But the speech therapist did pick up on the thing that everyone else notices (which is also indicative of autism among other things) and that is that his understanding and comprehension seem odd. He was sequencing and he referred to the girl as a girl until the last picture, where he suddenly called her a him. I told the therapist this is very normal for Dylan. When asked how his week went by his nana, he demanded specific days. He couldn’t account for a whole week (in that it was either a good or bad one). And despite his amazingness at Maths, being top of his class, he has to be brought down a group when doing verbal maths questions. He cannot translate a question such as ‘Mrs Jones has ten apples, but ate two. How many has she got now?’ Quite simple when written down as 10-2, but Dylan really struggles.

I will look into Phonemic awareness. Hadn’t heard of that before now. It’s hard to get people to understand the difficulties that we have. He has been put on the pupil premium with his phonics and spelling, in that he knows certain sounds (I think it is all the ones beginning with ‘o’ such as oi, ow, and ou) but he cannot use them in words. I wonder if this is also symptomatic?

Anyway, not long before his next appointment and hopefully he will be in with audiology soon!

#1 THERE IS ONLY ONE PROFESSIONAL WHO CAN DIAGNOSE YOUR CHILD and that is an audiologist – but not just any audiologist, it has to be one that also specializes in learning disabilities. this is critically important to understand: some LD’s have remarkably similar symptoms for very different reasons, for eg, APD and the ADD’s. it is now suspected that a significant percentage of kids diagnosed with an ADD actually have APD.

no one else can diagnose apd because it IS a hearing problem. however, the problem is not with their ears, it’s what does the brain do with the information that the ears bring in. i swear both of my boys have what i call “dog” hearing. they just hear things i can’t. however, my older son cannot take notes in class – it will cause him to stop hearing what is being said and he often talks too loud because the way he sounds to himself sounds normal to him. my younger son continued to mispronounce words much longer than normal – like saying “comcrete” instead of “concrete” because that is what he thought he heard!

#2 that’s all that my kids have but it is very common for kids to have other issues as well, not just apd alone. a qualified audiologist can tell you this also. the audiologist can discern if there are other issues and what they are and whether apd is involved or not.

you have 2 very important steps to take as soon as possible:

a)it sounds like your son is about age 6 which is the perfect age for testing, i think, so ask everyone including other doctors (like your pediatrician?) because doctors know each other, and children’s hospitals that might be near you and find an audiologist who is also educated about LD’s. for eg, look for an audiologist who also puts forth that they offer hearing AND “speech services”, for eg. this is a strong indicator that they can diagnose apd and other issues.

b) start asking around searching on internet, teachers stores for really good “phonemic awareness” activities. this is hands down, the best thing you can do for your child. if you aren’t knowing already, learn the difference between phonemic awareness (those itty bitty sounds that make up words) and phonics (the rules of the road, so to speak). i could be wrong, but i would lay down money that your son is lagging in this area more than you may realize.

since school year is almost over, the time is about ideal to move on both of these things. don’t stress yourself or your kid out – your choosing to be relaxed about it was the best first move you could have made. but do move forward on these 2 things.

and remember – you are NOT alone.

in the meantime, if you like, i highly recommend sally shaywitz’s book called Overcoming Dyslexia. I know our kids have apd but many things that help kids with one LD can often be just as helpful to others. funny, but i personally haven’t really found books specifically on apd very helpful.

hang in there,
elaine

Ive had a day off today and it’s been lovely, but, I can feel this kind of unease creeping up on me. I think a break has done me good, but, I can’t wait to get a pen back in my hand lol

Xx