What is Dyslexia?



Dyslexia is a common neurobiological learning difficulty that affects the development of reading, spelling and written language skills. It is not related to intelligence, effort or motivation. At O-G Reading Clinic in Kirrawee and Carlton, Sydney, we provide explicit, structured literacy intervention for children with dyslexia and other reading and spelling difficulties. With appropriate intervention, students with dyslexia can make significant progress and become more confident, successful learners.

ABOUT DYSLEXIA

WHAT IS DYSLEXIA

Dyslexia is a common, lifelong learning difficulty that affects the development of reading and spelling skills. It is neurobiological in origin, meaning that the brain processes written language differently.

Dyslexia is not related to intelligence, motivation, effort or educational opportunity. Many individuals with dyslexia are highly capable learners who simply require explicit, structured instruction to develop literacy skills.


CAUSES

Research has shown that dyslexia has a strong genetic basis and often runs in families.

The primary difficulty is usually related to phonological processing – the ability to recognise, remember and manipulate the sounds within spoken words. This impacts a student's ability to connect sounds to letters when reading and spelling.

Brain imaging studies have demonstrated that individuals with dyslexia process written language differently from typical readers.


EFFECTS

Students with dyslexia often experience difficulties with:

✔ Reading unfamiliar words accurately

✔ Reading fluently and automatically

✔ Spelling words correctly

✔ Remembering letter-sound relationships

✔ Learning and recalling phonics patterns

✔ Decoding longer or multisyllabic words

These difficulties can make reading and writing more effortful and time-consuming than for their peers.



FACTS

Approximately 10–15% of the population experience dyslexia, with around 3–5% experiencing severe difficulties. In a typical classroom of 30 students, there may be 3–5 students with dyslexia.



Some individuals with dyslexia may also experience:

  • Dysgraphia (writing difficulties)
  • Dyscalculia (mathematics difficulties)
  • Developmental Language Disorder (DLD)
  • ADHD
  • Difficulties with working memory
  • Reduced processing speed


SIGNS OF DYSLEXIA IN DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS

The signs of dyslexia can vary depending on age and severity.


Early Years


  • Difficulty learning letter names and sounds
  • Trouble recognising rhymes
  • Delayed development of reading skills
  • Difficulty blending sounds into words



Primary School


  •  Slow or inaccurate reading
  • Difficulty spelling common words
  • Guessing words when reading
  • Avoiding reading tasks
  • Difficulty learning times tables and sequences



Secondary and Beyond


  •  Slow reading speed
  • Persistent spelling difficulties
  • Difficulty taking notes quickly
  • Fatigue when reading large amounts of text
  • Reduced confidence in literacy tasks



How To Support A Child With Dyslexia


✔ Read with your child regularly

✔ Listen to audiobooks together

✔ Praise effort and persistence

✔ Provide explicit reading and spelling instruction

✔ Break large tasks into smaller steps

✔ Use assistive technology when appropriate

✔ Focus on strengths as well as areas of difficulty

✔ Seek evidence-based intervention early




What Not To Do


❌ Tell a child they simply need to "try harder"

❌ Compare them to siblings or classmates

❌ Make them read aloud without preparation

❌ Assume they will "grow out of it"

❌ Focus only on weaknesses

❌ Use intervention programs that lack research evidence

❌ Wait for failure before seeking support

MYTHS AND FACTS ABOUT DYSLEXIA

❌ Myth: Children with dyslexia see letters backwards.
✅ Fact: Dyslexia is primarily a language-based difficulty, not a visual problem.

❌ Myth: Children with dyslexia are not intelligent.
✅ Fact: Dyslexia occurs across the full range of intellectual ability.

❌ Myth: Children will simply grow out of dyslexia.
✅ Fact: Dyslexia is lifelong, but evidence-based intervention can make a significant difference.

❌ Myth: More reading practice alone will fix dyslexia.
✅ Fact: Students typically require explicit, systematic and structured literacy instruction.

Could My Child Have Dyslexia?

Persistent difficulties with reading and spelling can have many causes. A comprehensive literacy assessment can help identify a child’s pattern of strengths and difficulties and investigate whether their literacy profile is consistent with dyslexia.


At O-G Reading Clinic, dyslexia assessment looks beyond whether a child is simply “behind”. We examine the underlying skills involved in reading and spelling to understand where difficulties are occurring and why.


What Does a Dyslexia Assessment Look At?



✓ Word reading and decoding

✓ Reading accuracy and fluency

✓ Phonological processing

✓ Spelling

✓ Rapid naming

✓ Patterns of literacy strengths and difficulties

Assessment findings are brought together in a comprehensive written report,

with recommendations to help families and schools understand the child’s learning needs and appropriate next steps.