Dyslexia Strengths

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Dyslexia Strengths

The first thing most people think of when they hear the word dyslexia is reading struggles. While dyslexia is characterized by reading and writing difficulties, there is also a strong profile of dyslexia strengths. 

It is important for your child to understand the positive effects of their diagnosis. Dyslexia allows them to see the world from a different lens and the more you can celebrate that, the better.  Many students can struggle with low self-esteem due to dyslexia implications. Highlighting their strengths will help combat this stigma they may feel.

Creativity

The world of a dyslexic is dynamic and colorful. Their creativity leads them to be out-of-the-box thinkers and have original ideas. A dyslexic child sees magic in everyday activities and can turn seemingly mundane tasks into adventures. When a neurotypical student sees a box, the dyslexic student sees a board game waiting to be invented, or a costume that needs to be assembled. Their imagination is unmatched. 

When children are young, it can be difficult for them to see their imagination as the gift that it is. Celebrate this trait as much as possible and help your child understand this is a gift that not everyone has. Many people live their lives in the black and white and need the lens of our dyslexic children to add color. How lucky are you that you can see glimpses of the world through your dyslexic child’s eyes?

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Comprehension

Children with dyslexia have trouble decoding- turning the letters on paper into words. This makes reading difficult and laborious and consequently does not allow the child to tap into any higher-level thinking skills.

It is only when you remove the decoding element and offer the same information through audio form that you can see the true potential of a dyslexic child. Their brain is not constrained to the black and white questions such as, who, what, when, where, and why. Their world is much more nuanced. They are pulling in background information related to the passage. Their curious mind is thinking of follow-up questions to ask their teacher or a personal story linked to the main idea.

Comprehension is a difficult skill to teach. Your child should be praised for their gifts of higher-level thinking and not shamed for their decoding difficulties. Making sure your child has the appropriate accommodations will ensure that they are not bottlenecked by their lack of decoding skills.

High Cognitive Abilities

Dyslexic students process information in a holistic way. When they take in material, they try to understand how it interconnects with the world around them. This allows them to see the big picture in situations, take a step back, then draw inferences or reach conclusions in a superior way. Another dyslexia strength is the ability to process information quickly, as long as it is presented in audio form. All of these attributes come together in an extraordinary way for dyslexics and their cognitive abilities. 

They possess exceptional skills in:

  • Problem-solving
  • Reasoning 
  • Conceptualization 
  • Abstraction

Meaningful Learning

Children with dyslexia are inquisitive learners. As they approach new topics, it is important for them to know the “why” behind their learnings. Once again, this is a sign of their higher-level thinking. 

They seek a deeper understanding of topics in order to see the bigger picture. They don’t simply want to know how this new learning relates to the curriculum, but instead want to know how it relates to life in general. 

You may find that your dyslexic learner gravitates towards science as a favorite subject for this reason. On the flip side, many dyslexic students also struggle with rote memorization such as multiplication facts. Memorizing something for the sake of memorizing lacks the depth that dyslexics need to process things in a meaningful way.

Embrace the Dyslexia Strengths

Your child should be praised for their unique perspective and abilities. It is so easy for their dyslexia strengths to get overlooked in the classroom because so much of their education involves reading. 

As an informed parent, you can now contribute to your child’s positive association with dyslexia. Sit down and have a conversation with them about all the ways dyslexia adds to their life. Furthermore, point out these dyslexia strengths to your child in real-time, as they are happening. It may be helpful to talk to them about celebrities who have dyslexia to further instill that dyslexia does not need to hold them back. The strengths that they possess as dyslexic children extend far beyond reading and will serve them well in life. 

Are there any strengths you have observed in your child that are not mentioned in this article? If so, let us know in the comments or on our contact page. We would love to know the ways in which dyslexia has positively impacted your child.