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The Every Child Counts Program is dedicated to serving those children in our community with learning difficulties. Many of the children in our program have Learning Disabilities--but exactly what are Learning Disabilities? The term is not easily understood. A Learning Disability is not a disease. There is no cure and it is not generally outgrown. Children with LD may have difficulty with listening, thinking, talking, reading, writing, spelling or math. Some may have trouble with only one school subject; some will have trouble with all academic subjects; and some may show motor skill difficulty like handwriting or social skill difficulty.

Leaning Disabilities do not stem from physical impairments such poor vision,  hearing or Cerebral Palsy; they are not due to mental retardation or blindness, deafness or autism; nor are they the same as Attention-Deficit Disorder/Hyperactivity. 

Many Learning Disorders are now thought to be  genetic in nature. They are always a neurological disorder in which individuals process information differently than the norm. They can be mild or severe and usually express themselves in difficulties with language, writing, reading, math or spelling. They can affect one area or many. Children with LD are extremely different from one another but show some common traits such as being of normal or high intelligence; some are in the gifted range of intelligence. Because the learning disabilities affect the brain’s ability to understand, remember or communicate information, there is generally a gap between the child’s ability (intelligence level) and achievement and it is this gap that often identifies the Learning Disabled student.

While LD students struggle in the classroom that may not be their greatest struggle in life. Very often the constant battle these children face in school and accusations by others of them being lazy or dumb will trigger emotional problems that can last a life time. Anxiety, frustration, anger and depression are commonly found among LD kids. LD kids may come to accept the negative images that others place on them causing life-long problems with confidence and self-esteem. The emotional suffering may indeed bring their greatest and most long-standing pain.

What can we do as parents, teachers, friends, volunteers? Learn to recognize those children who exhibit constant struggles in school, who are consistently failing. Perhaps the child is becoming increasingly frustrated in school although he is trying. Perhaps, he or she cannot memorize math facts as quickly as classmates or reads drastically below grade level; maybe the pre-school child is unable to use a pencil or slow to learn words or uses them consistently incorrectly. Perhaps the child who has consistently struggled in school is now exhibiting acting out or negative behavior. Those tasks that seem easy to the average child are so overwhelmingly difficult to the LD youngster. When these behaviors are recognized and properly identified and the child taught in a manner consistent with his disability and ability, he can and will learn.

Our Special Educators are available for free consultations and screenings. If you know a child who suffers as above, please contact us to set up an appointment. Together we can help them achieve and thrive.

[Reprinted with kind permission of The Abaconian, The Abacos' only newspaper.]