Does My Child Have a Learning Disability
 
or Learning Problem?

Bonnie Terry, recognized as America’s Leading Learning Specialist, explains the difference between a learning problem and a learning disability and then gives you several steps you can take to help your child improve their skills in just minutes a day on the FOX News Morning Show.

(There is more information on learning and how to improve learning skills below the video.)

What is the difference between a learning

disability and a learning problem?

 
The difference between a learning disability and a learning problem is how much the problem interferes with learning. It is the degree of the problem – and you can be gifted and have a problem and end up working harder than you need to. Homework time can be long and almost painful when there is something interfering with your learning. A learning disability is when you have a cluster of learning problems that impact learning. We actually find out the root cause of why you struggle.
 

What are some tell-tale signs of learning problems that may be part of a learning disability?

 
When a student takes too long to do their homework, when they don’t like reading or don’t like math – those are learning problems that may warrant looking at because there is a reason for it.  For example, children want to learn how to walk and talk – and even read early on, but when reading is hard, they decide they don’t like it – they don’t even know that it is hard – they just prefer not to do it. Same thing with math, when you don’t like math, it’s because something is interfering and making it harder than it needs to be. When you have a cluster of those learning problems, that’s when they become a learning disability.

Signs of Learning Problems:

Take too long to do their homework

Know they have an assignment but can’t remember what it is

Have trouble understanding directions

Doesn’t seem to work up to their abilities

Doesn’t like to read or struggles with reading

Doesn’t like math

Is there anything a parent can do to help their child improve their skills even if they have a learning disability?

 
Yes, there are several things parents can do to help their child with learning problems or a learning disability. For example, reading fluency, the ability to read smoothly with ease is necessary for reading success. Parents can do reading fluency training with their child very easily. We use our Five Minutes to Better Reading Skills for that. After spending five minutes improving their child’s reading fluency we suggest that you play games like the Comprehension Zone because it can be played for reading as well as listening comprehension. Finally, you can teach your child study skills – we do that with our Ten Minutes to Better Study Skills, and of course, read with your child.

We always hear that it’s important to read with your child – that just reading more will help – is there a special way to do that that will make a bigger difference?
 
Reading to your child and with your child is vitally important to reading success but the next step is even more critical. The next step is to ask the right questions after reading. You can actually even just read a few paragraphs or a few pages and then ask the usual suspects – the who, what, when, where, how, and why BUT then you need to ask about sizes, shapes, colors, scenery, movement, and mood. Those questions help one to visualize what you read or listened too. That’s when you get true comprehension – when you can picture what you have read or listened too.  You can have your child write those things down in the fill-in-the-blank graphic organizers that are found in our Ten Minutes to Better Study Skills too, because writing is the doing part of thinking.

Remember, with just a few minutes a day you can help your child with their learning skills even if they have a learning disability!

The following article was contributed by Jeremy Fordham

Long-Term Effects of ADHD Medication

Oftentimes when a child is diagnosed with ADHD doctors and parents alike are quick to prescribe  medication as a treatment. This is largely due to the fact that the effectiveness and safety of these medications are espoused by mental health professionals. Furthermore, medication is an easier and less time-consuming treatment than behavioral therapy or other forms of treatment for ADHD. However, as most parents who are making the treatment decisions for their children have not had the opportunity to attend Ph.D. programs in medicine, they are typically not versed enough in health care to know that there has been controversy about the long-term effects of ADHD medicine.

Most Common ADHD Medication

The most common ADHD medications children are prescribed are stimulant drugs, like Ritalin. Unfortunately, there are many different possible side effects that accompany ADHD stimulant medications, such as appetite suppression and erratic eating patterns, growth suppression, irritability when the medication is wearing off, headaches, stomach aches and facial tics. However for the most part ADHD medications are relatively safe; and if someone taking the drug does experience side effects from it, the dosage can be lowered or they can be prescribed a non-stimulant alternative.

It is generally agreed that ADHD drugs may help control symptoms and behavioral problems of some children with ADHD on a short-term basis. However as Eric J. Marsh and Russell A. Barkley point out in their book “Treatment of Childhood Disorders,” the long-term prognosis of individuals with ADHD who are treating their illness with medication is less clear. Similarly, it is also unknown what effect, if any, taking ADHD medications for extended period of time will have on a person’s health. What is known is that many patients eventually stop taking their medication after months or years of treatment. This could be due to unwanted side effects or the feeling that the medication is no longer helping to improve focus.

