Dyslexia/Dysgraphia one in the same?

[Anonymous]

Just curious. How do you obtain support for executive function aspect of writing? What sorts of accommodation do your kids receive? Via IEP. Are your kids’ teachers amenable to this struggle or are they harassing towards your kids about getting their stuff done “quickly”. We have a daughter recently diagnosed with dyslexia and the dyslexia teacher keeps telling us that dysgraphia falls beneath the umbrella of dyslexia…lots of writing issues but during original testing for dysgraphia she managed to pass. I’m not certain she is getting the proper support she needs. We would love to find a tutor, but where does one begin to look for a great writing tutor? TIA

[Anonymous]

Try Julia Simak at Purposeful Minds. She's located in Bethesda but also meets kids virtually. She is a speech language pathologist who also has experience with dyslexia interventions. She works a lot on executive functioning skills and is able to address student needs in writing. Hopefully she would be good for helping your daughter!

[Anonymous]

Dyslexia and dysgraphia are definitely not the same. That said, if you can’t read you are unlikely to be able to write, so remediating the dyslexia is the first step for a kid who has both. Then as you get into the upper levels of the structured literacy program the tutor/therapist will work on writing as well as reading (affixes, syntax, vocabulary). Some kids will also need more explicit writing instruction. To be fair, most kids could do with more explicit writing instruction!

[Anonymous]

The expression is “one and the same.” Not in.

[Anonymous]

"One and the Same"

[Anonymous]

Apologies yes you are correct one and the same and I was writing quickly on my cell phone! Thank you all for your suggestions and comments. Definitely would like to find a tutor who could work on writing process since she was one of the grades adversely affected by Covid shut down and did not ever receive great instruction afterward. Regarding dyslexia instruction. She is receiving pull out for this however I guess I thought the teacher would work on both reading skill and writing skill since her diagnosis was “mild” dyslexia. Thanks again!

[Anonymous]

I feel like a broken record saying this. There is no standard definition of “dysgraphia” so it’s really not worth using it unless it helps you legally get certain services. As people currently use it, it could include my DS (severely poor fine motor skills and handwriting, but has always been an advanced reader and can write prolifically with a computer, handwriting like a 5 year old at 13). It could include kids either dyslexia who don’t know how to formulate written words at all. It could include kids with ADHD or autism who refuse to write because it is hard or cannot figure out how to organize information or understand the writing prompt.

So rather than a label, I think you should focus on finding out exactly what aspect of writing is difficult for your daughter. I don’t have experience with dyslexia but I can only assume that there is a lot out there about how dyslexia connects to writing. Then you can also figure out if she has literal fine motor issues (that can be tested for by an OT) that make it even harder. And on top of that, she could have behaviors and frustrations that make it harder to complete work because it is a challenge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Apologies yes you are correct one and the same and I was writing quickly on my cell phone! Thank you all for your suggestions and comments. Definitely would like to find a tutor who could work on writing process since she was one of the grades adversely affected by Covid shut down and did not ever receive great instruction afterward. Regarding dyslexia instruction. She is receiving pull out for this however I guess I thought the teacher would work on both reading skill and writing skill since her diagnosis was “mild” dyslexia. Thanks again!

It's a lot to take in at first. I agree with other PPs. Dyslexia and dysgraphia are not the same. Dysgraphia presents in different ways for each person. The key to maximizing time and money is how it presents in your child and matching the appropriate strategies to the need. Based on what you've shared, you'll likely need more than 1 tutor -- one for reading and the other for writing. You may get lucky and find one person who can do both, but not always. You mentioned your child being pulled out, if you don't have support outside of school, you may want to explore that.

Even with mild dyslexia, where is support needed? Is it decoding, fluency, or comprehension? Or all.

There are lots of resources to help figure this out. But one thing I know is that you have to be well-versed so that when you approach schools/tutors for help, you are as specific as possible about the needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I feel like a broken record saying this. There is no standard definition of “dysgraphia” so it’s really not worth using it unless it helps you legally get certain services. As people currently use it, it could include my DS (severely poor fine motor skills and handwriting, but has always been an advanced reader and can write prolifically with a computer, handwriting like a 5 year old at 13). It could include kids either dyslexia who don’t know how to formulate written words at all. It could include kids with ADHD or autism who refuse to write because it is hard or cannot figure out how to organize information or understand the writing prompt.

So rather than a label, I think you should focus on finding out exactly what aspect of writing is difficult for your daughter. I don’t have experience with dyslexia but I can only assume that there is a lot out there about how dyslexia connects to writing. Then you can also figure out if she has literal fine motor issues (that can be tested for by an OT) that make it even harder. And on top of that, she could have behaviors and frustrations that make it harder to complete work because it is a challenge.

This and same.

[Anonymous]

I have 2 kids with dysgraphia (and ADHD and one also has dyslexia.)

Both have horrible/illegible handwriting at 19y and 21y despite YEARS of OT in elementary and middle school. Both have accommodations in college to use a keyboard for everything.

Both had issues in elementary/middle school getting their thoughts from their heads to the paper. They could tell you everything they wanted to say, but then getting it out was the issue. DH and spent a LOT of time figuring out how to teach them to write. We trialed a lot of story boards, sandwich paragraph visuals, voice to text software, etc. It took a LOT of time, but one is now a decently good writer (Deans List in college) and one still struggles, but is a solid B student in college.

Dyslexic kid essentially taught himself to read fluently via context clues. He still struggles with sounding out words that he doesn't know, but can/does read for pleasure (after not for years and years.)

[Anonymous]

Wow, thank you all for your thoughtful replies! Firstly I believe that my daughter really missed the boat during Covid with learning the process of writing. She struggles to put thoughts to paper in a coherent manner. Answering questions in a “jumbled” kind of way eventually getting to the point which tends to be stilted. Very frustrated and has a definite dislike for writing. I have wondered about ADD as a possibility. The inattentive kind. We plan on getting an OT evaluation, and go from there. As for the dyslexia, fluency is her main drawback. It’s so wonderful to hear of kids finding success in university, since right now everything seems such a struggle and it can be hard to see a lot of successes. Thank you for sharing your stories.