October is National Dyslexia Awareness Month and a local dyslexia-tutoring center in San Clemente, California is offering free reading assessments.

Owner of PRIDE Learning Center in San Clemente, Karina Richland, reports, “Dyslexia is a learning disability that affects about 20% of the nation.  That means that one out of every five children in the San Clemente classroom struggles with dyslexia.”  Richland, a dyslexia specialist and owner of 5 dyslexia-tutoring centers throughout Los Angeles and Orange County says “Most children with dyslexia in this area go undiagnosed for years.  With early detection, proper intervention, and certain accommodations in school, dyslexics can actually improve their reading skills dramatically.”

Warning Signs in School-Age Children

•   Child uses memory skills in reading not decoding strategies

•   Reads a word on one page but doesn’t recognize it on the next page

•   Confuses look alike letters like b and d, b and p, n and u, or m and w

•   Makes many reversals

•   Substitutes a word while reading that means the same thing

•   When reading leaves out or adds small words like “a, the, to, are, of”

•   Reading fluency is poor

•   Avoids reading as much as possible

•   Misspells many words

•   Writes illegibly

•   Appears lazy, unmotivated, or frustrated

“The sooner a child with dyslexia is given proper instruction, particularly in the very early grades, the more likely it is that they will have fewer or milder difficulties later in life” states Richland.

PRIDE Learning Center provides one-on-one reading help for students with learning differences, including dyslexia, auditory and or visual processing disorder and ADHD.  PRIDE specializes in an Orton-Gillingham reading approach for students struggling with dyslexia.

Parents or grandparents can bring their child in October 21st – October 25th for a free assessment that will measure their reading abilities.  To schedule an appointment contact the San Clemente PRIDE Learning Center at 949-284-8015 or visit the website at www.pridelearningcenter.com

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