Hot Momma’s Advice: What you really want for your child is a happy and fulfilling life and with encouragement and support. There’s no reason why a child with a learning disability can’t succeed and thrive at school and beyond!
When your child comes home frustrated with school and his/her teacher simply tells you s/he is not performing, knowing what to do isn’t always easy. Learning difficulties can be mild, moderate or severe. They describe pupils who are slower in learning across a range of subjects and skills. These pupils need tasks broken down into smaller, more manageable stages, and for learning to proceed at a pace they can manage. Such children may never be able to reach as high a level of achievement as some, but nonetheless can learn, and can be loved, happy and successful.
As a parent, my Hot Momma always said, your influence outweighs that of any teacher, tutor, or doctor. You can help your child build up his/her self-confidence and give him/her a solid foundation for success in school and life.
All children need love, encouragement, and support, and for children with learning disabilities, positive reinforcement can help ensure that they build up a strong sense of self-worth, confidence, and determination to not give up.
Your job as a parent is not to ‘cure’ the learning disability, but to give your child social and emotional skills that he/she will need to work through challenges. It’s important to remember to help your child help him/herself. It’s easy to fall into the role of doing everything for your child. However this is not going to benefit him/her in the long run. Working with what s/he can do and focusing on his/her strengths will help him/her to face and overcome a challenge such as a learning disability and can help your child grow stronger and more resilient.
Always remember that the way you the parent, behave and respond to challenges has a big impact on your child. A good attitude won’t solve the problems associated with a learning disability, but it can give your child hope and confidence that things can improve and that he or she will eventually succeed.
Tips for dealing with your child’s learning disability
Keep things in perspective. Remind yourself that everyone faces obstacles. It’s up to you as a parent to teach your child how to deal with those obstacles without becoming discouraged or overwhelmed. Give your child opportunities to succeed in daily living as well as give your child plenty of emotional and moral support.
Become your own expert. Do your own research and find therapies, learning tools and teachers that will work alongside you and your child to maximize his/her learning! You’re the expert on your child, so take charge when it comes to finding the tools he or she needs in order to learn.
Be an advocate for your child. You may have to speak up time and time again to get special help for your child. Embrace your role as a parent and work on getting your child the help and assistance s/he needs at school to succeed!
Remember that your influence outweighs all others. Your child will follow your lead. If you approach learning challenges with optimism, hard work, and a sense of humour, your child is likely to embrace your perspective—or at least see the challenges as a speed bump, rather than a roadblock. Focus your energy on learning what works for your child and implementing it the best you can.
Your child is not defined by his or her learning disability. A learning disability represents one area of weakness, but there are many more areas of strengths. My Hot Momma always reminds me that is important to give opportunities to experience success and show our strengths to the world. Give your child the same, and let him/her shine in the world today!!
Please send specific or general questions about your child’s education or ways to teach them to: classroomguyana@gmail.com
