Understanding Dyslexia

[Lilikins]

Good evening my dear escapists.

Once again its me, trying to understand something and maybe in that process helping someone, seeing as I always regard all your posts and they always help me massively

The following has occured in my life, and I would absolutely love your input/opinion on it, to maybe give me an insight, and of ways to help...seeing as I've absolutely no clue whatsoever about this stuff. As always in my topics, I beg of everyone to remain civil/friendly and not to troll or flame. I know you wont, but I'll add that regardless

The following....

In Germany an apprenticeship is mandatory, if you want a job, theres no way around it. That means 3 years of studying/doing the crap work...pending on your job, it may be better..or worse. At the current time Im doing something called an 'Umschulung' this basically means, I studied an entirely different field, but wish to learn this one. Ive been doing this job for a few years now, and finally took the step to say...f it....Ill just go through it and study it regardless. My bonus of course, I have by far all the basic knowledge, and basically know everything that will ever be in this field unless we go into the deeper aspects etc etc. This nevertheless, is regardless. I have always had my eye on the apprentices, always helped chugged them along and have always been that...'fun loving' chap who sorta..went for the more fun route, where others were serious.
This to me (atleast in my mind) seems to be a better route. Its just like going to work, if you hate your job/work place...you'll be unhappy and unwilling to learn more things. If on the flipside you have fun and enjoy it, you'll be much more willing to adapt/learn new things (thats atleast how it is by me).

Henceforth, where everyone else always shrugged the apprentices to the side, gave jobs they did not wish to do, I've always been more of the... 'lets do this together ' type of person. Explained why it needs to be done, and have always taken work in all sorts of forms in this field...and most importantly, always 'made' fun doing so.

For instance, cleaning the carts...crappy job right? Well with the apprentices, where everyone went for a break..I'd always help them, and enjoy myself doing so. Seeing how they are, if they are still having fun, if they have any questions...etc etc. This always gave a perfect chance to 'see' how they are doing, seeing as it is one of the most primitive and basic things that have to be done. Regardless though, it still has to be done.

NOW!!!

We have a little one at work, who'm I refer to as the princess. She is a bit hard at understanding things...well, not a bit hard, really hard. I never really was with the apprentices 100% of the way/teaching things, only in my specific area... Yet today, I had a chat with her (seeing as Im doing that Umschulung thing...) I explained something to her..that shes heard atleast 10 times before..yet it didnt go into her head...whatsoever. I showed it to her physically and showed a 'smoothe' way from the theoretical portion to the physical form (it was about the production of wine). She is in the 2nd year, and Im 'theoretically' in my first (damn you Umschulung....I'll just say it again xP).

Nevertheless, after speaking a bit to her in depth about it all, I noticed she cant understand something properly from the written aspect. Im having a bit difficulty writing it in english hehe so Im very sorry if it sounds confusing. So I asked her if she maybe had Dyslexia, to which she panicked and blushed and finally admitted the truth...

I am the first person whos noticed it now she said and the part that alarms me the most is that shes so ashamed of having it, that she'd rather seem Ill go really brute and say 'stupid' then to just admit it.

So my dear escapists, seeing as I always value your opinions/experience
Id be begging for your help in this matter, for any experiences you have or something you can share with me. I'd really like to help her out, and really dont wish for her to fail at anything etc etc... any answers you give of help or experience would be more then greatly appreciated on my part I thank you very much for your time and future answers.

As always, stay awesom Escapees^^

PS: Im terribly sorry for the long text, but Im hoping that atleast one person can give me an indication and some help on the matter

Captcha: You have my stapler....so close Captcha...so close....

 

[sanquin]

I'm Dyslexic myself. Moreso in Dutch (my native language) than in English, funnily enough. As for the problem this young woman is experiencing, I'm all too familiar with it. The part about not being able to take in information when it comes in the form of written text that is. It was incredibly frustrating during school for me. As people around me seemed to have no problems with text at all, yet I was struggling. In contrast, when something is shown to me I feel like I learn twice as fast as most others. So the key to learning, for her, will be physically doing what she needs to do with oversight. Like this, it should only take two or three times with oversight before she can do it on her own. Or at least that's how it works for me.

