There is a common misconception that dyslexia only affects the ability to read and write. In reality, dyslexia can affect memory, organisation, time-keeping, concentration, multi-tasking and communication. All impact on everyday life.
Dyslexics often experience difficulty remembering directions and learning sequences that they hear. This hampers their ability to sequence and plan sequential steps as they may not be able to hold auditory information long enough to process it.
A common trait of dyslexia is a weakness with memory tasks. Is it just that dyslexics are forgetful? No! The problem for dyslexic individuals lies in their working memory.
Strong Visual Memory
Again, those with dyslexia showed an advantage over non-dyslexic students, benefiting those in the fields of science or medicine. This difference in visual memory can be attributed to the greater brain connectivity to the visual cortex and parahippocampal region found in dyslexic children.
But if a child has a low IQ and additional problem with dyslexia, that just is going to mean that they're going to have even more difficulty learning to read. But knowing that, most people with dyslexia are, at least, average or above-average IQ. So, it is not related to intelligence at all.
Dyslexic individuals have a greater ability to learn through experiences and recall information with more efficiency, whether they have actually experienced or simply imagined these experiences. REASONING: Understanding patterns, evaluating possibilities or making decisions.
Research from Cass Business School in London found that 35% of entrepreneurs in the US and 20% of entrepreneurs in Britain showed signs of dyslexia, compared with just 5–10% of the overall population. In a survey of 69,000 self-made millionaires, 40% of entrepreneurs were found to show signs of dyslexia.
“Dyslexic thinkers have soft or power skills like creative thinking, problem-solving, communication, people and team building, all of which are vital for building and running successful businesses.”
Dyslexic brains process information differently. We are naturally creative, good at problem solving and talented communicators. Our heightened abilities in areas like visualisation and logical reasoning skills and natural entrepreneurial traits bring a fresh and intuitive perspective.
Ordinary readers use left-brain systems, but dyslexic readers rely more on right brain areas. Researchers Judith Rumsey and Barry Horwitz at the National Institute of Mental Health used positron emission tomography (PET) to compare regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) among dyslexic and nondyslexic men.
Because of these interferences, reading can take significantly longer and potentially lead to headaches, migraines, eye strain, frequent blinking or rubbing of eyes and, predictably, increased tiredness. It is a sad reality that so often we hear of dyslexics being called lazy, stupid or not trying hard enough.
Visual Thinking
Many people with dyslexia often think in images as opposed to words, which is attributed to the unique activations in their brains. People with dyslexia are also more likely to form 3D spatial images in their minds than non-dyslexic people.
"The dyslexics were using 4.6 times as much area of the brain to do the same language task as the controls," said Richards, a professor of radiology. "This means their brains were working a lot harder and using more energy than the normal children."
Very fast thinking – “A picture says 1,000 words.” Is so true! If you are dyslexic, you think incredibly fast. You may not even see the image/s and end up stumbling over your words, unfinished sentences, or incoherent speech, as you try to capture and explain the images that are rapidly firing in your head.
Use multisensory input and activities to give learners more than one way to make connections and learn concepts. For example, use flash cards, puppets, story videos and real objects in the classroom. When learners use more than one sense at a time, their brain is stimulated in a variety of ways.
Some languages may be more problematic for dyslexic learners. Languages such as French and English are less transparent than other languages. This means that the sounds of the language don't match clearly to letter combinations and there are more irregularities in pronunciation and spelling.
Strong memory for stories: Some individuals with dyslexia recall facts as if reading a good storybook rather than just as a list of random data. Having narrative reasoning on your side may help improve your memory and help integrate contextual information better. Perhaps acting or writing is in your future!
The study saw psychologists assessing and analyzing the thought patterns, mental drives, and influences that brought the world's top entrepreneurs their success. Here, they discovered that out of the 300 business leaders selected in their study, 40% of them had dyslexia.
Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking, Leonardo da Vinci, and Pablo Picasso possessed some of the greatest minds and talents in history and they were dyslexic.
“Twenty-five percent of CEOs are dyslexic, but many don't want to talk about it,” Chambers, who was Cisco's CEO between 1995 and 2005, told students at MIT last Thursday. It's not clear where Chambers sourced his claim, but the proportion appears to gel with various pieces of research conducted on the topic.
Living With Dyslexia
This does not mean that those who suffer from dyslexia automatically become geniuses, but it also does not mean that they are individuals with an intellectual inferior to that of the rest of the population.
Lord Sugar, Anita Roddick, Richard Branson, Jamie Oliver and Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad overcame their dyslexia to create hugely successful businesses, and research suggests dyslexics are disproportionately represented among entrepreneurs.
There are many examples of people who have dyslexia and are incredibly creative. While there's currently no evidence that proves people with dyslexia are naturally more creative than others, researchers are still studying this.
Many dyslexics are famous and highly successful as adults. Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein, Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, Michelangelo and Picasso number among them. Sir Richard Branson may be the highest profile and most outspoken dyslexia advocate today, with Steven Spielberg, and Bill Gates also active.
Phonological Dyslexia
It deals with difficulties in matching sounds to symbols and breaking down the sounds of language. Individuals with phonological dyslexia struggle to decode or sound out words. It's believed that phonological dyslexia is the most common type of dyslexia.