Learning disorders: Know the signs, how to help
What is a learning disorder?
A learning disorder is an information-processing problem that prevents a person from learning a skill and using it effectively. Learning disorders generally affect people of average or above average intelligence. As a result, the disorder appears as a gap between expected skills, based on age and intelligence, and academic performance.
Common learning disorders affect a child's abilities in reading, written expression, math or nonverbal skills.
Reading
Learning disorders in reading are usually based on difficulty perceiving a spoken word as a combination of distinct sounds. This can make it hard to understand how a letter or letters represent a sound and how letter combinations make a word.
Problems with working memory — the ability to hold and manipulate information in the moment — also can play a role.
Even when basic reading skills are mastered, children may have difficulty with the following skills:
- Reading at a typical pace
- Understanding what they read
- Recalling accurately what they read
- Making inferences based on their reading
- Spelling
A learning disorder in reading is usually called dyslexia, but some specialists may use the term to describe only some of the information-processing problems that can cause difficulty with reading.
Written expression
Writing requires complex visual, motor and information-processing skills. A learning disorder in written expression may cause the following:
- Slow and labor-intensive handwriting
- Handwriting that's hard to read
- Difficulty putting thoughts into writing
- Written text that's poorly organized or hard to understand
- Trouble with spelling, grammar and punctuation
Math
A learning disorder in math may cause problems with the following skills:
- Understanding how numbers work and relate to each other
- Calculating math problems
- Memorizing basic calculations
- Using math symbols
- Understanding word problems
- Organizing and recording information while solving a math problem
Nonverbal skills
A child with a learning disorder in nonverbal skills appears to develop good basic language skills and strong rote memorization skills early in childhood. Difficulties are present in visual-spatial skills, visual-motor skills, and other skills necessary in social or academic functioning.
A child with a learning disorder in nonverbal skills may have trouble with the following skills:
- Interpreting facial expressions and nonverbal cues in social interactions
- Using language appropriately in social situations
- Physical coordination
- Fine motor skills, such as writing
- Attention, planning and organizing
- Higher-level reading comprehension or written expression, usually appearing in later grade school