As for her being so ashamed of it. I can't really speak for that. I've never been ashamed of my problems with learning from the written word, and instead prided myself on the fact that I was a very quick learner when someone showed it to me. If I could give any advice, it's that you should show her that having dyslexia is nothing to be ashamed of. Not just tell her, really show her. As in, when she has trouble with some text, help her as if it's no big deal. (if you have the time of course.) Heck, considering how she is ashamed of her dyslexia, she's probably not the most confident person either. So just interacting with her normally would probably help.

I have to stress that I'm no expert, just someone whom also has dyslexia. (And a younger brother with it as well.) But that is what advice I can give.

 

[Lilikins]

I'm Dyslexic myself. Moreso in Dutch (my native language) than in English, funnily enough. As for the problem this young woman is experiencing, I'm all too familiar with it. The part about not being able to take in information when it comes in the form of written text that is. It was incredibly frustrating during school for me. As people around me seemed to have no problems with text at all, yet I was struggling. In contrast, when something is shown to me I feel like I learn twice as fast as most others. So the key to learning, for her, will be physically doing what she needs to do with oversight. Like this, it should only take two or three times with oversight before she can do it on her own. Or at least that's how it works for me.

As for her being so ashamed of it. I can't really speak for that. I've never been ashamed of my problems with learning from the written word, and instead prided myself on the fact that I was a very quick learner when someone showed it to me. If I could give any advice, it's that you should show her that having dyslexia is nothing to be ashamed of. Not just tell her, really show her. As in, when she has trouble with some text, help her as if it's no big deal. (if you have the time of course.) Heck, considering how she is ashamed of her dyslexia, she's probably not the most confident person either. So just interacting with her normally would probably help.

I have to stress that I'm no expert, just someone whom also has dyslexia. (And a younger brother with it as well.) But that is what advice I can give.

I donno if you think you helped much but you really did to be fully honest, I cant place myself in her shoes....
This is the reason that I wrote this topic in the first place. I thank you ever so much for your position/knowledge in this area. Ill try to give her a nudge about it tommorow then thanks alot again for answering Sanguin

 

[sanquin]

Well, just remember that everyone's situation is a little different. ^^;; Everything that works for me doesn't have to work for her as well. But I think my general idea is correct.

Good luck with your co-worker. Also, for the next time, I think topics like this are meant to go into the advice forum.

 

[Lilikins]

Well, just remember that everyone's situation is a little different. ^^;; Everything that works for me doesn't have to work for her as well. But I think my general idea is correct.

Good luck with your co-worker. Also, for the next time, I think topics like this are meant to go into the advice forum.

Aye hehe, I was thinking about putting it into the advice forum first of all but as everyone here knows, thats a 'lesser seen one' and seeing as I usually make posts that are 'worth a read'... (hopefully, unless Im delusional'....)I thought it best to put it here seeing as I could react to them asap

Thanks a bunch for your advice Sanguin, it really does help a bunch

 

[Saetha]

Hmm. I was diagnosed with dyslexia when I was really young - about six or seven years old. I remember it was a big obstacle for me, to the point where I was nearly illiterate - there was one time specifically where I spent five or ten minutes trying to figure out a simple sign warning about playground rules. But, through a combination my asocial nature, a school library full of books, and a lack of anything to do at recess, I ended up not only getting over the dyslexia but actually became a bit of a bookworm. Unfortunately, though, this all happened back in elementary school. I can't really suggest much help beyond, well, books are pretty fun.

 

[Nickolai77]

In my experience most of the people I know who have dyslexia aren't really ashamed of it, perhaps because it's a very common condition. It's also something that can be overcome to an extent, most dyslexics are able to read and write adequately by the time they leave highschool. I think dyslexia becomes less of a problem in adulthood, because your reading and writing abilities are no longer tested and it can even come with some perks. In many job applications you can qualify for an automatic interview if you're dyslexic.

