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Summary: Read this for yourself and for your children
Review: Are you an otherwise intelligent adult who loses words right before you speak them, switching one word for another? Do you read arduously and slowly? Do you use simple words because you are afraid of mispronouncing the better word you are thinking of? Do you forget people's names easily? Are you a poor speller? Where you in remedial reading as a child? Are you creative and do you think outside of the box? All of these things may mean that Shaywitz's book is for you.This book explains what dyslexia is, how to spot it in yourself and you children, and ways to help a child who has it. Educators and parents would do well to read this book and have a working knowledge of the issues at stake; lifelong patterns of frustration and low self-esteem can be averted when a responsible educator can spot and understand dyslexia in a child. Adults with dyslexia are not given solutions in the book, per se, but are directed to important resources. For example, Thumbprint Mysteries are recommended for adults with dyslexia (books available on Amazon). In this respect, Overcoming Dyslexia differs from other books on the subject, such as "The Gift of Dyslexia" which provide exercises to assist the adult learner. The first few chapters of the book demonstrate how dyslexia can be clinically diagnosed. Any of you who know or sense that you have dyslexia, know the frustration of having a disadvantage that can not be diagnosed. Shaywitz points to solid scientific research (brain scans and MRIs) which illustrate the reality of dyslexia. The epilogue will be quite encouraging to anyone who has dyslexia and who wants to read the testimonies of famous and brilliant people who have also suffered with it. When I read this section, I felt like I was connecting with a secret society of friends who all shared the same feelings and setbacks I had lived with all my life. That good and intelligent people can struggle with the same thing I fight with makes for a sight of hope. Dyslexic thinkers can be quite creative as one part of their brain has been trained to compensate for the lack in another. This book is a wonderful tool, I hope many will find it and use it.
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Summary: Review from a Dyslexic
Review: As an adult and scientist with dyslexia, I always wanted to understand the physical mechanism behind the disability. I could never understand why I scored average to low in multiple-choice tests but scored high in reading comprehension. Why I excelled in physical science and math yet was constantly taking remedial writing and English? Dr. Shaywitz's book is excellent in answering these questions. The first step in treatment is understanding the mechanism. A miswiring of the phonologic module explains so much and suggests likely remedies. Her book is written in layman's terms and is easy to read and understand. I wish I could give a copy of this book to all my friends and family it explains so much. Dr. Shaywitz knows her audience and writes with compassion and personal touch. The best part was learning that dyslexia can now be seen to have a physical manifestation by fMRI. Dyslexia is no longer a mysterious disability but has actual biological roots. Most disturbing to read was that in her estimates, 1 in 5 children have some form of dyslexia. As a child that almost slipped through the cracks, I failed kindergarten because I didn't know my ABC's, this is distressing to learn. How many intelligent and potentially successful adults were allowed to fail due to dyslexia? It was only through the diligence of my mother that I ever learned to read. Thirty years ago little was understood about "word blindness" but my mother did the primary research and tried every goofy theory on teaching including writing letters on my back with her finger and asking me to name the letter. Now Dr. Shaywitz gives good advice as well as current research and resources so parents have it all in one book. If you had only one book on dyslexia this would be it. I can't recommend this book highly enough. I give it many more stars then I'm allowed.
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Summary: Very excited to find this book
Review: Because my son struggles with reading, I have read several books on dyslexia. This book is by far the best. Dr. Shaywitz does such a good job of delivering the necessary information for a parent to understand what is going on with their child and how to go about helping them. I enjoyed the case studies, the science behind what causes dyslexia and the hope that something can be done to help my child. I even read parts of the book to my son (a 6 year old) because it is so good at emphasizing that not being able to read has nothing to do with intelligence. He enjoyed hearing about other kids going through the same thing. I am so thankful that Dr. Shaywitz took the time to write this book.
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Summary: Extremely clear, concise and groundbreaking
Review: Could not put this book down. From learning about the latest science behind this disorder to accomadation and personal stories on people who have overcome it, I thought this was one of the best books of the year!
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Summary: I could not stop reading this book
Review: Dr. Shaywitz has done a masterful job of combining the science and the human side of dyslexia in her book. I especially enjoyed reading about the personal struggles of individuals and how they overcame this disorder. Amazing!
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Summary: An excellent resoure for Dylsexia
Review: I also could not put this book down. It helped me to understant how my dylsexic child feels and how I as a parent can help him, and show the school how to help him. It was easy to read and reread. This is an absolute must have book for adults in a dylsexic childs life.
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Summary: dyslexia doesn't exist.
Review: I don't believe dyslexia exists. If childen learn to print the whole alphabet at a rate faster than 40 letters per minute, they never have reading problems, as long as this is accomplished by the middle of first grade.
Dyslexia is "the apparent inability to remember what words look like". The is a risk for kids who cannot mentally envision written syllables, like "cat" or "man", early on. If they don't learn by the end of first-grade, they are left with the mistaken notion that reading is a matter of "sounding out unknowns". See Adams on this for more explanation.
Older dyslexics are a serious problem because, as a psychological defense mechanism, they act as if they have lost the desire to read. For them, speed-reading techniques are best, in order to break them of the habit of always trying to sound words out, rather than developing the ability to recognize and identify them, and groups of them, instantly at sight.
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Summary: FINALLY -- This book explains it all.
Review: I have been searching for this book since my son was in preschool. While all the other children were repeating the alphabet, my son turned 5 and still could not. We would show him the letters and he would forget them moments later. We decided to hold him back a year so he entered the first grade one year behind - and still couldn't recite the alphabet when shown the letters. When reading simple picture/word books he would guess the words, ie: when the page showed a puppy and had the word below, he would say "dog". When told the answer was incorrect, he'd then say "puppy". Unfortunately the teachers weren't catching on to his sly ways, because all too often the word would fit the picture (a ball always looks like a ball). We struggled with the educators, I told them that my father is a dyslexic and I know this is often hereditary. They kept saying we needed to wait, that something like dyselexia couldn't be diagnosed until he was older. I didn't wait. I had the school do a thorough IEP on him and found that he excelled in everything except reading. We put him in Reading Recovery, hired private tutors, we read with him at home. This year I found Dr. Shaywitz's book and I thought, "finally, someone knows exactly what I'm going through with my son". I pulled out my yellow highlighter and underlined scores of pages in this book. I kept saying, "this is my son". His difficulty with reading and with his difficulty in finding the right words when speaking aloud. Don't wait to get this book. It's not intimidating. It's written in such a way that anyone can understand it. Purchase a yellow highlighter while you're at it.....
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Summary: I can reed and wite noww!!
Review: I lov tu reed noww. Thee bok tot me howww to reeed andd wite good!
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Summary: homeschooling mom
Review: I was delighted to read this book, as I felt it addressed many of the issues I'd been seeing in my child. More importantly, it gives parents the TOOLS to advocate for their children, as well as the MEANS to help remediate the problem (rather than simply accomodate). A wonderful resource, even if your child doesn't have reading problems, as it offers different ways to teach reading to children of all ages.
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