Ambiguous Nature of Long-term Effectiveness of ADHD Medication

Despite the seemingly ambiguous nature of the long-term effectiveness of ADHD medication, some mental health professionals argue that, on average, individuals receiving pharmaceutical treatment for ADHD do better than those without it. Yet there is one caveat: not all individuals respond to the ADHD medication that they are prescribed, and those who are good responders early on have a better long-term prognosis than those that have a hard time finding a medication that works for them.

Other mental health professionals question that point of view. A 2009 study showed that although ADHD medications were helping children with ADHD a year after therapy had begun, these same children were no different than the control group after eight years. Thus, the results of this study bring into question whether ADHD medications help on a long-term basis at all.

However one of the alternatives ADHD medication that has been proven to benefit children  on a long term basis is behavioral therapy. Likewise, certain lifestyle changes, such as eating a healthy diet low in sugar and processed foods, getting enough sleep and exercising can also have a positive effect on ADHD symptoms.

Clearly it is very big decision to start a pharmaceutical regiment to treat a child’s ADHD. As such it is important for parents to keep in mind that ADHD medication is not a cure for ADHD and it may not even be effective in some individuals, whether they take it on a short- or long-term basis. While ADHD medication does help control ADHD symptoms in some patients and improve disruptive behavior and lack of focus in school, it is certainly not the only treatment option and others, such as behavioral therapy, may be worth exploring.

………………………

Bonnie Terry’s Additional Comments on ADHD Medication…

Remember, sometimes children as well as adults that have been diagnosed with ADHD also have other learning issues that can be magnify their ADHD. These are learning problems related to auditory, visual, and tactile/kinesthetic processing. There are 9 different areas of vision, auditory, and tactile/kinesthetic processing that affect learning. Often when you address these processing areas the ADHD isn’t as problematic as it was to begin with. Again, you want to check out all avenues to make learning easier for your child. You don’t want to leave a stone unturned. Your child is priceless. To find out if there are other root causes interfering with your child’s learning, see our Learning Disability Screening Tool or give Bonnie Terry, M. Ed.,BCET a call for a 30 minute complimentary consultation (530) 888-7160.

Summer Learning Activities to


Improve Learning Skills Today

Summer Vacation has just started and as you know, it is the perfect time to give your child a boost in their learning skills, but you still want to have fun…


Join Bonnie Terry, the nation’s learning expert, and find out what you can do in just 20 minutes a day to boost your child’s reading, writing, and math skills and have fun at the same time. Some of the activities can be done in as little as 5 minutes and you still improve learning skills! Plus there is a surprise family bonus for being on the call, and trust me, you don’t want to miss out on it! You will learn what you can do in the next 24 hours that will improve learning skills.

Improve Learning Skills Webinar

Bonnie Terry, M. Ed., BCET is hosting a FREE Live Webinar to help you improve your child’s learning skills on:

Wednesday June 8th
8 pm Eastern, 7 pm Central, 6 pm Mountain, and 5 pm Pacific.

Upon registering you will receive a FREE Handbook on the easy steps you can take to improve your child’s learning skills over the summer and still have fun even if they have a learning problem, LD, dyslexia, ADHD, or are gifted and take too long to do their homework. The activities and steps are for all age students – kindergarten through adults.

FREE Surprise Gift to Improve Learning Skills While Having Fun

Those that attend the Live Webinar will also receive a surprise FREE gift. And, of course, if you can’t make it live on the call, you will get access to the recording! Join The Nation’s Learning Expert Bonnie Terry, M. Ed., BCET Wednesday June 8th Webinar 8 pm Eastern, 7 pm Central, 6 pm Mountain, and 5 pm Pacific. Space is limited. You can attend via phone, skype, or the internet! Reserve your space for the Webinar now at: Title: What Schools Don’t Tell You: How to Help Your Child Learn With Ease and Still Have Fun! Time: Wednesday, June 8th at 5pm Pacific, 6 pm Mountain, 7 pm Central, 8 pm Eastern. Listening method: Phone, Skype, + Web Simulcast Learn About:

1. 6 Steps to Successful Learning…and make a difference in the next 24 hours

 

2. The Traditional Learning Model that schools use vs the TRUE Learning Model

 

