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| Riley, age 7. The text is her actual writing. |
My 7-year-old daughter is very bright. She has been extremely verbal since an early age and we've been told through the years how remarkable her vocabulary is. However, from the first days of Kindergarten, I could tell that there was something different about the way that she wrote, colored and drew. I could never put my finger on it, but if I walked up to a wall full of children's drawings, I could pick her's out from a mile away because her strokes were always awkward and seemed labored...much more so than the other children. We struggled with handwriting in Kindergarten and 1st grade, but she was still young so we hoped it would correct itself. We had problems with her not finishing work and staying on task. For 2 years, we struggled to get her to go to school. There were tears at least once/week because she hated it (her words). She was miserable and it was heartbreaking. Come first grade, I pushed to have her tested for ADHD. They mentioned that she had some issues with writing and thought Dyslexia was a possibility, but she was too young to be tested for that. Her teachers stressed how bright she was, but her grades weren't reflecting it.
This year when she started second grade, I was prepared for more fights, more tears and more discipline problems.
Enter Mrs. C.
She recognized something in my daughter that even I wasn't seeing anymore because I was so caught up in the behavior problems we were having and I was so frustrated with her performance in school. Mrs. C has gone above and beyond since day one to work with us so that Riley was reaching her full potential. We decided to have her tested for Dyslexia thinking maybe that was the culprit. Mrs C. did warn us that it might not be Dyslexia because she was reading at a high level, but she had many of the writing symptoms. No Dyslexia. However, after months of testing and years of frustration, we finally got an answer. Dysgraphia.
Dysgraphia: a learning disability that affects writing, which requires a complex set of motor and information processing skills. Dysgraphia is a processing disorder which makes the physical act of writing difficult. It can lead to problems with spelling, illegible handwriting, and the inability to process thoughts onto paper.
(I had never heard of it either.)
The light bulb finally went off! The trouble staying on task was largely out of frustration.
Remember, she can read, she just can't write.
So, she would write a sentence then look at it and recognize that it wasn't right, but she couldn't fix it.
Can you imagine how frustrating that would be? She would just give up.
For frame of reference, below is a sample of her writing. The top word is 'Please' spelled backwards and mirrored.
There are no words for the gratitude I feel for Mrs. C and her hard work with Riley this year both emotionally and academically. After getting the diagnosis and proper accommodations in place, my sweet girl finished 2nd grade on the All A Honor Roll! I thank God that Mrs. C was brought into our lives and I know that we will remain friends. She has been like a guardian angel this year and, quite honestly, the thought of her not being Riley's teacher anymore makes me tear up. What a difference a year makes! Last year, we had tears nearly every morning because she didn't want to go to school. This year, we had tears today because it was almost the last day of school and she didn't want the year to end.
Thank you, teachers. I know that the day-to-day tasks get daunting, but I hope that you realize what a difference you are making. I am in awe of your selfless dedication to other people's children. Thank you for all that you do.
Dysgraphia and Gratitude
Reviewed by Maggie
on
June 05, 2013
Rating:
Reviewed by Maggie
on
June 05, 2013
Rating:
