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Hi Sharon Interesting to read of your family and the support you gave the employee you refer to plus his obvious appreciation of your intervention. The following may assist subscribers in relation to recognising dyslexia in their own children. I am getting more skilled at recognising dyslexia in my students from the way they construct their assignments. I donıt catch all but I hope I get most. It isnıt so much about spelling that can be fixed by the use of the ³spell check² function. It is more the way they thread their thoughts together within an essay, or even how they construct their sentences. I had exactly the same problem when I was at school if my English teacher was still alive today she would be shocked that I now write for publication. I have developed a more cogent writing style as a result of years of practice and reading lots of books and academic articles. Pointers to look out for: * Children who utilise a very broad vocabulary in conversation but a much narrower range of words in their essays. Could be they canıt spell the word they would like to use. Providing them with a dictionary may not assist as their spelling difficulties may result in them not even knowing where to start looking in the dictionary. * Long rambling sentences that make perfect sense to them as the writer but little to other readers. Both were my difficulties. My English teacherıs usual comments on my essays for O level was something like ³Why use ten words when five would do?². * Children who are very bright in the classroom but the marks they achieve do not reflect their obvious knowledge and abilities. * Behaviour which the teacher would deem to be disruptive - ³clowning around² in the classroom. People who are dyslexic are often very witty due to their creativity, they may try to make their peers laugh to cover up their learning difficulties. Certainly seems to be the case with a friend of mine. He was asked to leave school on his 15th birthday (the legal school leaving age at that time). The reason teachers considered him to be illiterate and disruptive. His writing is still illegible, he avoids writing anything, he was the classroom entertainer and is still the life and soul of any social gathering. Rather than finding out why a very bright child should be in this position the teachers couldnıt wait to get rid of him and he was expelled before the end of the academic year. He became a plumber who can fix almost anything and plumb in very complex fittings including designing and making a w.c. cistern was an aquarium for a TV personality (weird)! He is now a millionaire with several flourishing businesses he could see opportunities that others missed. He has never been assessed for dyslexia but both his children are dyslexic and as there is a familial tendency for this learning difficulty it is highly likely he is dyslexic himself. Dyslexia can become an employment issue and so it is worth finding out about it. I have co-authored two articles in Occupational Health if this exchange of postings has sparked an interest. Anne Harriss Course Director LONDON SOUTH BANK UNIVERSITY On 27/5/10 06:25, "sharon naylor" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > what a nice way of looking at things > > I am a mother of 3 dyslexic children and only one of them shows traits of what > most people consider to be dyslexia. 2 have good handwriting, 1 doesnt. One > has difficulty reading, the other two dont, 2 have been tested. 1 refuses as > she doesnt want a label and she`s doing fine thanks very much. 1 was tested at > school and got b**** all help with anyone and is subsequently completely > demoralised by the whole thing, one has only just been diagnosed at 23 - she > had adapted her "learning style" around her difficulties and no one was aware > she was having difficulties. Did I notice as a mother? I have to confess not > so not really surprised that people get missed. > > However like Anne they all show amazing powers of lateral thinking and > creativity and excel at what they do because they all seem to see the "bigger > picture" and use it to their advantage. Especially useful in their chosen > fields. > > I have had a recent case where an employee in his 40`s went into melt down, > sick with stress etc when the mployer initiated a job rotation scheme. Turned > out (after a long and protracted investigation ) that although excellent at > his job couldnt cope with the paperwork side and a colleague did it all for > him as a favour and that would end with the job rotataion. His story included > the fact that he ended up in a type of "Borstal" for young boys in Australia > at 9 yrs old because he was disruptive and wouldnt "get on" with his school > work, having his pilots lisence and being excellent at his job didnt alter the > way he thought about himself. The assessment was a revelation to him as at 46 > he realised that he wasnt "thick". Interestingly past of his assessment > recommendations included sending him for CBT/NLP to address his emotional > issues/core beliefs and this has had a really profound effect on his life. > > Professionally one of my proudest moments in recent times was being > nominated by him for a staff recognition award for assisting with his problems > - not because I got the award but because he went through the rigamarole of > constructing and typing an Email to nominate me. Was it an OH issue? Maybe not > but ended up in my in tray because of the massive repercussions of him trying > to hide