With so much dyslexia in creative communities, it's not surprising that more authors and screenwriters are including dyslexic characters in their works. The strength side is appearing more commonly, but is it great or will it make you cringe? The answer is, probably a...
Curiosity-Driven Learning [Premium]
“Life isn’t about finding the answers, it’s about asking the questions.” – Brian Grazer, A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life Although dyslexic people don’t have a monopoly on curiosity, curiosity may be a particular strength among dyslexic people – it may be what drives creative thinking and the exploratory advantage of dyslexic people. In Dyslexic Advantage’s School Survey, 88% of parents responding said that one of their children’s strengths was a high curiosity. Many dyslexic adults we’ve interviewed over the years have shared that their lifelong curiosity is something that has guided their life success over the years. “A lot of leaders would say they’re curious. I can tell you from personal experience that most leaders are not. They don’t ask a […]
Not Broken Movie: Interview with Gifted Filmmaker Lauren Havel
"In 2018, just after I turned thirteen, my mom signed me up for a film camp at a local private school. The moment I picked up a camera, I felt like I never wanted to put it down!" — Lauren Havel Recently, I had the chance to talk with an amazing young filmmaker,...
The Karina Eide Young Writers Awards 2023
Congratulations Karina Eide Young Writer Award Winners 2023! Read the creative entries here!
Qona Rankin from the Royal College of Art: Creative [Premium]
“…instead of reading perhaps 240 words a minute, the Dyslexic brain may read 150 words a minute, but at the same time, it could be making all sorts of fascinating connections and links through dipping into other processing centers in the brain.” – Qona Rankin Qona Rankin is dyslexia specialist at the Royal College of Art (RCA), one of the premier institutions for art and design in the world. She is also dyslexic. Qona’s expertise was in three-dimension design, whether furniture, consumer products, or jewelry. After Qona earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees, she began working part-time at a university. A visiting lecturer from another university was a dyslexia support specialist and she told the group that there were likely to be many dyslexic […]
The Benefits of Creative Writing [Premium]
It’s that time again – the Karina Eide Young Writers Awards are open for submission. Encourage a young person you know to submit a little story or poem. We’ll be giving away over $1000 in awards as well as some non-monetary awards. Submissions will be evaluated on storytelling, humor, and voice, and not spelling, grammar, or handwriting. Creative writing and storytelling is often a strength for dyslexic people and taking the time to write or dictate creative stories can build resilience and strengthen one’s awareness of strengths and value. “…writing can provide…a way to solve problems, capture feelings and inner experience, exercise power and freedom, and know one’s own voice.” – Genevieve Chandler, 1999 (A Creative Writing Program to Enhance Self- Esteem and Self-Efficacy in […]
Florence Welch + The Machine Singer-Songwriter [Premium]
“Being a creative person and getting older, and wiser, has been an awakening. The older I get, the more self-assured I feel and the more confident I feel in my work and in life.” — Florence Welch Florence Welch is an English singer-songwriter who writes and sings songs that are steeped in folklore and fantasy imagery. She has spoken both about her dyslexia and dyspraxia in various interviews. Florence became a pop star at the age of 21 when she was discovered singing in a club bathroom. She would go on to have Grammy nominations and platinum records, but also had some tumultuous times with heartbreak. One of her breakthrough songs was Ship to Wreck (lyrics), after the breakup of a long term relationship. […]
Nature Journaling with John Muir Laws
"I notice, I wonder, it reminds me of" are powerful prompts that lead you to observe more deeply, ask better questions, and make interesting connections." — John (Jack) Muir Laws This is a great time to get outdoors and draw. Even if you're a backyard nature...
Dyslexic Advantages in Electrical Engineering [Premium]
A TALE OF TWO STORIES “At the beginning I can remember looking at blackboards or pages of text having no idea what other kids around me were seeing. For me the pages may have well as been blank for all I could glean from them. However I was lucky as when I started my secondary school my teacher spotted that I was having problems. I was tested for dyslexia and found to have a mild form… By the time I left I had poor grades and was told I would not amount to much…” Same person: “I became interested in geeky stuff when I was less than ten years old. I remember being given a toy wind up clock that you could open the back […]
Co-founder Brett Kopf’s Journey to Success with Remind and Omella
"...Can I just start off by making a blanket statement that I think dyslexia can be such a gift?" — Brett Kopf Brett Kopf is co-founder of Remind and Omella, two companies that grew out of his interest in solving problems that mission-driven organizations and...
Dyslexic Strengths in Times of Adversity
"...dyslexics sometimes seem unusually well suited to deal with major changes -- to being able to see opportunities inside of adversity. They are known to be particularly good at rethinking situations in an original way. They are known to be able to see what others...
Building Spatial Talents [Premium]
“…Spatial reasoning has been key to numerous scientific advances, such as the discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA and the epidemiological research using maps to discover the true source of cholera outbreaks. It is also essential to many 21st-century careers, particularly in science and engineering… But are we able to see and support these particular kinds of talent in our classrooms?” — Lakin and Wai, Phi Delta Kappan What are spatial talents? In short, they are talents that involve visualizing objects and places in 3d and being able to manipulate them at will. These are talents that seem rich within the dyslexic community, but may be overlooked or neglected in conventional school activities. It’s an important strength set to recognize because it tends […]