The bravest person I know is the parent facing life after the loss of their child.

I’m trying not to live in fear, not to future trip. I’m trying to send love and light and strength and healing energy. I’m trying not to be furious at the Universe who is taking parents on this journey.

I want to trust, I want to breathe, I want to pray and scream and cry and say something – anything – that will make sense, but I don’t know what words to share that will help ease the pain, that will share my love and let the bravest person I know feel my grief.

I want to be present in the pain, to feel it sweep through my body and out to the sky. I want to know that there is beauty and love and light wrapping their arms around those who need it most. I want to collect all the prayers and thanks and gratitude I read about, bundle them into something to hold onto. I want the bravest person I know to feel my embrace.

I want that child back, I want them to smile and eat spaghetti and smell fresh laundry. I want them to hug and cry and yell and love. I want their eyes to crinkle when they smile, their legs to shake when they’re tired, and their heart to fill when the bravest person I know enfolds them in their love.

Oh, Universe, the bands of my heart stretch to the great unknown. My fingers pause and enfold my face, they brush the tears and search for the words strangled inside.

All the while, my love, my hopes, my strength sleeps down the hall, wrapped in safety and dreams while the bravest person I know opens their eyes on an entirely new world today.

So I offer my humble words to you this morning, Universe: Peace. Love. Light. Hope. Faith.

And I trust that the bravest person I know receives them.

“It is not the strength of the body that counts, but the strength of the spirit.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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Although our understanding and acceptance of dyslexia has improved a lot over the past couple of decades, it is still a relatively mis-understood disorder and one that is much more common than you might have thought.

Image Credit: Dyslexia

So as a parent, what should you do if you suspect that your child might be dyslexic?

Don’t Jump To Conclusions

Dyslexia symptoms typically begin showing up during elementary school years. They can appear sooner, so being vigilant is a good idea. But due to the nature of the condition it is hard to diagnose earlier than this.

If you suspect dyslexia, you should also consider other causes. For example, a hearing or sight problem could produce similar symptoms in young children.

Misdiagnosing dyslexia can be just as damaging as having dyslexia, so be cautious before labelling your child as dyslexic.

The Early Symptoms

As mentioned already, early diagnosis is hard, but not impossible. Symptoms can show before school starts and being prepared can be helpful even if you can’t have a definite diagnosis. So what are the early symptoms? Here are a few to look out for:

• Your child is slow to learn to speak
• An obvious stutter when speaking
• Regular ear infections or other ear problems
• Difficulty with directions (left vs right, up vs down…)
• Mixing up consonant sounds in words
• A Lack of interest in learning letters & words

At Elementary School

Once your child arrives at elementary school, problems can become much more evident and even if you didn’t notice any of the early symptoms during the first few years, it is worth looking out for these ones.

• Mixing up particular letters on a regular basis (I/E or D/B are common ones)
• Mixing up word order in sentences, struggling with basic grammar
• Anything related to reading/writing will quickly fatigue them
• Has a strong preference for being told stories but no interest in reading

This is the stage of education that is often most affected by dyslexia and being able to provide the necessary support now will make a big difference in the long run.

Action Plan – What To Do

So you’ve seen the signs and ruled out other possible causes. What is the next step?

The first thing to do is to discuss your concerns with your child’s teacher or even the head-teacher to see if they have the same concerns. Your next step should be to inquire about having a professional test your child.

Most people don’t realize that there are multiple levels and types of dyslexia and there are many different ways to test, so even if you are certain of the diagnosis, having your child tested is essential.

Once the diagnosis is confirmed the professional will be able to give you more guidance on what to do next, and you can then start discussing possibilities with the teachers.

About The Author
This guest post was written by James from UKTutors. James is a tutor and loves to write about education for children. Thanks for reading his post.

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me: