Dyslexia/Dyspraxia/ADHD
Raising awareness
©Eaquals 06/08/2014
Dyslexia/Dyspraxia/ADHD
Raising awareness
©Eaquals 06/08/2014
Aims
• To raise awareness of learning
differences
• To identify how we can be sensitive
to these differences and how that
can affect our teaching
• To explore how basic EFL teaching
principles facilitate learning for all
©Eaquals 06/08/2014
Developmental co-ordination disorder is a condition
affecting physical co-ordination that causes a child
to perform less well than expected in daily activities for
his or her age, and appear to move clumsily.
Is a group of behavioural indicators that include
inattentiveness, hyperactivity and impulsiveness.
indicators tend to be noticed at an early age and
may become more noticeable when a child's
circumstances change, such as when they start
school.
A specific learning difficulty which is neurobiological in origin
and persists across a lifespan. It is characterised by difficulties
with phonological processing, rapid naming, working memory,
processing speed and the automatic development of skills that
are unexpected in relation to an individual’s other cognitive
abilities
www.nhs.uk
©Eaquals 06/08/2014
Dyslexia
• Difficulty learning to
read
• Difficulty in decoding new words
• Persistent difficulty
with spelling
• Miscopying
• Difficulty learning
the alphabet
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• Problems
remembering
instructions,
messages, numbers,
facts
• Difficulty telling time
• Difficulty with
planning, organising,
sequencing, missing
out steps
Dyspraxia
• Does badly in class
• Attention span is poor
• Difficulty in copying
from the board
• Writing is laborious
and immature
• Unable to remember
and/or follow
instructions
• Poor sense of
direction
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• Is poorly organised
• May forget and lose
things
• Poor sequencing
skills
• Accuracy problems
• Poor concentration
• Poor social skills
• Difficulty with
physical movements
ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive
Disorder)
• Short attention span
• Careless mistakes
• Forgets or loses
things
• Appears to be unable
to listen to or carry
out instructions
• Has difficulty
organising tasks
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• Constantly fidgeting
• Unable to concentrate
on tasks
• Excessive physical
movement and talking
• Unable to wait their
turn
• Act without thinking
• Interrupt
Common factors
• Difficulty listening to and following
instructions
• Poor handwriting/coordination
• Difficulty holding a pencil
• Appears to have poor concentration
• Gets frustrated/impatient
• Suffers stress/low self-esteem
• Poor personal organisation
• Loses/forgets things
• Difficulty in remembering
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What skills do these
people have?
• Steve Redgrave
• Albert Einstein
• Walt Disney
• Eddie Izzard
• Jackie Stewart
• Jamie Oliver
• Hans Christian
Anderson
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• Susan Hampshire
• Whoopi Goldberg
• Richard Branson
30 seconds to remember
Skirt
Computer
Green
Plum
Yellow
Blouse
Pineapple
Shoes
Red
Apple
Pencil
Raisin
Blue
Shorts
Pear
Mouse
Purple
Paper
Hole punch
Telephone
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Discrepancies
•
•
•
•
•
Intelligence/attainment
Oral/written work
Understanding/memory
Process/product
Good days/bad days
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How do we learn?
• Encoding – taking on new
information
• Storage - organising and holding
information
• Retrieval – remembering and
being able to access this
information
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People with learning differences
find learning difficult because of………
• Problems with auditory and/or visual
discrimmination
• Difficulties with capacity
• Speed of processing
• Difficulties with manipulating information
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Visual processing difficulties lead
to…….
• Poor spelling
• Poor word recognition
• Poor sense of direction
• Mistakes when copying
• Misreading
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Auditory processing difficulties
may lead to ….
• Difficulty with remembering
information/instructions
• Problems with note taking
• Problems with concentration especially in a
busy, noisy environment
• Poor comprehension of text
• Difficulties with word finding
• Quick ‘forgetters’
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Problems with sequencing may
lead to difficulties with…..
• Word and sentence order
• Following a set of instructions
• Time/appointments
• Organising material
• Routine office tasks – filing etc.
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Complicated and unclear
Well, what I,m gonna do is I’m gonna
ask you to get into pairs, but before
that there/are some things we’ve
gotta work out. So, just jot down if
you’ve got a pen, could you write
this, then when we’ve finished that
we’re going to do the next thing
which involves more………..
Learning Teaching
©Eaquals 06/08/2014
Jim Scrivener
The effects of learning
difficulties vary in………….
• Severity – Mild/Moderate/Severe
• Ability -
Below average/Average and
Exceptional
• Personality – Confident/Low selfesteem
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But the good news is these
learners have many strengths…
•
•
•
•
•
•
Creativity
Practical
Lateral thinking
Problem solving
Seeing the ‘big picture’
Good visual skills thinking in 3D
(Dyslexia)
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And last BUT not least!
“When people are known for their
gifts their difficulties remain
unknown”
“When people are known for their
difficulties their gifts remain
unknown”
T.G.West
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References
•
•
•
•
•
Learning Teaching – Jim Scrivener
In the Mind's Eye: Visual Thinkers - Gifted People with
Dyslexia and Other Learning Difficulties – Thomas G West
Could it be you? Dr Robin Pauc with Carina Norris
Dyslexia in adults – Kathleen Nosek
How to understand an support children with dyspraxia - Lois
Addy
Websites
www.dyslexiaaction.org.uk
www.adhdfoundation.org.uk
www.dyspraxiafoundation.org.uk
www.teachingenglish.org.uk
©Eaquals 06/08/2014
©Eaquals 06/08/2014