Symptoms of Dyslexia
“How does dyslexia affect people in their life?” and “What is the background of dyslexia?”
Kindergarteners through fourth graders may be slow to learn the connection between letters and sounds, have difficulty decoding single words, difficulty spelling phonetically, consistent reading and spelling errors such as: Letter reversals, Word reversals, Inversions, Transpositions, and Substitutions, they may confuse small words, rely on guessing and context, have difficulty learning new vocabulary, transpose number sequences and confuse mathematical signs, have trouble remembering facts, slow to learn new skills, rely heavily on memorizing without understanding, difficulty planning, organizing and managing time, materials and tasks, use an awkward pencil grip, have poor motor coordination and/or struggle to perform sequential motor tasks. (IEB/IDA 2)
Fifth through eighth graders might: read below grade level, reverse letter sequences, be slow to discern and to learn prefixes, suffixes, root words, and other reading and spelling strategies, difficulty spelling, spell the same word differently on the same page, avoid reading aloud, have trouble with word problems in math, write with difficulty with illegible handwriting, pencil grip is awkward, avoid writing, difficulty with written composition, slow or poor recall of facts, have difficulty with comprehension, have trouble with non-literal language, and may have difficulty with planning, organizing and managing time, materials and tasks. (IEB/IDA 2)
High school and college students might: have difficulty processing auditory information, lose possessions; poor organization skills, slow reading, low reading comprehension, have difficulty remembering names of people and places, hesitant speech, have difficulty finding appropriate words, have difficulty organizing ideas to write a letter or paper, have poor spelling, have an inability to recall numbers in proper sequences, have lowered self-esteem due to past frustrations and failures, have poor ability to find way around and trouble finding car in parking lot OR excellent ability to find way around. (IEB/IDA 2)
Dyslexic adults: may hide reading problems, spell poorly and rely on others to correct spelling, avoid writing because some are able to write, often very competent in oral language, rely on memory, may have an excellent memory, often have good "people" skills, often are spatially talented, May be very good at "reading" people, may have difficulty with planning, organization, and management of time, materials and tasks. (IEB/IDA 2)