Consequently, there have been times when was a bit jealous of dyslexics because even if you have mild dyslexia it can be enough to get extra time in exams, bypass tests and gain an automatic interview for many jobs in the public sector. But of course, I wouldn't sacrifice my ability to fluently read a good novel for those perks, that means more to me.

 

[Just Ebola]

Well it's admirable that you want to help a co-worker/apprentice or what have you. But if she only struggles with written words, wouldn't the logical thing to do be to teach her hands on?

It would be easier to offer advice if you explained the situation a bit better. You refer to her as a "little one" so I'm assuming she's a bit young, that's important because from what I understand dyslexia affects children and adults differently. Also if you mentioned where you worked, all I know if that it somehow involves wine and carts. It's difficult to offer advice when you don't understand much about the situation.

As far as her being self conscious about her learning disability, I would just encourage you to be patient with her and convince her it's nothing to be ashamed of. Sorry, I realize that's not much help, but I hope it works out.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

I have dyslexia, it was very severe when I was little and got progressively better as I got older, these days it's only a mild annoyance. I never got much benefit out of reading either [footnote]Although I picked up reading books that I enjoy and my reading skills improved considerably[/footnote], my third grade teacher (who also had dyslexia) also recommended getting me a PC, because the keys translating to what you see on screen would help my brain connect the dots and would also reinforce the reading.

I always learned better verbally though and taking my own notes. I had no problem in lecture based classes and they were always my favorite. If she's having issues with writing, try explaining to her verbally so she can hear it. Speaking in addition to showing her on paper, may help connect the words to the writing and help the information sink in.

Dyslexia is nothing to be ashamed of, though I'm not sure how to help you help her realize that, she may have personal reasons for feeling the way she does about it.

 

[Mezahmay]

I'm glad you brought this topic up Lilikins. I am not dyslexic but have been curious about it since I heard about it. If I may ask individuals you do have dyslexia directly, how do you feel about portrayals of dyslexia as someone who visualizes the letters of a word out of order?

That's how it was first explained to me and that is how television shows have physically showed it on screen. That portrayal strikes me as odd ever since I learned that humans actually do a pretty good job of understanding a jumbled word as long as the first and last letter are in a position such that the center letters could spell a word if unscrambled. I don't think it really works like that. I imagine it's the mental process equivalent of trying to force a stuck gear to work and with enough effort and time the process eventually functions as intended. It is just a hang up until you learn to overcome it or parse the information a slightly different way.

 

[Zombie_Fish]

DISCLAIMER: I don't have dyslexia - though a dyslexic friend of mine does have better handwriting than me - so I can't really verify how good my advice is.

EDIT: It seems as if I was mistaken. Fair enough. Cheers for informing me Eclipse Dragon and Hoplon.

IIRC correctly certain fonts are harder to read with dyslexia - I think serif fonts (e.g. times new roman) are easier, though double-check that as I might have it the wrong way round. I know of one person with dyslexia who finds it easier to read on screen if the colours are reversed (white text, black background).

Related to this, there was a project a few years ago called Dyslexie[footnote]http://www.dyslexiefont.com/[/footnote] done by a dyslexic graphics designer to create a font specifically to make it easier for dyslexics to read and write. There was also a Ted talk explaining the design of the font, but I can't find the video anymore.

But yeah, try looking into dyslexia-friendly fonts, since that font was made back in 2008 and there have been a lot of developments since then.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

If I may ask individuals you do have dyslexia directly, how do you feel about portrayals of dyslexia as someone who visualizes the letters of a word out of order?

That's how it was first explained to me and that is how television shows have physically showed it on screen.

Is it literally like it's described in media, the letters and words visually seem to twist and move around the page? Or is it more of a difficulty parsing what they mean?