his problems. > > In my opinion - £500 for the assessment ( + the NLP) was money well spent, > Shaw Trust, AtW helped out with some of the specialist IT etc. Result - happy > worker, easily churning out more work that most of his peers, good manager > with his team, excellent at what he does, saved the company thousands with > some of his initiatives. > > > Date: Thu, 27 May 2010 00:03:52 +0100 > From: [log in to unmask] > Subject: Re: [OCC-HEALTH] Assessment for Dyslexia > To: [log in to unmask] > > Thanks for this Milne. It is a very useful site particularly the ³Self > assessment² tools. I have a special interest in dyslexia as an educator I > frequently identify OH students who have dyslexia, many of whom are mature > students. I am shocked that some of the students I have suspected to have > dyslexia have completed the whole of their nurse training without an educator > raising any suspicions. Had they been identified as having dyslexia there are > a range of resources available to support them through their studies. Some > students get quite touchy about any suggestion that they may be dyslexic > they are employees too so one can extrapolate that to clients in an OH > setting. > > Dyslexia can be a curse but elements of it are also a distinct blessing. My > difficulties include taking me longer than my peers (of a similar intellect) > to inwardly digest text that I read, my handwriting is almost totally > illegible and like many people with dyslexia I easily get bored with routine, > repetitive tasks that donıt challenge me in a productive way. > > The plus side, I have no problem having the same ³label² as Einstein and > Richard Branson (my hero) who I would love to meet. When I was assessed the > occ psychologist told me that I was at the 97th percentile for lateral > thinking and creativitity. Wow, I had never been at the 97th percentile for > anything in my life (excepting my distinct inability at hockey I suppose). > That made sense of a lot of things that I enjoy doing, I capitalise on my > problem solving skills, and I can now understand why others donıt see things > from the same perspective as myself. I have developed a range of coping > strategies including typing as much as I can. > > There was no support for dyslexic students when I did my RGN, undergraduate > and post-graduate studies and the DDA has had an impact in the workplace. > > Anne > > > On 26/5/10 14:44, "Milne Campbell" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > >> I am dyslexic, and was not diagnosed until I was 34 (by the Civil Service), >> On the Civil service web site there is a helpful toolkit, >> And also contact details for their partner Key4Learning (Jo Todd), >> >> Try: >> http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/resources/diversity/toolkits/dyslexia-to >> olkit.aspx >> >> For more information, >> >> >> Mr Campbell Milne RN SCPHN(OH) >> Occupational Health Nurse Specialist >> Gloucestershire County NHS Occupational Health Services >> 2gether NHS Foundation Trust >> Gloucester Royal Hospital >> >> Great Western Road >> Gloucester >> GL1 3NN >> >> >> >> (e-mail) [log in to unmask] >> (main) 08454 225165 >> (fax) 08454 225166 >> >> >> >> >> >> We are keen to receive feedback on our service provision. If I or any of our >> team has provided you with an excellent service we would like to know. >> Equally if you believe that our service has been less than excellent we would >> also like to hear from you. We can then ensure that we fulfil our commitment >> to ongoing improvement. >> >> >> Disclaimer >> This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential. If you are >> not the intended recipient, any reading, printing, storage, disclosure, >> copying or any other action taken in respect of this e-mail is prohibited and >> may be unlawful. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the >> sender immediately by using the reply function and then permanently delete >> what you have received. Incoming and outgoing e-mail messages are routinely >> monitored for compliance with the NHS's policy on the use of electronic >> communications. >> >> >> >> >> >> >> From: [log in to unmask] [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf >> Of N. Rostami >> Sent: 25 May 2010 12:40 >> To: [log in to unmask] >> Subject: [OCC-HEALTH] Assessment for Dyslexia >> >> >> Hi List, >> >> >> >> An employee of ours has declared that he suffers from Dyslexia ( ! age 43). I >> have contacted Dyslexia Action and been told that the cost of assessment is >> £500. Do you know of other organisations that carry out this assessment? The >> employer is reticent to pick up this cost. Are there any charity >> organisations that would do this for the employee if he self refers? I can >> not find any info on Access to Work website. >> >> >> >> Thanking in anticipation. >> >> >> >> N. >> ******************************** Please remove this footer before replying. >> OCC-HEALTH ARCHIVES: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/occ-health.html >> >> CONFERENCES AND STUDY DAYS: >> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/filearea.cgi?LMGT1=OCC-HEALTH >> >> >> The information in this email and in any attachment(s) is commercial in >> confidence. >> >> If you are not the named addressee(s) or if you receive this email in error >> then any distribution, copying or use of this communication or the >> information in it is strictly prohibited. >> >> Please return it to the sender and delete all copies. 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