Different Learning Strategies

Students that have learning disabilities often have difficulty with comprehension. This is because their decoding process is different than that of other students. Recently there have been several studies that show how computer related tools are able to help children with learning disabilities. Amongst these tools are pictorial tutoring tools that are coupled with word learning systems.

Some experts believe that these disabilities are due to the child wanting to learn the words too much. Other experts believe that there are mental ailments keeping the child from learning. The problem, however, tends to lie somewhere between the child being an individual and education. When a child does not grasp the meaning of words, it simply means the meaning is not clear to them. This is not always true in all learning disabilities, but it is in many.

For example, when working with a woman who suffers from bipolar manic depression, the woman may be eager to learn. However, she may be suffering from an extremely low self -esteem and have almost no self-confidence. These two things will hinder her from learning because she doesn't believe in herself and her ability to learn. Because of this, the woman may have difficulty learning. All because she doesn't believe in her own abilities! Essentially, this woman has a flawed personality and it is holding her back. So, in essence, instead of the depression holding her back, she had a personality disorder holding her back and is an underlying issue.

Another issue that seems to present itself is that some individuals have a lot of emotional scarring involved. These people allow their emotions to take control of their minds. This means that they have many stressors that are keeping them from learning. This results in their mind being in a state of constant chaos and this prevents them from being able to learn. Unfortunately most mental illnesses have different levels of seriousness as well as different symptoms. Some bipolar patients are more severe than others and can learn effectively. Some bipolar patients simply fail to learn because they are in denial. These types of patients fail to see the importance of learning. They feel that the simply have nothing to offer.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) patients are another area of study. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder has been a condition that is the focus of many studies for quite some time. These patients often show signs such as not being able to pay attention and focus. They also have hyperactivity behaviors that may include blurting out comments or inappropriate words that disturb or interrupt others. The patient also tends to not understand why these behaviors are inappropriate.

These patients tend to hurt the feelings of others and appear to show disregard for that. They may also claim that they are bored after playing for a short period of time. They rarely show the ability to focus on one task at a time as well. This typically means that they are unable to focus and stay seated at a computer for a long period of time. This also shows that phonics is not necessarily suitable for all individuals.

Most individuals who are diagnosed with ADHD are actually very smart individuals. Their minds tend to be very active and race about 90 miles an hour, which makes it difficult for them to focus. This means that these individuals do not necessarily need to focus in order to learn. They tend to learn more by observation. Observational learning skills are more likely to benefit those individuals who suffer from ADHD. This does not necessarily mean that these individuals do not have a learning disability however.

Studies have also proven that ADHDS patients often progress best when they are a part of an individual study program. Children with dyslexia also tend to learn better in this manner. It is important that a child with a learning disability be allowed to focus and taught individually so that they can learn at their level of understanding. This helps the child to live with the disability as well.

Using Compliments to Help Children Learn

Complimenting children is often the best way to help them through the learning process. Complimenting a child with a learning disability is important because these people are often struggling more than other children. They often have low self-esteem because they don't feel smart, normal or even liked in some cases. They are often centered out and labeled as different from other children and many do not understand why this is so.

Additionally, these children can often be confused by the meaning of different. To put it simply, they are confused and a simple compliment can help them through their day and through the process of learning something.

Different, in actuality, is a beautiful thing. Different simply means that the person is completely or partially different than others and it is not bad to be different. In fact, if we were all exactly alike there would be no spice in life. Everybody would be the same and the world would be a miserable place to live. Why would you travel to another country if it looked the same as yours? Why would you create art if it all turned out looking the same? You wouldn't.

Therefore, different is good. The problem is that most people can accept that there are different genders, races and ethnicities, but when it comes to a person have a learning disability and being different mentally, people seem to not be able to comprehend this and they don't want to believe that this type of different is okay.

This inability to comprehend that a different mentality is good has sparked hatred amongst people and even wars. It has also caused many mentally ill or mentally different people to be tortured and looked down upon. This is simply people failing to realize that different is good. Even though this prejudice is not as strong as it has been in previous centuries, it still exists to an extent and mentally ill people are still targets for persecution. The fact of the matter is that we are all equal and this is a fact of life that cannot and should not be denied by anyone.

Because many people are missed diagnosed with a learning disability, it is important to understand the true definition of the term. Learning disabilities simply mean that the person might struggle to learn particular subjects, due to mental interruptions. A person with a learning disability will show continuous signs of this disability.

However, if a person only struggles in one area, they do not necessarily have a learning disability, just a slower learning process or a hindrance in that area. When a person struggles in a particular skill, it may be that the material they are learning from is actually what is hindering them. For example, beliefs that stem from religious roots, even if a person does not have religious background can cause confusion for a person.

Religion is actually the number one area that causes the most confusion for a person. This is because a person has intuition and insight from birth. This gift of intuition and insight actually deteriorates throughout life and influences will often cause a breakdown in beliefs overtime, which may cause a wealth of confusion for those individuals who are unable to work through these disturbances in their belief system.

As a child grows, they are affected and influenced by many persuasive people and behaviors in their life. For many children, they are very intelligent and can easily observe consistency in behaviors and the reactions towards those behaviors. For example, a child will easily recognize the difference between good and bad behaviors. They will also recognize what comes from those behaviors.

Again, a child that sees another child throw a temper tantrum and then that child receives a reward from that bad behavior will register that in their mind and will probably later try that same tactic on their own parents. If rewards consistently come from bad behaviors, then that child will learn what bad behaviors work for them and which ones do not.

If a child is suffering with a learning disability and has been diagnosed with a condition such as ADHD, then the child should receive regular medical checks. With regular physiological treatments, many ADHD patients begin to gain greater focus in life. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV was correct when it first published information linking ADHD to the central nervous system. However, the symptoms of diagnosis for the condition have leaned toward mental illness and learning disabilities.

Therefore, it is important to remember that health professionals are seeking answers themselves, remembering this as a parent can assist you in finding answers for your child. It is also important to realize that many conditions have overlapping symptoms so you should not focus on only one area when there may be other conditions interacting in the body and mind.
 
You never want to give up on a child that is struggling to learn. The best thing you can do for them is to keep searching for answers yourself and helping them along. If the child attends therapy, do not necessarily believe everything you are told. Take it upon yourself to keep researching the condition yourself, as children that are not allowed to learn are going to suffer from learning disabilities.

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