3. Activities to do at home to improve your child’s learning in the next 24 hours

 

4. How to Awaken the Scholar Within Your Child

 

To register, enter in your name and email:

Bonnie Terry, M. Ed., BCET

Bonnie Terry, the nation’s learning expert, has been teaching for over 37 years and has created numerous books, games, and guides to help students reach their full potential. She specializes in helping parents and teachers identify and address learning problems. Bonnie is also  a contributing author to numerous educational journals and magazines. Bonnie, mom to 3, was a girl scout leader for 10 years, a cub scout leader and assistant cub master for 8 years, and boy scout troop committee chairman for 5 years. http://www.bonnieterrylearning.com

You CAN improve your child’s learning skills and still have fun.

Misdiagnosed Attention

Deficit Disorder – ADHD

Nearly 1 million children in the US are potentially misdiagnosed with ADHD simply because they are the youngest and most immature in their kindergarten class. This is according to Todd Elder’s research at Michigan State University as reported in Science Daily.
Think about this for a minute. Almost 1 million children are potentially misdiagnosed with ADHD. And what happens when a child is misdiagnosed? More often than not that child is prescribed to take behavior-modifying stimulants such as Ritalin and they don’t need them!

Diagnosing ADHD or Misdiagnosing ADHD

There are two important criteria to look at in the diagnosis and misdiagnosis of ADHD. The first is the most obvious criteria. Look at the behaviors a child is having, doing, exhibiting. For example, can they sit still for a lesson or while you read to them? The second criteria is critical! What is the age of the child doing the behavior, and do look at others of the same age. If a child can’t seem to sit still but he is only 5 and the rest of the children are 6 or close to being 6, that is a big difference! It is much harder for a 5 year old to sit still than for a 6 year old to sit still. Teachers and medical practitioners need to remember this when evaluating whether a child has ADHD.

Additional Situations to Look at Regarding Diagnosis and Misdiagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder – ADHD

1. Is the problem you are seeing situational (e.g. Only one parent sees it as a problem; at school they don’t seem to have the problems, when they are with dad they don’t seem to have the problems, or when they are with mom they don’t seem to have the problems.)
2. If only one parent is having problems with the child, it may be a problem with parenting skills (e.g. Yelling at the child such as “You don’t act like you want to be part of the family.” or “Get up right now or else” and then not follow through with a consequence.).
3. If the teacher is the only one having a problem it may be a problem with the way the teacher is dealing with the child or it may be an inexperienced teacher.
4. Other times a child is misdiagnosed with attention deficit disorder is when the actual problem occurs through a shutdown of either their auditory system or their vision system.

• When the auditory or vision system becomes overloaded, it shuts down and needs a break. When either of these systems shuts down temporarily, the child often appears to be not paying attention. What is happening is either the vision system or the auditory system is resting.

• Unfortunately, often the child has trouble bringing themselves back to the activity at hand. A gentle reminder to come back to the activity is all that is needed in this instance, and it may need to be given each time they aren’t paying attention until the child learns to come back on their own.

Remember, a diagnosis of ADHD requires evidence of multiple symptoms of inattention or hyperactivity, with these symptoms persisting for six or more months — and in at least two settings — before the age of seven. The settings include home and school.
Additionally, teachers cannot diagnose ADHD, but, their opinions are often used in decisions to send a child to be evaluated for attention deficit disorder. You know your child. Remember, the diagnosis requires evidence of multiple symptoms in at least two settings, so if the school is seeing symptoms and you don’t see symptoms at home the problem might not be one of ADHD. That is NOT to say that you don’t want to look into it. Obviously something is going on that is interfering with your child’s learning and you do want to see what you can do to make learning easier for them.
“Many ADHD diagnoses may be driven by teachers’ perceptions of poor behavior among the youngest children in a kindergarten classroom,” Todd Elder states. “But these ‘symptoms’ may merely reflect emotional or intellectual immaturity among the youngest students.”

So, what happens educationally when your child has ADHD?

Educational Problems Caused by ADD/ADHD

Although attention deficit disorder (ADHD) is not a learning disability, ADD/ADHD obviously affects performance in a school setting, as well as affects other parts of their life. Kids and adults with ADD have neurological gaps that interfere with the cognitive processes of memory, concentration, and attention span.

