Text Keith G Emuang

"Many parents don't understand their dyslexic children, and vice versa. As it is in school, some schoolmates are mean and find them very odd. They poke fun at them for being unable to spell simple words. Essentially, their school life is riddled with hardship and they don't need any more in the home front," says Haslina Hassan, Specialist Teacher at the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS).

Invariably, what goes on outside the classroom, especially at home, can depict the slant of a child’s improvement curve. No parent can be expected to know everything there is to know about dyslexia but it is really his or her responsibility to dig deep to uncover what resources are available.

Ultimately, the special needs centre is a good place to start, not just for the information it can provide but also in terms of learning from its teachers the techniques their child tends to respond best to. What works for one child may not work for another. So even if your intentions are good, employing the wrong approach may do more harm than good.

Prime the child
Before enrolling your child in a special needs centre, parents should first prime their child by telling them that their special and unique way of learning requires a different strategy for learning.

Children will display reluctant behaviour if they are unaware of the situation. Says Hassan, who also holds a Master's Degree in Special Education, " Often, we get referrals from psychologists following which, parents would ‘deposit’ their children at DAS. The children are understandably baffled, totally unaware why or what they are doing here".

Ideally, parents should be able to talk openly about the problem. Hiding it from everyone because of embarrassment may result in the child mistakenly thinking that dyslexia is some form of retardation, which it is not. Advises Hassan, "Let the child know it is all right to talk about it. At DAS, we encourage our children to be open and explain to friends and teachers why they do things differently from others."

Be reasonable
While most parents want the best for their dyslexic children, they should not go too far with their expectations. Many parents would take their kids on a shopping spree, buying health supplements, vitamins and other memory-enhancing minerals, thinking these will provide a quick-fix solution.&n

Hassan laments, "When parents don't see instant results, they hastily enrol their children into another programme. You need to be patient and consistent with dyslexia. Moreover, when many approaches fail, all it succeeds at is to demoralise the child."

Parents should also remember that different children respond differently to intervention programmes. So, perseverance is important to effectively deal with dyslexia.