Watching the 2005 film “In her shoes” with Cameron Diaz and Toni Collette reminded me of dyslexia. My daughter showed signs of dyslexia when she was around 6 years of age so I have been quite close to it. Many parents usually ask me how we navigated through it. Here are some ideas for them. 

Dyslexia is a common reading disorder that affects nearly 5-20% of school-aged children. And… it is not caused by brain damage. It can be treated but no cured. Children can learn to compensate for this weakness in reading the written language.

What I thought would be useful today is to share some of my experience with dyslexia as I ventured into this uncharted territory. When I found out that my daughter disliked reading, inverted the letters “b” for “d” and took a few seconds longer to comprehend what she was reading I started to pay attention.

I was totally unaware that some people have this difficulty in processing words. And that the brain of a dyslexic person has to work up to 5 times harder than a non-dyslexic brain –according to some recent research at the University of Washington. It was then, that my own education process started…

As she commenced school and came back disappointed in how slow she was reading I took her to be assessed. I discovered bit by bit that one of the most important things to do to help your dyslexic child is to be patient yourself and help him/her to navigate their own feelings of frustration when they are treated differently by teachers and classmates. This has a direct impact on their self-esteem as they will feel less confident as soon as others notice they are not fast enough or they may make mistakes when writing.

She also had to attend remedial dyslexia classes (outside school hours) for 3-4 years to learn to identify the phonemes (which are small distinctive speech sounds) and be able to read the words better. Those classes made a world of difference to her future.

Recognising the early symptoms of the learning difficulty is important. This short video shows what to look for to detect dyslexia.

 

Today, at 21, my daughter Relmi is a talented photographer and designer. And she also writes great essays and proposals. So... to parents with dyslexic children, do not despair, it may turn out that your child becomes a celebrity or an entrepreneur!!

Look for this video from NBC – Successful Entrepreneurs with Dyslexia. You will find out that from Richard Branson to Tom Cruise, they all suffered from dyslexia. This pushed them to use their brains to compensate for this deficiency in reading skills.

Originally posted on: 4 July 2010
Last updated on: 24 March 2024

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Silvia Damiano

Silvia Damiano

Founder & CEO
About my Brain Institute

Scientist, educator, author, speaker, coach, award-winning leadership specialist, filmmaker and creator of the i4 Neuroleader Model & Methodology.

Silvia's scientific background and curiosity about the human brain led her to a decade long journey of research into optimal brain functioning and the application of neuroscience in leadership and daily life. Her past and current roles have uniquely prepared her for the current undertaking, that of leadership activist & change agent.

Silvia Damiano founded The About my Brain Institute in 2009, with the purpose of democratising leadership & neuroscience. She has a passionately held belief, that leaders in our 21st century global economy and their organisations must radically change long-held ideas of what constitutes effective leadership

In her ground-breaking books ‘Leadership is Upside Down’, ‘Brain-Friendly Leadership’ and the 2018 documentary ‘Make Me A Leader’, Silvia provides both compelling evidence and explores the importance of leadership in our personal and professional lives and what it takes to develop the human behind the leader.

Silvia has worked in different countries, across many industries, helping teams and organisations improve business performance. Silvia’s clients have described her as a passionate, dynamic, a highly experienced speaker and master facilitator on the topics of Emotional Intelligence, Cultural Change, Neuroleadership & Engagement.

Silvia is passionate about leaving a legacy of well-rounded leaders who can act and decide in a way that better serves humanity. Her clients include Microsoft, Australian Stock Exchange, NSW Government, VISA, Fuji Xerox and Manpower amongst many other global companies.

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