Holistic Management of Children with Learning Disabilities S. Panda Date: 24. 05.2017 swarnapanda@yahoo.com ZIET, Bhubaneswar

Learning Outcomes Understanding about Learning Disabilities. Identify the children with Learning Disabilities in the school and classroom Learn the techniques of holistic management of children with Learning Disabilities Helping the teachers to adopt need based strategies for addressing children with Learning Disabilities.

Child-1 Chinmaya is 8 years old. When he was younger, his parents thought he was very clever. So they were anxious to send him school. Later they were disappointed with Chinmay’s performance. His teacher often reports though Chinmaya is very clever but he is very lazy and careless in his tasks. He only concentrates when he likes the subject (Maths). The teacher often gets angry with Chinmay. He is not able to understand why the child is good at Maths but not at other subjects. He has difficulty in writing some letters.

Child- 2 Shivani is a five year old girl in pre-primary stage. Her class teacher says Shivani is inattentive. She talks when other children are busy in working. She does not look at the teacher when she talks. She does not raise her hand to answer question. She has difficulty in following direction. Many times she is not able to follow the instructions given to the whole class.

Child-3 Mihir is in class five. His class teacher reports that despite differentiated approach adopted within classroom, Mihir’s progress is less than expected. Mihir’s reading ability is very poor and writing is disorganised. He is poor in handwriting and spelling. Despite of these difficulties, he follows overall instructions of the classroom. He does well in Maths and socio-personal skills. He shows some escaping behaviour while doing writing task. Once he threw his language copy in the corner of the shelve and his mother could not trace it.

Understanding Children with L D Usually having average to above average intellectual abilities Is a psychological processing disorder which affects the ability to understand or use language Difficulties in Listening, Thinking, Speaking, Reading, Writing, Spelling and Mathematics without sensory or physical disabilities. Difficulties in motor skills (poor eye-hand coordination) Gap between the student’s ability and actual achievement (Both academic and functional skills)

Characteristics of L D Secondary Primary Characteristics Poor social skills Inattention Hyperactivity (Impulsive) Behavioural problems (anxiety, moodiness) Primary Characteristics Reading problems (Dyslexia) Difficulty in written language (Dysgraphia) Underachievement in Mathematics (Dyscalculia)

Difficulties in Reading (Dyslexia) (signs and symptoms) Inability to discriminate between letters, numerals or sounds Difficulties in blend sounds to form words Mispronounce the words or use a wrong word that sounds similar Difficulties with word recognition, poor spelling and decoding abilities (mistakes when reading aloud )

May not be able to retell the story in proper order Slow in learning rhymes, numbers, letters, colours and shapes Difficulties in reading comprehension Struggle for summering what he/she has just read Trouble in understanding jokes, comics

Difficulties in Writing (Dysgraphia) (Signs and symptoms) Dislikes writing tasks Problem in eye-hand coordination (holding writing objects, forming letters and words) Can not copy accurately from board or textbook Perform poorly in written tasks (vocabulary, punctuation and spelling, grammar)

Write reverse letters Have messy handwriting (poor handwriting) May have trouble in organizing thoughts when writing or speaking

Difficulties in Mathematics (Dyscalculia) (Signs and symptoms) Difficulty in number concepts Difficulty in comparing things/classifying/ sorting items Difficulty with time concepts Confuse with operational symbols and misread numbers (reversal of numbers)

Does not make connection between two or more ideas Difficulties in memorizing number facts and solving word problems Struggle to solve multi-step problems Problems with arithmetic and math concepts

Difficulties in Speaking (Signs and symptoms) Difficulty in memorising basic facts. Fumbles with words while speaking (fluency errors) Difficulty in expressing ideas orally Use grammar with errors Problems in retelling a story or describing stories in proper sequence. Understand the meaning of words and say

Difficulties in Study skills Difficulties in following directions Poor organisation in preparing notes and other writing materials Needs more time to complete the tasks

Difficulties in Socialization Struggle in interpreting non-verbal cues (facial expressions, body language) May have low social status, few positive interactions at school, difficulty in making friends and seem lonely Might misunderstands jokes, idioms May not follow social rules of conversation

Factor responsible for Learning Disabilities Genetic factors Physiological Factors Environmental factors improper medical care Poor nutritional care Insufficient early experiences in language Inadequate exposure for learning from environment

Screening and Diagnosis Informal Assessment Systematic Observation Interview Profiling child’s data Teacher-made tests Formal Assessment Psychological and other clinical assessments (Audiological, speech, vision, educational) Achievement tests

Intervention Strategies Classroom modifications Multi-sensory approach in teaching Adapted strategies for examination, note-taker and reducing writing task Individualised educational programme Transition planning Special therapeutic programme, if required. (Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy)

Counselling ( vocational guidance for adolescents and adults) ADHD requires associated treatment and medication Eating well, sleeping well and regular exercises, yoga, music as therapeutic measures

Classroom Strategies Visual techniques Use of multisensory aids Use of computer for drills and practice Flexibility in Classroom Correction of task and instant verbal feedback

“Say aloud while writing” Use of memory games Use of technology for teaching and learning Quiet learning environment for tests, silent reading and tasks that require concentration Alerting the student in advance while doing tasks

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