It's different in everyone. I've heard of dyslexic people who could read entire sentences and write completely backward with no issues what so ever. There's also the stereotypical joke "I believe in dog" in place of "god", which is in no way how my dyslexia ever manifested.

I had no issues reading manga, (reads from right to left) and I was extremely confused about my left and right until my mother gave me a watch, which I would always wear on my left arm. The whole "hold up your hands in the shape of an L" trick didn't work, because I couldn't figure out which way the "L" was supposed to face. I would also get the lowercase "b" and "d" mixed up. The word "bad" was a nightmare, I would write it as "bab", "dad", "dab", but as far as getting the first and last characters mixed up such as "dog" in place of "god", I understood the difference and placement between the d and the g.

I would also get my "P" mixed with the number "9".

The funniest story I have about my dyslexia involves a painting of a cow skull in my high school art class. The skull was in the middle of the room and the nose was pointed to the right. I painted the nose to the left, in other words, I painted a complete mirror image of the cow skull without ever realizing it.

Spoiler: The skull looked like this...

Spoiler: I painted this....

I only found out what I'd been doing when my teacher came around to help out, he sat down in my spot to get an idea of how I saw the skull and it just bothered him like nothing else. He tried to paint it backward like I'd been doing and it made him so frustrated.

For me it doesn't show as words floating off the page, or getting jumbled up, although I've heard for some people it does. It was always something I did without realizing one bit what I'd done, but I suppose jumbled, floaty text is the best way Hollywood can think to show it.

Related to this, there was a project a few years ago called Dyslexie

Actually I find it harder to read...
It also looks kind of like my handwriting.

 

[renegade7]

If there's anyone here who actually has dyslexia, I'm very curious (if you don't mind) about what the subjective experience of someone with dyslexia is.

Is it literally like it's described in media, the letters and words visually seem to twist and move around the page? Or is it more of a difficulty parsing what they mean?

 

[Hoplon]

DISCLAIMER: I don't have dyslexia - though a dyslexic friend of mine does have better handwriting than me - so I can't really verify how good my advice is.

IIRC correctly certain fonts are harder to read with dyslexia - I think serif fonts (e.g. times new roman) are easier, though double-check that as I might have it the wrong way round. I know of one person with dyslexia who finds it easier to read on screen if the colours are reversed (white text, black background).

Related to this, there was a project a few years ago called Dyslexie[footnote]http://www.dyslexiefont.com/[/footnote] done by a dyslexic graphics designer to create a font specifically to make it easier for dyslexics to read and write. There was also a Ted talk explaining the design of the font, but I can't find the video anymore.

But yeah, try looking into dyslexia-friendly fonts, since that font was made back in 2008 and there have been a lot of developments since then.

Unfortunately the fonts things is more or less horse crap. this is mostly because dyslexia is a learning difficultys not a problem with eyes or any of the other random, unproven things it has been ascribed too.

I was diagnosed dyslexic at school, while i read fast, i was almost totally incapable of writing stuff out. how ever a good 20 years of making my self do it (and lovely lovely spell checkers) mean that i am not totally incapable of communicating via text. Still struggle with it, probably always will.

 

[Mezahmay]

For me it doesn't show as words floating off the page, or getting jumbled up, although I've heard for some people it does. It was always something I did without realizing one bit what I'd done, but I suppose jumbled, floaty text is the best way Hollywood can think to show it.

Ah. I didn't realize the experience could vary that much. You're also probably right about Hollywood since it's a widely understood visual shorthand for "the observer is dyslexic" while actually being at least partially truthful.

 

[Hoplon]

If there's anyone here who actually has dyslexia, I'm very curious (if you don't mind) about what the subjective experience of someone with dyslexia is.

Is it literally like it's described in media, the letters and words visually seem to twist and move around the page? Or is it more of a difficulty parsing what they mean?

Not for me, but then a difficulty with reading isn't part of it. I do have a verbal component that will scramble things every so often long number stings reversed for instance.

