It’s heart wrenching to see kids struggle. We understand the difficulties your child and family experience on a daily basis. We also understand that what is most helpful is to make things easier for your child and family. We help both children that have received a diagnosis or who have no formal diagnosis. The bottom line is that life gets easier once a child begins therapy at Dyslexia Therapy of Pittsburgh because remediation and new coping skills make life better.

Prior to your child’s initial evaluation we will have you contact your physician for a therapy referral, should you not already have one on hand.

Kids We Can Help

Kids with and without a formal diagnosis can be helped. These include:

• Dyslexia
• Other Learning Disorders (difficulty in handwriting, spelling and math)
• Attention Deficit Disorder
• Dyspraxia (difficulty motor planning)
• Sensory Processing Disorder
• Auditory Processing Disorder
• Visual Processing Difficulty
• High Functioning Autism/Asperger’s Syndrome
• Social Skills Difficulty
• Academic Difficulty
• Focusing Difficulty
• Anxiety
• Difficulty forming and keeping relationships

Learn More about Each of These Areas of Difficulty That Dyslexia Therapy of Pittsburgh Can Help

Kids With Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a learning disorder that involves reading. Reading is difficult, although intelligence is usually above average. Difficulties in a variety of areas is possible, creating a symptom profile. Some other areas of difficulty could include spelling words, difficulty following words on a page or from a blackboard, slow reading, difficulty writing, difficulty with pronouncing words, and comprehension difficulties.  Often these difficulties are first noticed at school, but parents can identify them early when working with their children at home. Learning seems harder despite the child’s desire to learn. Difficulties paying attention, language development and communication, and math are often but not always present as well.

(learn more about Helping Kids With Dyslexia)

Kids with Dysgraphia

Dysgraphia is a learning disorder that specifically deals with writing or typing. There is usually a visual and motor coordination component, as well as a focusing difficulty. Difficulty is often seen in a different pencil grasp or the complaint of hand fatigue during writing. Often writing is not enjoyable and the child will avoid it. They have difficulty know how to form letters and number and may have difficulty with knowing their correct direction and position. They may have difficulty writing on a line or press very hard with their pencil on the paper. This difficulty with visual-motor hand based tasks can also be seen in other tasks such as difficulty typing goes buttoning small buttons. Some kids are just told they have sloppy handwriting.

(learn more about Helping Kids With Dysgraphia)

Kids With Dyscalculia

Dyscalculia is difficulty in learning math. Children don’t understand math concepts and have trouble with basic math as well as higher math. Writing numbers, using numeric symbols, completing simple math calculations and following mathematical patterns are difficult. Children with dyscalculia are most often not provided help and simply labeled “poor math students”.

(learn more about Helping Kids With Dyscalculia)

Kids With Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia is difficulty motor planning.  Difficulty shows up in carrying out daily and routine tasks that involve gross and fine motor actions as well as balance and forming words with their mouth.  Disorganization in time and space is common, as is short term memory, attention and executive functioning.

(learn more about Helping Kids With Dyspraxia )

Kids With Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD) is a disorder that affect a child’s ability to attend for appropriate length of time, outside of screen time. They are also often hyper-active and impulsive.  Up to 25% of kids with Attention Deficit Disorder also have Dyslexia and other Learning Problems. Social difficulties such as eye contact, executive function, and sensory issues also often arise.

(learn more about Helping Kids with Attention Deficit Disorder)

Kids With Sensory Processing Disorder

Sensory Processing Disorder is also known as Sensory Integration Dysfunction. One or more senses can be affected. A child’s sense of touch, taste, hearing, seeing, and movement may be affected and either up-regulated, down-regulated, or simply out of sync with the environment. Symptoms may include over-sensitivity to touch and different textures such as glue and clothing, a craving for deep touch or jumping, picky eating, sensitivity to sounds, an inability to learn or understand verbal directions or lessons, difficulty with seeing to read, write, taking notes and completing daily activities that require vision, hyper-activity, or low muscle tone and dislike of playground equipment or driving in a car. This list is not complete, but the hallmark is that the child’s sensory processing is affecting their daily life routine. They can’t cope very well, or what may look behavioral is actually a sensory processing difficulty.

