Children learn new skills at their own pace and learning disabilities in children can be quiet challenging. Their development is directly proportionate to the child’s readiness to learn and the opportunities they receive to explore their environment in an atmosphere of love and trust. Therefore, it is challenging to ascertain when a child will learn a given skill. However, the developmental milestones are a set of age specific tasks that are referred to for checking the expected development of a child. A developmental delay observed in a child needs intervention as soon as possible. Early intervention can have a substantial impact on a child’s capability to learn new skills. It is important to understand that learning disabilities in children arise based on the way the brain is structured or in the way it functions, the struggles begin in different ways and at different ages from one child to another.
Also read: Why is IGCSE the right curriculum for students with Learning Difficulties? At times, at early ages children pick up new skills and begin their journey in formal education and may have normal intelligence. However, at a later stage they develop an underlying disability that prevents them from reaching their potential. Professionals who play an important role in the learning process of these children should be extremely proactive in recognising the reasons for their struggle. The professionals should recommend these children and their parents a Complete Psycho-educational evaluation with a psychologist trained in Educational Psychology as the first step.
This early intervention is not about labelling children with a disability. Instead, this information enables parents to make more informed decisions about their child’s education. They can make the vital changes at the earliest. For e.g. Sending a child with a learning disability to a school for special needs, bringing appropriate learning strategies in place at school and at home and empowering their children with greater abilities to understand their learning styles. Thus helping them to reach their full potential. Children with learning disabilities face a greater degree of challenge in doing the tasks that other children accomplish with ease. When there is an early diagnosis and thereby an earlier intervention, it helps to increase the child’s chances of having a successful future.
Intense help at an early age turns on the system of the brain and makes the children more receptive to learning new skills. Learning disabilities in children do not go away. Instead, they are likely to grow more challenging as time is allowed to pass. Early diagnosis improves the child’s ability to attain academic potential and also avert the development of low self-esteem and behaviour concerns that further interfere with their ability to learn life skills. Also read: Five Common Signs of Learning Disabilities in Children Early intervention helps the children with learning disabilities to develop a “can do” attitude which is essential for them to adopt a different approach to learning than other children around them. Knowing that lots of other kids have gone through the same thing and have become successful will help them realize that they can do it, too. Author: Ms. Rabab Bohra Teaching Faculty – Junior School, The Aditya Birla Integrated School