In other words, kids with attention deficit disorder have often missed out on instruction because they were distracted and attending to other things instead of the instruction that was being given. Assignments, especially homework may be missed because they were distracted and attending to other things instead of the assignment that was being given. When kids aren’t paying attention in class, they often miss bits and pieces of skills, content, and the easy tricks to becoming efficient learners.

Dr. Daniel Amen states that school problems can include:
o Restlessness
o Short attention span and distractibility
o Impulsiveness
o Procrastination
o Trouble shifting attention
o Forgetfulness
o Writing disabilities
o Reading disabilities
o Visual processing problems
o Auditory processing problems
o Unusual study habits
o Difficulties with timed situations such as timed tests.

ADHD and Learning Disabilities or Dyslexia

About 70% of kids with ADHD also have dyslexia, learning difficulties or learning disabilities. School age kids may have problems with reading, spelling, writing, penmanship, or arithmetic.

The question then becomes one of, how do I help my ADHD kids to do well in school when they have such trouble attending to the instruction? How do I help them to improve their memory, mental energy, organizational skills, and expressive vocabulary so they can succeed in the school setting?

There is a lot you can do to help your ADHD child in school. The key is to determine what specifically is interfering with their learning. Is it only the ADHD, or have they been misdiagnosed with ADHD? Are there other underlying causes interfering with their learning in addition to ADHD? For more information on the underlying causes of learning problems, you will want to check out our comprehensive behaviorally based learning assessment.

It is critical to your child’s success, whether they have attention deficit disorder or not or whether they have been misdiagnosed with ADHD or not, to find out what other underlying causes may be contributing to your child’s educational struggles. Once you know exactly what is going on, there is so much you can do to help your child whether they have ADHD, have been misdiagnosed with ADHD or have a learning difficulty or learning disability.

Looking for help with learning reading

and don’t know where to start?

Learning Reading Help Can Be Divided into 3 Categories

There are actually 3 Roadblocks to Learning Reading, 3 Roadblocks to Learning Writing, and 6 roadblocks to Learning Spelling. Whether your child has dyslexia, has an identified learning disability, is falling through the cracks at school or is even gifted… understanding what is interfering with their learning reading skills makes the difference in reading success or reading failure.

3 Roadblocks to Learning Reading.


1. Learning Reading: Phonics Related Problem
This is the type of problem where it is almost ‘painful’ to listen to your child read. This happens more frequently with children in the primary grades, although older children can also have this difficulty. This first roadblock to reading success is phonics related. Phonics reading problems are when a child ‘jumbles’ or mispronounces the words as they are trying to decode (the ability to sound out printed words) or encode (the ability to put letters to the sounds that make up a word). You have no idea what the word is that they are trying to read until you look at it yourself.

2. Learning Reading: Fluency/Visual Tracking Problem
This is when you listen to your child read the selection doesn’t make any sense to you. You know something must be missing. The second reading roadblock to reading success is where it takes your child what seems like forever to read the sentence or they have skipped, omitted, or repeated words when reading. They may even re-read the whole selection and still not get meaning from it because they have missed bits and pieces of what they have read. This fluency problem happens quite often with children of all ages, from 1st grade to adults. Over the years I have found that most students that have reading problems or are ‘reluctant readers’ have fluency/visual tracking problems that interfere with their reading.

3. Learning Reading: Lack of Language or Vocabulary Problem
This is when your child reads and you know they don’t understand the meaning of the words they are reading.This prevents comprehension or being able to understand what you read. Many children don’t have a large base of language or vocabulary. This happens often due to poor visual memory or auditory memory skills. This makes reading comprehension difficult. This problem may not be noticeable until the 4th grade and above due to the relatively common vocabulary that is used in reading material for younger students.

There are solutions to each of these roadblocks to learning reading skills.

Looking for Special Education Experts

to Answer Your Education Questions?

It is often hard to find who to go to to get your special ed questions answered. What if you could find the top Special Ed experts all in one place? There is now a list of the 50 top special ed experts that are worth following on twitter. I was just informed that such a list exists…and I’m on it.

What type of Special Education Experts are on the list?

Each of these experts give you the best cutting edge information on special ed on a daily basis. The list includes 20 special educators worth following. I also includes the top 17 advocates and groups to follow. It also includes 18 special ed tools (materials, law information, news, and organizations) to follow.

This email just came in announcing the 50 Special Education experts…and I thought I’d share it.