((learn more about Helping Kids With Sensory Processing Disorder)

Kids with Auditory Processing Disorder

Auditory processing disorder is a difficulty that affects auditory skills despite having normal hearing. Auditory information is difficult to process and understand, and symptoms are related to listening and also producing words and sounds. It is thought that these difficulties arise from dysfunction in the central nervous system. A child who asks parents to repeat themselves, has trouble following directions despite trying, and that has difficulty sequencing and communicating language are at risk or may already have auditory processing disorder. Other symptoms may exist in other development areas as well.

(learn about Helping Kids With Auditory Processing Disorder)

Visual Processing Difficulty

Kids with Visual Processing Difficulty have problems using their sense of vision to complete vision based tasks. There is often time a difficulty in eye function, despite having good 20/20 vision. Ocular muscle coordination may be impaired or there may be a problem in the ocular brain regions. Symptoms may include difficulty with writing, reading, copying notes from the board, messy work, and difficulties completing work in the designated space in pencil and paper tasks.

(learn more about Helping Kids with Visual Processing Disorder)

High Functioning Autism/Asperger Syndrome (AS)

High Functioning Autism/Asperger Syndrome is a disorder characterized by social difficulties, repetitive behavior, and compulsion for specific interests. It is at the milder end of the Autism Spectrum. Language and intelligence are often normal. Clumsiness sensory issues, and anxiety are often present as well. They often have a hard time with emotional regulation and in understanding emotions in other. They also have a hard time connecting with others and sometimes have decreased eye contact as well.

(learn about Helping Kids With High Functioning Autism/Asperger’s Syndrome)

Social Skills Difficulty

Social Skills are the basic building blocks of human connection. A child that is not confident in social skills has a hard time interacting with others and communicating needs to them. They have a hard time understanding social rules. Interpersonal skills are decreased. Children with difficulty in social skills very often have difficulty focusing and paying attention as well. Sensory processing may also be difficult making daily activities of daily living a challenge.

(learn more about Helping Kids With Social Skills Problems)

Academic Problems

Academic Problems can arise at any age and may seem to have no clear cause. Often, however, it takes a skilled professional to determine the underlying cause. If a reading difficulty is present it can affect school performance globally. If handwriting and spelling are the main difficulty, it can also affect other subjects. Most often when there is one area of academic work affected it is not alone. Difficulty in reading, spelling, handwriting, and math require comprehensive evaluation to determine if problems are due to intelligence or learning disability.

(learn about Helping Kids With Academic Problems)

Focusing Difficulties

Focusing our attention can be difficult, and it often requires motivation to do so. Kids need to be able to focus attention and sustain it, despite environmental distractions. Children may have focusing difficulties, but not have an Attention Deficit diagnosis. They may need cues to re-focus, but not have enough difficulty to have a formal diagnosis. This is common in many children today, as tasks that require motivation and self-direction can be challenging. These skills in what is called executive functioning are often underdeveloped. There may be other issues in addition to focusing difficulties, including sensory, academic, social, and motor planning.

(learn about Helping Kids with Focusing Problems)

Anxiety

Children with anxiety issues often feel that they can’t handle what is required by daily life. They are often not confident in themselves and have a hard time staying calm and focused. Anxiety often accompanies learning deficits, as the pressure to perform in school can be high. At the same time, academics may be difficult. Also, sensory difficulties may be present and contributing to the child’s anxiety, making social skills and daily activity completion in different environments difficult as well.

(learn about Helping Kids with Anxiety)

*We recommended that parents discuss with your pediatrician any concerns related to your child’s health and overall functioning. The information provided here is general and should not be used as medical advice.