 

[rodneyy]

the problem with dyslexia is that its this big broad canopy of symptoms that cover many things, so not everyone is going to have every problem.

then just to muddy the water further there are a few things on the edge that many dyslexics have but are not technically part of the disorder.

some have problems with numbers some with letters and some with both.

saying all that it can be hard to pinpoint exactly what she has a problem with there could be a few things wrong with how she is being instructed. it might be trouble reading what is on the form or maybe its getting jumbled on the way in or the 2d portrayal of a 3d concept that is getting in the way(ive had problems with all 3 to lesser or greater degrees over my life). however saying all that (as has been said before) practical demonstrations are often a good way to reach out to most dyslexics.
personally i only have to walk a rout once to know where i am going and retrace my steps also i can pick up most physical skills pretty quickly one demo then trying it out myself a few times and im good. then on the flip side ask me the names of the places ive been road signs etc and im stymied. same with things im using i might have been told what every part of something is called but i'll have forgotten 5 min later even if i know how to use them.

before you go and build whole work schedules around the advice given it might be best to just ask her the best way to proceed while she might not have all the answers but she probably knows the way she learns best.

i think the whole words moving around the page thingy is just an attempt at visualising an abstract concept and got used as a standard way of portraying dyslexia even if it bears little resemblance to what most of us see its just turned into the stock image.
for me, ive been told i have it mild, all words dont move but they kid of wiggle, imagine a pen moving side to side really fast so the edges blur but you can still see the main body of it. or when you look up at the moon if you live in a city it has this blury halo around it caused by the air polution. even those are not exactly how it is to look at words but its the best ive been able to come up with over the years to explain it.

 

[Saetha]

If there's anyone here who actually has dyslexia, I'm very curious (if you don't mind) about what the subjective experience of someone with dyslexia is.

Is it literally like it's described in media, the letters and words visually seem to twist and move around the page? Or is it more of a difficulty parsing what they mean?

I'm glad you brought this topic up Lilikins. I am not dyslexic but have been curious about it since I heard about it. If I may ask individuals you do have dyslexia directly, how do you feel about portrayals of dyslexia as someone who visualizes the letters of a word out of order?

It's been a long time since my dyslexia was a serious issue for me, and I've got two other learning disabilities (Dysgraphia and Central Auditory Processing Disorder) so frankly it's a bit difficult to parse out which disability caused which behavior. I think... I remember that my pronunciation of words, especially words I hadn't seen before, was absolutely terrible. For instance, I remember pronouncing "magician" as "magic-can." Basically, figuring out what a word actually said was too difficult - the letters would get a bit jumbled in my head, so I'd basically just ignore the letters I couldn't figure out and pronounce it as whatever was left - the second "i" in magician was too hard to figure out, so I'd drop it and say "magic-can." If an entire word didn't make any sense to me, rather than just one part of it, then I'd go with the nearest word I knew. Crayon became crown, burger became burglar, which lead to an awful lot of confused dinners. And looking back at the things I wrote in elementary school, I definitely had a problem putting letters and numbers to face the right direction. I actually still get a little tripped up over that sometimes. I remember I had to present a math problem a few years ago, and I stood unmoving at the whiteboard for a minute, trying to remember which way the number five is supposed to face, too afraid to to just write it and look like an idiot with backwards fives. I still (apparently) write check marks and capital Y's backwards.

So... I guess it's not really what it's like in the media - not for me, at least. Mostly my issues were directions and pronunciation. But on the other hand, having letters float around is far better visual representation, so I don't really begrudge those who use it. Dyslexia is very broad disorder, with a lot of different degrees of severity. I know one other girl with dyslexia in high school, and her reading comprehension was at about the same level mine was back in fifth grade - even though we both had dyslexia, hers was a lot more severe than mine, and she may very well have letters float around on her. So, it's not necessarily a wrong depiction, just an easy one, especially for a visual medium like film.