Research shows that the sooner children with dyslexia or other reading difficulties receive effective intervention, the more receptive their growing brains will be to mastering the complex rules of written language. Moreover, early intervention may avert years of frustration before a cycle of reading failure and low self-esteem sets in.<\/p>\n
This rings true with Anna C., a Massachusetts fifth grader who was formally diagnosed with dyslexia at the end of first grade and has grown up with an optimistic attitude toward her neurodiversity. This positive outlook is inspired by her family\u2019s approach to addressing it, knowledgeable educators, and explicit, structured literacy instruction through the Wilson Reading System\u00ae<\/sup>\u00a0(WRS), which is provided at her public school.<\/p>\n Her mother Kelli’s experience as a certified Wilson\u00ae<\/sup>\u00a0Dyslexia Practitioner (W.D.P.) certainly helped, too.<\/p>\n \u201cI completed my practicum just days before giving birth to Anna,\u201d shared Kelli, who teaches WRS to students diagnosed with dyslexia in a suburban public school district near Boston. \u201cI always found it ironic that she was then diagnosed with dyslexia at the end of first grade. While she started Wilson in second grade, it should be noted that her first exposure to Wilson was clearly in utero!\u201d<\/p>\n After noticing their daughter\u2019s learning difficulties in kindergarten and first grade, as well as Anna\u2019s keen ability to memorize stories, her parents sought out a formal diagnosis from a neuropsychiatrist. In addition to dyslexia, Anna was diagnosed with attention-deficit\/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and dyscalculia \u2013 difficulty with math.<\/p>\n Breaking the news to their daughter wasn\u2019t difficult for Kelli and Derek, Kelli explained, although the presentation was thoughtfully planned.<\/p>\n \u201cWe told her, \u2018We\u2019ve got good news! You have something called dyslexia, which means that your brain learns differently. The reason it\u2019s good news is because now we know why reading and spelling are so hard for you, and even better, we now know exactly what type of instruction you need to learn.\u2019 We also told her that because her brain works differently, she would also excel in different areas, like being creative. So as she has continued through school, she has had many opportunities to share her creativity, and we always tie that to dyslexia. We want her to know that having this diagnosis isn\u2019t just about what\u2019s hard, but that it\u2019s also something that should be celebrated. We never wanted her to be ashamed of it, and she\u2019s not.\u201d<\/p>\n During Dyslexia Awareness Month in 2019, Anna shared her story with older students during an assembly, which helped many\u00a0with similar struggles accept and understand their own learning differences.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cDyslexia isn\u2019t who you are. It’s what you have,\u201d the 10-year-old said, demonstrating her optimism.<\/p>\n Adds Kelli, a member of the Massachusetts branch of the International Dyslexia Association (IDA), \u201cI have been watching her progress through the program and I am amazed at how far she has come. While I am incredibly proud of her as a mom, it was equally moving to watch my WRS students go up to her and say that they also have dyslexia. Some of them had never spoken about it out loud at school. Now it is something they share with more confidence. Wilson also helps with that. I\u2019ve had the pleasure of watching many students grow in their decoding and encoding skills. I am grateful for what Wilson has done for my students, and my own family.\u201d<\/p>\n