About Dyslexia

Dyslexia Checklist

Professionals such as educational psychologists who possess expertise in several disciplines are best qualified to make a full diagnosis of dyslexia. The checklist below may be helpful if your child is experiencing literacy difficulties, yet are good at lots of other things.

Where a child is experiencing visual disturbances when reading print such as: blurred letters/words; letters that appear to move around; shimmer or shake words; letters that appear to break into two; difficulty with tracking across the page; glare on the page or oversensitivity to bright lights, the research team at our clinic may be able to offer specialised assistance.

Do you struggle to read, particularly out loud?
Do other members of your family have similar difficulties?
Do you lose your place when you are reading?
Do you read letters or words in the wrong, or reversed order (eg 'was' as 'saw', 'd' as 'b' and 'p' as 'q')?
Is your spelling poor?
Do you take much longer than your peers to read a page in a book?
Do you have difficulty with your handwriting?
Were you slow to develop fine motor skills (such as holding and using a pen properly)?
Were you late to develop clear speech?
Did you have difficulty pronouncing certain words?
Do you find it difficult to tell the difference between sounds?
Did you struggle to learn the alphabet, or arithmetic?
Do you have difficulty in remembering phone numbers?
Do you struggle with, or mix up numbers (eg 14 for 41, 6 for 9)?
Do you find it hard to get started on a report, essay or letter?
Do you confuse your left with your right?
Do you have difficulty remembering instructions?
Do you frequently mix up dates and times and miss appointments?

If you answer 'yes' to many of these questions, and in particular those to do with reading and spelling, you may benefit from having a dyslexia assessment. These symptoms can affect reading ability, making it very tiring and cause headaches.