People with dyslexia are known for their lack of fine detail strengths – the strengths that result in accurate and precise reading and spelling. On the flip side, the wiring of the dyslexic brain results in global big picture strengths such as strengths in comprehension, word associations, context and gist.
Dyslexic strengths
All dyslexic people will have strengths. Skills such as big-picture thinking, lateral thinking and problem-solving, visual strengths and an intuitive understanding of how things work are often the hallmarks of successful dyslexic people.
We've found that many dyslexic people excel in being able to use and recombine fragments from their personal or episodic memory to solve problems or tell stories or make sense out of complex situations in ways that people who rely more heavily on abstract reasoning can't do.
One of the more advantageous qualities in many dyslexic people is their ability to think outside of the box. They come up with excellent, unorthodox ideas that are not only fresh, but lucrative as well. Critical thinkers: Another trait that some dyslexics possess is their ability to use logical reasoning.
Dyslexic brains process information differently. We are naturally creative, good at problem solving and talented communicators. Our heightened abilities in areas like visualisation and logical reasoning skills and natural entrepreneurial traits bring a fresh and intuitive perspective.
Use multisensory input and activities to give learners more than one way to make connections and learn concepts. For example, use flash cards, puppets, story videos and real objects in the classroom. When learners use more than one sense at a time, their brain is stimulated in a variety of ways.
Dyslexia is a learning difficulty that primarily affects the skills involved in accurate and fluent word reading and spelling. Characteristic features of dyslexia are difficulties in phonological awareness, verbal memory and verbal processing speed. Dyslexia occurs across the range of intellectual abilities.
Dyslexics are naturally curious and highly creative, with an incredible ability to think laterally, often possessing soft skills such as emotional intelligence, critical thinking, reasoning, leadership, social influence and complex problem solving, which are all trending in terms of future competency demands.
Among people with specific learning disabilities, the top five character strengths scores were love of learning, honesty, fairness, judgment, and appreciation of beauty and excellence. The bottom five character strengths scores were self-regulation, perseverance, zest, spirituality, and leadership.
As exemplars, I reflected upon notable errors I have made and dyslexic-related weaknesses I have. Missing meetings, birthdays, and deadlines, misspelling important and crucial words, poor auditory memory, slower processing speed, and very notably my horrendous handwriting.
Difficulty seeing (and occasionally hearing) similarities and differences in letters and words. Inability to sound out the pronunciation of an unfamiliar word. Difficulty spelling. Spending an unusually long time completing tasks that involve reading or writing.
Dyslexia is a learning difficulty that affects reading and spelling skills. Dyslexia has nothing to do with intelligence; it simply describes a different kind of cognitive processing.
Dyslexic children often find it easy to spot connections between objects, concepts, or points of view. This could show up in simple word-association games. Give your child the word 'cat' for example, and she might think of tigers and lions, or a mama cat with her kittens, or a catwalk … and so on.
Most dyslexic children have strong visual and spatial reasoning skills, so they tend to understand math concepts that are taught through manipulative or visual strategies better, although the issues with understanding concepts of time and sequence can still be a barrier.
The networks for taking in spoken and written language are different for people with dyslexia. They learn differently from other people. A lot of pupils clearly know more than they can put on paper. A lot of pupils find they read better to themselves than out loud.
In stressful situations, their coping mechanisms may not work and they could struggle to keep up with their peers. People with dyslexia are also often unorganized with messy hand-writing, messy workplaces, messy bag-packs etc. They may also suffer from discrimination and bullying.
In fact, despite reading ability, people who have dyslexia can have a range of intellectual ability. Most have average to above average IQs, and just like the general population, some have superior to very superior scores.
Often people with dyslexia have an excellent long term memory. To remember something like a phone number, or how to spell a word, you need to transfer it to your long term memory. The best way to do that is through spaced repetition. That is, try to recall a fact with longer and longer gaps between testing.
Dyslexic children can struggle with traditionally taught science as detail and accuracy are often crucial when spelling scientific language and writing out formulae, and this sort of detail can present stumbling blocks.
Dyslexic thinking is an approach to problem solving, assessing information, and learning. Research tells us that dyslexic thinkers have the exact skills needed for the workplace of today, including: Leadership and social influence. Creativity.
Individuals with dyslexia also tend to be highly creative. Researchers have noted their ability to find new uses for everyday objects (Everatt, Steffert and Smythe, 1999).