Learning Disabilities

Ally Wojcik, Kanza Bhatti, Yesenia Alvarado,

Anna Garcia
Video on Learning Disabilities

https://youtu.be/52sT5Euthg4
Learning Disabilities

A condition giving rise to difficulties in acquiring knowledge

and skills to the level expected of those of the same age,
especially when not associated with a physical handicap.
Examples of a learning disorder
Multiple Disabilities
Developmental Delay
Intellectual Disability
Speech or Language Impairment
Specific Learning Disability
Memory Impairment
13% of the school population has an identified disability
When is a Learning Disability Diagnosed?
Starts in the classroom with the teacher
Can be referred for an evaluation by the educator
Evaluation is based off of what kind difficulties a
student is having
Student can have difficulties with reading, writing,
speech, math and/or spelling
Signs of a Learning Disability

Pre-k: Look for things such as communication delays,

delays of sitting and or walking.

Elementary: Look for problems of difficulties of

remembering facts and identifying number to letters. If
the student forgets the information learned.

High School: By this time, students should be diagnosed

with a learning disability.
Classroom Setting Accommodations

Can be taken to separate classes to accommodate the

student
Have extra time on a test
Team-taught classrooms
Smaller class sizes
Altered or shorter tests
Oral assignments and/or tests
Have an in-class aide
Nonverbal Learning Disorders

NVLD is a brain-based condition that affects skills like

abstract thinking and spatial relationships
Affects the child socially rather than academically
Often coexists with Aspergers Syndrome
1 in 100 kids in the US is diagnosed with a NVLD
Students with NVLDs have trouble with picking up facial
expressions and body language
Poor motor skills
Have difficulty coping with changes
Have difficulty with multi-step instructions
Sometimes mislabeled as emotionally disturbed
How are NVLDs Diagnosed?

Get a medical exam done

Get a referral to a medical health professional
The doctor will evaluate the student with a variety of tests
including
Speech and language
Visual-spacial organization
Motor skills
Find a diagnosis
The doctor will look for patterns of strengths and weaknesses
Strengths and Weaknesses of NVLDs
Strengths:
Average to above average
intelligence
High verbal scores
Early language development
Strong ability to remember
and repeat spoken
information
Learns better by hearing
information than by seeing
it
Weaknesses:
Social skills
Balance, coordination and
handwriting
Understanding cause and
effect
Visualizing information
Activity level (high when
young; low when older)
Auditory and Visual Processing Disorders

These students have difficulty with recognizing and

interpreting information taken in through the senses. The
two most common areas with processing difficulty is
auditory and visual perception.
Example: someone with an auditory disability may have a
hindered ability to process information that is taken in
through the ears.
Example: someone with a visual disability may have a
hindered ability to process information taken in through
the eyes.
Stereotypes about LDs

Children with Learning disabilities are not lazy or dumb.

They dont lack motivation or intelligence and are just
as smart as their peers.
Their brains are just wired differently and they access
information differently which makes its harder to
comprehend information.
With modifications in the classroom,these children can
pick up new ways of learning and make it easier for the
brain to recognize and memorize work.
Teachers Who Have a Student With a Learning Disability

Future teachers with students with a LD:

It is important to use language that prioritizes the student over his or her
disability.
Ex: Better to say The student, who has a disability rather than The disabled student
because it places the importance on the student, rather than on the fact that the student
has a disability.

- Strategies
Ex: For any student you have and they knew they have a certain learning disability make
sure any paper they take home or any syllabus handed out says something along the lines for
any student that has it can comfortably come to the teacher at any time they would like to
talk to them about any learning disability they have
Ex: Make sure the first few days of class you make sure the students are comfortable with
the other students they are in class with.
Ex: Dont assume what students can or cannot do with regards to participating in classroom
activities. Think of multiple ways students may be able to participate without feeling
excluded.
Conclusion

We all have unique interests and perspectives on many

aspects but one thing that we all have in common is the
ability to learn.
It will take some time to find the right teaching that
method that works for every individual student, but once
you find it, you will be carving a path to success for
your students.
Carving that path will inspire that student to pass on
that type of aide onto others and help others be
prosperous in the way you helped that student.