Hello Bonnie

I’m just writing this to inform you that we’ve recently published an article on TeachTechTopia entitled, “50 Special Ed Teachers and Experts Worth Following on Twitter.” We were searching for some of the best twitter accounts to follow on the subject, and found @BonnieTerry_btl to be an excellent addition.

Best,

Alba Collazo

Co-founder, TeachTechTopia

Be sure to sign up for the free teaching tips above my photo on the right and email you special education questions to me.

Mid Summer Training – What You Can Do to Prepare Your Kids for School

I Can Hardly Believe It? Check it out…
The FREE Live Teleseminar is filling up fast – Only 100 68 52 Spots left!
Reserve your spot now.

Mid-Summer Training Call

I have had so many calls from parents recently, wondering how to help their child between now and when school starts back up. They realize it’s not too late to give their child a boost, but they also want to be sure they have an enjoyable rest of the summer. So, I decided to have a teleseminar where I will present information on summer activities to help your child’s skills improve as well as activities rich in experiences and family time.

I’m hosting a FREE Live Teleseminar on Wednesday July 14th at 8 pm Eastern, 7 pm Central, 6 pm Mountain, and 5 pm Pacific. Upon registering you will receive a FREE Handbook on the 5 things you can do to help your child over the summer. Those that attend live will receive a surprise FREE gift.

Searching for Mid-Summer Activities to Improve Your Child’s Skills and Still Have Fun?
FREE Live Teleseminar on Wednesday June 2nd at at 8 pm EST, 7 pm CST, 6 pm MST, and 5 pm PST.
Space is limited. You can attend via phone or via internet!

Reserve your Teleseminar line now at:
Title: Mid-Summer Activities to Improve Your Child’s Skills and Still Have Fun
Time: Wednesday, July 14th at 5:00pm Pacific
Listening method: Phone + Web Simulcast

To attend, visit:
Mid-Summer Training Call
LD Specialist and Board Certified Educational Therapist Bonnie Terry, M. Ed., is answering your questions about summer activities to help your child improve their skills. The teleseminar will be recorded; if you can’t attend, you’ll be able to listen later. Plus special surprise bonus just for registering! Those that attend live will receive another surprise FREE gift.

Mid-Summer Training Call

It’s the almost middle of Summer Vacation and as you know, it is the perfect time to give your child a boost in their learning skills, but you still want to have fun…

Join Bonnie Terry’s call and find out what you can do in just 20 minutes a day to boost your child’s reading, writing, and math skills and have fun at the same time.

I’m hosting a FREE Live Teleseminar on Wednesday July 14th at 8 pm Eastern, 7 pm Central, 6 pm Mountain, and 5 pm Pacific. Upon registering you will receive a FREE Handbook on the 5 steps you can take to help your child over the summer even if they have a learning problem, LD, dyslexia. The activities and steps are for all age students – kindergarten through adults.

Those that attend the Live Teleseminar will also receive a surprise FREE gift. And, of course, if you can’t make it live on the call, you will get access to the recording!

Mid-Summer Training Call
FREE Live Teleseminar on Wednesday July 14th at 8 pm Eastern, 7 pm Central, 6 pm Mountain, and 5 pm Pacific.
Space is limited. You can attend via phone or via internet!

Reserve your space for the Teleseminar now at:

Title: Searching for Summer Activities to Improve Your Child’s Learning Skills and Still Have Fun?
Time: Wednesday, July 14th at 5pm Pacific, 6 pm Mountain, 7 pm Central, 8 pm Eastern.
Listening method: Phone + Web Simulcast

To register, visit:
Mid-Summer Training Call

Learn About:
1. How to improve your child’s reading, writing, and math skills in just 20 minutes a day
2. 5 steps you can take to help your child
3. Activities to do at home, in the yard, or in your neighborhood

Bonnie Terry, M. Ed., BCET

“FACT – Some Parents Are Giving Their Children A 2 To 4 Year Learning Advantage In Reading, Writing And Math In Just 20 Minutes A Day!”

The alarming realization that your child is struggling at school, followed by frustration of not knowing why, and the “is there anything you can do about it” often leads to sleepless nights. However, there is much that you can do to give your child reading help, writing, help, and math help. Join us on our upcoming call to find out more.

The upcoming private training call is Tuesday, March 2nd at 8 PM EST; 5 PM PST. To register for the call, just go to http://homeworkwars.com/privatetrainingcall