When I saw the title of a new research paper on the indicators of dyslexia and dysgraphia in children's writing, I looked forward to seeing what it contained. The paper is available online here, but the checklist contained in the paper falls short, and at least in...
![Question: Third Grader with Severe Dysgraphia and Moderate Dyslexia [Premium]](https://www.dyslexicadvantage.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Question-Third-Grader-with-Severe-Dysgraphia-and-Moderate-Dyslexia-400x250.jpg)
Recently we received a question about severe dysgraphia and moderate dyslexia. The dilemma was how to prioritize limited resources for therapy (if any). There is a high overlap between dyslexia and dysgraphia, but severe handwriting difficulties in the early grades often suggest dyspraxia (a disorder of fine and gross motor coordination) as well. The practical dilemma many parents and students face is that the amount of support that students receive for dyspraxia or dyslexia may be far below what they need; also intervention may take years – and health insurance may not cover any outside therapy whether it’s pediatric occupational therapy, speech therapy, or specialist dyslexia intervention. There is no simple answer. Decisions about priorities depend on the severity of each, but also on the […]
![Teen with Newly-Diagnosed Dysgraphia: Will It Get Better ? [Premium]](https://www.dyslexicadvantage.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/dysgraphia-teen-dyslexia.png)
Dysgraphia (writing disability) is commonly seen with dyslexia. It does improve over time and can be improved by different approaches and training depending on the source. Many aspects of dysgraphia remain lifelong, though, and it’s common for adults with dysgraphia to opt to use computers and assistive technology when they have to write extensively for work or pleasure. It’s important to identify dysgraphia whatever the age because students with dysgraphia often need accommodations for routine classroom assignments and classroom and standardized tests. Students will need one and a half to twice the time for tests as well as the option to test orally and reduce the quantity of work. Severely dysgraphic students may need to type with word prediction and word correction software or speech-to-text. […]
![Dyslexia and Dysgraphia: What Does Writing Look Like? [Premium]](https://www.dyslexicadvantage.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Dyslexia-and-Dysgraphia-4-400x250.png)
What does the writing look like in students with dyslexia and dysgraphia? IMPAIRED AUTOMATICITY, CAPITAL LETTER INTRUSIONS, and SPELLING ERRORS Students who struggle with handwriting automaticity show irregular shapes and sizes of letters. For example, look at the letter ‘e’ in the spelling test at right. They are very different from one another, showing that the student has not ‘automated’ writing of the letter ‘e’. The more variable the letters are, the more arduous to write anything by hand. Working memory is easily overloaded, and students may be exhausted after writing a few words. The spelling test also shows capital letter intrusions (capital ‘D’), likely to avoid confusing lower case ‘d’ with ‘b’, irregular spacing, and phonological as well as sight word errors. When […]
![What Kind of Dysgraphia [Premium]](https://www.dyslexicadvantage.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/What-kind-of-dysgraphia-2-400x250.jpg)
A recent clinical review of dysgraphia has defined dysgraphia in the following way: “At its broadest definition, dysgraphia is a disorder of writing ability at any stage, including problems with letter formation/legibility, letter spacing, spelling, fine motor coordination, rate of writing, grammar, and composition.” Developmental dysgraphia (i.e. dysgraphia not based on some known injury) is described in the same article as having a “difficulty in acquiring writing skills despite sufficient learning opportunity and cognitive potential.” When a teacher or other professional asks a parent about “what type of dysgraphia their student might have,” they may be referring to the so-called “5 Types of Dysgraphia”, that often include, “motor”, “dyslexic”, “spatial”, and so on – but these distinctions are rarely clear-cut in real life and […]
![The Double Whammy: Dyscalculia and Dysgraphia [Premium]](https://www.dyslexicadvantage.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Dysgraphia-and-Dyscalculia-400x250.png)
What happens when a student has both dyscalculia and dysgraphia? Be prepared for an educational path that has a timing of its own. Dysgraphia often accompanies dyslexia, but dyscalculia too. If you or your student has two or three out of these 3 “d’s” be prepared for a challenging course and a need for individualization for many years. The most typical presentation for dyscalculia relates to students who have trouble mastering the sequence of numbers and recall of basic math facts. When dysgraphia gets added to the mix, you can imagine how it may swamp working memory, causing students to lose track when they work through math problems. In a very real sense having both dyscalculia and dysgraphia also robs students of being able to […]
This course is based on the following articles: What You Can Learn From a Child's Writing Strategies for the Most Common Spelling Mistakes: The Schwa Gifted with Dysgraphia Don't Require Copying From the Board Writing: Where to Start You must have an active individual...
For this mini-course, download and read the following pdf file with readings then take the short quiz. You must score 80% or higher to receive credits. There are unlimited retakes of the quiz to receive a passing grade. If you have any questions, email [email protected]
Great poster for dysgraphia-friendly classrooms and tutoring support centers. Support your dysgraphic students by posting this helpful infographic that covers common factors contributing to dysgraphia, dysgraphia-friendly classrooms, and tips to help. Extra shipping...
What is Dysgraphia Information Cards. Small Pack of 10 or Large Pack of 50!
Typing is one of those tasks that every dyslexic person should master, but some students have difficulty fitting it into their already busy stressed-filled days. Some parents sign up their middle or early high school students for courses over the summer, but as almost the entire country is now locked down, finally devoting some time to learning typing might help get students ahead for the future. There are many writing tools that become available to students if they are able to type at a level of some proficiency. Our son was severely dysgraphic and he was terribly frustrated when he entered school. He had easily the ‘worst’ writing in his class (one of those “I’ve never seen this before…” comments from his teacher) and no […]
The school year begins and then there’s a lull. The first days of excitement and change are past and now teachers are trying to figure out their students and students are trying to figure out their teachers. Now is a good time for students to talk to their teachers about dyslexia. The teacher cards available in our store are intended to present a big picture overview of dyslexia and ways that teachers can make their classrooms dyslexia-friendly. The nice thing about the cards is that it can spread awareness and offset the burden that students might otherwise have asking for basics like extra time on tests, assistive technology, and a note-taker. When some teachers are confronted with a long list of requests, they may think […]
