How to know if my child has a learning disorder

Learning disorders involve a lack of ability in one or more areas of learning in children with normal intelligence, affecting their academic performance. These disorders, which require accurate and early diagnosis to provide appropriate treatment, affect between 5% and 15% of the population and are one of the most frequent causes of academic failure.

The most frequent cognitive and behavioral disorders that affect learning are dyslexia , dyscalculia , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) , specific language disorder (SLI or dysphasia) , nonverbal learning disorder (NVLD) , developmental coordination disorder (DCD) , and autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Children with learning disorders who are not diagnosed and treated properly often enter a spiral of poor academic performance, discouragement, demotivation, low self-esteem, and secondary affective and anxiety disorders.

In a talk for families, "My child isn't doing well in school: how to know if they have a learning disorder? ", organized by Faros , the portal for promoting the health of children, adolescents, and pregnant women at Sant Joan de Déu Hospital in Barcelona , pediatric neuropsychologist Roser Colomé and pediatric neurologist Montse Guitet, from the School Learning Disorders Unit (UTAE) of the same hospital, provide the keys to knowing when we should start to worry , what factors influence a child's learning, and what the main difficulties in language, reading, mathematics, and executive functions appear when a learning disorder occurs.

Warning signs in learning disorders

The first warning signs can be observed both at home and at school. In the school environment, the teaching staff can detect it more quickly because they have a whole group to compare with and observe differences in learning paces or disruptive behaviors.

We should be concerned and seek professional help if we observe:

At home

• When you dedicate a lot of effort and get few results on simple tasks, it's not so much the results that matter, but the time you need to invest to achieve them.
• When a child avoids certain tasks. When a child always postpones homework or when doing it causes them stress and conflict.
• When a child doesn't want to go to school, they may verbalize it or somatize it through stomach aches or headaches, for example.

At school

• When the child is distracted, gets up a lot, is bothersome, talks a lot, or has disruptive behavior that affects the pace of the class.
• When it requires a lot of support in the tasks.
• When there is a lack of motivation
• When there is a lack of concentration, disorganization, failure to submit work, and a lack of autonomy.

If these signs are observed, it is important to delve deeper into what is happening to rule out a learning problem as the cause.

ADHD, a common disorder in the child population

Read more

It's also important to know which skills are considered normal for each age. Just as we know when children are ready to, for example, start crawling or walking, it's also relevant to know when their brains are ready to learn to write their name or read, for example. In this respect, the teaching staff's observations are very useful because they can determine the normal pace of the class.

These are the warning signs in early childhood:

2 years

• It has an unstable gait.
• It doesn't get up from the ground on its own.
• He doesn't know how to kick a ball
• He doesn't know how to build a tower of 2-3 cubes
• It does not imitate any stroke
• It does not point to any part of the body
• It does not recognize familiar images.
• Absence of intentional language
• Does not engage in imitative play

4 years

• It does not recognize colors
• Does not engage in symbolic play
• He has difficulty interacting with peers.
• Does not respond to commands
• It does not recognize geometric shapes
• He shows no intention of drawing
• Does not understand numerical concepts (up to 10)

The professionals at San Joan de Déu Hospital emphasize in this talk the importance of paying special attention to girls because they show different behaviors when faced with learning difficulties:

• Attention difficulties often go unnoticed. They may seem to be listening in class, but their mind is elsewhere.
• Parents typically consult the teaching staff about poor academic performance, rather than attention or behavioral issues. In these cases, poor academic performance is often due to difficulties with organization, planning, prioritization, attention, and rushing to respond.
• Parents often describe these girls as very responsible and overwhelmed by the results they obtain.
• They spend more time performing tasks
• They have emotional hyperreactivity; they cry immediately.
• They need a lot of help at home.
• Girls with ADHD may experience higher levels of stress, anxiety, and low self-esteem.