Learning Disabilities: Dyslalia and Dyslexia in Children

During this week I want to talk to you in an extended way about some learning problems that are very common in children. They are becoming more and more frequent in schools and that is why it is necessary that the signs of detection can be known early in order to be able to seek solutions as soon as possible as soon as the first signs are noticed, always and in all cases a psychopedagogical intervention will be necessary to be able to work with these children who have these learning disabilities.

At the end of this week I will also talk to you about other learning problems that are also common, I mean dysculalia and dysgraphia. This way you will also be able to learn more about these learning problems and find a solution as soon as possible so that your child can improve his / her learning (if necessary) and not feel it as something negative, but as something that can be improved with persistence and goodwill.

What is dyslalia

The main feature of dyslalia is the inability to use speech sounds that are developmentally appropriate for a child's age and language, taking into account that there was no type of maturational delay in the child. It can involve errors in the production, use, representation or organization of sounds, as well as the substitution of one sound for another and even the omission of sounds.

It is a frequent speech disorder and can be defined as a disorder in the articulation of phonemes that is explained by the functional difficulties of the peripheral organs of speech (lips, tongue, etc.) and it is a difficulty in pronouncing or in the construction of phonemes.

Classification of dyslalia

We can find three different types of dyslalia:

• Evolutionary dyslalia: It occurs at an early age (between 3 and 5 years old) and is typical of development (it is normal for all children to go through it and it does not suppose any type of disorder nor should it be a concern for parents or professionals).
• Audigenic dyslalia: It occurs in cases of hearing impairment and must work with professionals.
• Functional dyslalia: in this case we are talking about dyslalia in its strictest sense. It occurs when there is an alteration of the phonemes as a result of poor coordination of the phonatory muscles that are necessary to articulate them. There is no physical organic alteration, but a functional disability.

Why happens

It may occur due to lack of control of the articulatory organs, auditory discrimination problems, environmental factors (poor education, bad social circumstances, incorrect models of imitation, etc.), and bilingualism (although this reason is not sufficiently proven).

In the most frequent alterations there is usually a substitution, distortion, omission, inversion and insertion. One phoneme can be pronounced for another, distorted, pronounced differently, or not pronounced directly. You can also make an inversion and reverse the order of the phonemes of a syllable or insert a new phoneme where it does not correspond (for example, instead of tractor: taractor).

How the child with dyslalia can be helped

Regarding the educational needs of children with dyslalia, improvement can be achieved taking into account the following:

• Refer to the corresponding professional: psychopedagogue and / or speech therapist
• Improve breathing and speech dynamics
• Do exercises to control the mobility of the peripheral organs of speech (lips, tongue, soft palate, etc.)
• Exercising at home and with the professionals to master auditory discrimination
• Mastering phonological awareness and learning to correctly articulate phonemes taking into account the characteristics of the child in speech
• Set goals depending on the child's phonetic and phonological difficulties.

What is dyslexia

Dyslexia is a common learning disability that can cause problems with reading, writing, and spelling. It is a learning disability and can cause problems with certain skills that are needed for learning (reading and writing). But it should be clear that it is a learning disability and that intelligence is not affected. 

Dyslexia is a lifelong problem that will pose challenges for children with this learning disabilityBut with the necessary support they can improve their reading and writing skills so that learning problems are not an obstacle at school and work. They can be brilliant students and adults, they just need to know that they can.

Signs of dyslexia

The signs of dyslexia usually become apparent when a child begins school and begins to focus on learning, reading, and writing. The most obvious signs may be the following:

• Reading and writing different from "normal" for developmental age
• Confusing the order of letters in words
• Put the letters backwards (such as writing "b" instead of "d")
• Having trouble with planning or organization
• Bad grammar
• Understand information verbally but have difficulty when it is given in writing
• May have very good skills in other areas, such as creative thinking or problem solving

How a child with dyslexia can be helped

If you think your child may have dyslexia, the first thing you will need to do is talk to their teacher or special education teacher (therapeutic pedagogue) at school and discuss your concerns so they can be aware of it. They will be able to detect it and offer additional support to help your child within school if necessary.

If your child continues to struggle despite additional support, you may consider a more thorough evaluation by an educational psychologist or dyslexia specialist. This can be requested through the school or with a private evaluation.

I hope that once you have reached this point, you have been able to know better what dyslalia and dyslexia are about, and that you have also realized how in both cases of learning problems, they can be treated and achieve good results if they are treated in time and with good professionals.