model the writing process for students, including brainstorming, planning, drafting, revising, and editing.

Scaffolding - Teachers can break down complex writing tasks into smaller, more manageable steps. This might include providing templates, checklists, or graphic organizers to help organize thoughts and ideas.

Feedback - Teachers should provide students with regular and specific feedback.

Peer support and collaboration - Through peer editing, peer tutoring, or collaborative writing projects, students can work together to help each other with writing tasks.

Technology – Word processing programs can help students with spelling, grammar, and punctuation, and they can also help students organize their thoughts and ideas. with grammar and spell checkers, or voice-to-text software.

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Persistent spelling errors - Difficulty with accurate spelling, including frequent misspellings of common words and challenges with applying spelling rules.

Grammar and punctuation difficulties - Persistent struggles with using correct grammar, sentence structure, punctuation, and subject-verb agreement.

Inconsistent or limited vocabulary - Limited range of vocabulary and difficulty selecting appropriate words to convey meaning accurately.

Poor organization and coherence - Writing that lacks logical structure, coherence, and the ability to organize ideas in a clear and cohesive manner.

Slow and laborious writing - Taking an excessive amount of time to complete written assignments, often accompanied by frustration and fatigue.

Reluctance or avoidance of writing tasks - Displaying a strong dislike or avoidance of writing activities, expressing anxiety or stress related to writing assignments.

Significant gaps between oral and written language abilities - Demonstrating a notable difference between their verbal language skills and their ability to express themselves effectively in writing.

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Early identification of SLD in written expression is crucial for timely intervention, academic progress, and emotional well-being. With early intervention, individuals can receive appropriate instruction, accommodations, and strategies to overcome their difficulties and develop strong writing skills. Early identification can also help prevent academic setbacks and improve emotional well-being.

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Common challenges associated with SLD in written expression

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Common challenges associated with SLD in written expression

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Spelling Difficulties – Some may have difficulty recognizing and remembering spelling patterns, applying spelling rules, and retaining the correct spelling of words.

Grammar and Syntax Challenges - Some may struggle to use correct verb tenses, sentence structure, subject-verb agreement, and punctuation.

Poor Organization and Coherence – Some may struggle to organize thoughts and ideas in a logical and coherent manner.

Limited Vocabulary and Word Choice - Some may struggle to find the right words, resulting in repetitive or imprecise language use.

Weak Written Expression Mechanics - Some may struggle with mechanical aspects of writing, such as handwriting legibility, spacing, and neatness, making it challenging for others to read their work.

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SLD in written expression refers to people who demonstrate writing ability not in line with age and cognitive level despite adequate instruction. These difficulties can include spelling, grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and overall organization of ideas.

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Reading Comprehension signs and symptoms

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Reading Comprehension signs and symptoms

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When children have difficulty understanding what words mean after reading them, it is called a disability in reading comprehension.
*Reading comprehension is also known as Specific Reading Comprehension Deficit (SRC-D).
*Children who can read fluently but who still have problems with comprehension often have trouble with grasping the overall meaning of what they are reading, and monitoring their understanding.
*Difficulty with semantic processing (decoding the meaning of the word)
*Difficulty with syntactic processing (differentiating between various word orders)

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A reading disability is when a child has significant challenges with reading. Reading disabilities are learning disabilities and may include problems with:
* Phonological processing,
*Reading fluency or speed, and
*Reading comprehension.

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Reading fluency occurs when a reader can recognize many words by sight, and quickly decode unfamiliar words. Reading fluency is important because it vives the reader more time to think about the meaning of a passage or story. Some children can decode and recognize words accurately, but have challenges with
*ORTHOGRAPHIC processing (remembering the rules of letter order and combinations). They rely heavily on sounding out common words.
*As a result, it takes a long time to read, and with so much effort on this, they also struggle with
* reading comprehension (the overall meaning of what they are reading).

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Phonological processing signs and symptoms

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Phonological processing signs and symptoms

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Children with problems in phonological processing have difficulty processing the sounds of language.
Phonological processing difficulties include:
* challenges with phonological awareness (rhyming, deleting sounds, blending sounds),
* phonological memory (remembering sounds in words), and *rapid word retrieval (coming up with words or naming objects and symbols quickly).
*Struggles with phonological processing can lead to problems with spelling and to a limited vocabulary, which can also affect reading comprehension.
*inability to explain what they've read
*trouble naming objects
*frustration with or avoidance of reading related tasks may occur.