The Common Signs of Dyslexia and Reading Ability

Joan like many students experiencing dyslexia has difficulty reading. The inconsistency in how Joan presents to others is typical of the common signs of dyslexia, a learning disability that can directly affect a student's ability to read. Joan's exhibits the following characteristics of dyslexia:

• Gifted and articulate with reading inconsistencies
• Verbally gifted but has difficulty in written assessments
• Hides the secret of dyslexia behind appearing emotionally and socially efficient and stable
• Experiences periods of hyperactivity during the school day, especially when asked to read out loud
• Exhibits excellence in performance based assessments and group presentations
• Has difficulty sequencing words, letters, numbers and understanding sentence constructs
• Prefers the computer "word.doc." instead of handwriting documents because transposing letters and words are difficult
• Visual learner and uses graphics to present ideas and understanding of learning objectives

For Joan and other students with dyslexia and reading disabilities, there is hope. Ronald Davis (1992) Davis Dyslexia Association International at http://www.dylsexia.com/library/symptoms.htm provides a comprehensive list of "37 Common Characteristics of Dyslexia." According to Davis (1992), most students like Joan will exhibit at least 10 of the common characteristics defining dyslexia in the following criteria:

• General
• Vision, Reading, and Spelling
• Writing and Motor Skills
• Math and Time Management
• Memory and Cognition
• Hearing and Speech
• Behavior, Health, Development and Personality (pgs. 1-2 http://www.dylsexia.com/library/symptoms.htm)

The Davis Dyslexia Association provides comprehensive support and resources for Joan and other dyslexic students to overcome the characteristics that impact reading and writing abilities. By providing an avenue of support and remedy for Joan's learning disability, associations like Davis Dyslexia can help Joan come out of hiding and excel in reading and writing beyond her peers. What is known is that dyslexia has a direct impact on reading and comprehension which can impact learning access for Joan and other students struggling to hide a common disability, dyslexia. What is additionally known is that there are places that can help dyslexic students.