Dyslexic Behaviors Reflect Thinking Style

Which behaviors are typical of your child?
Logic and big picture-Gestalt thinking complement each other
Logic and Gestalt functions are both necessary for even the simplest of functions
Disruption of brain integration leads to learning problems
Dyslexics often experience learning stress they cannot resolve
How brain integration works
What can block corpus callosum function, and therefore learning?
MELT™ techniques promote brain integration & learning

Which of the Following Behaviors are Typical of Your Child?

Is your child a predominantly multi-sensory thinker with these behaviors?

a. Likely to be impulsive.

b. Have little appreciation for cause and effect – no concern for consequences of impulsive action.
c. Have difficulty budgeting their time – tasks are often not completed and organizational skills lack.
d. Have difficulty paying attention over time – inattentive, day dream, wiggle, lack continuity in doing or sticking to a task..
e. Have difficulty spelling – it’s largely phonetic and reliant on auditory short-term memory.

f. Have difficulty in mathematics – multiplication and fractions are much harder than adding and subtracting; word problems can be impossible.

g. May read and lack comprehension – lacks access to the Logic areas that give meanings to the symbols, even though they may be recognized and read; a creative Gestalt child will fill in between the few words he knows and create his own story, which may be very different from the one he reads.

h. Has difficulty answering questions about what he has read – is presumed to be inattentive while reading and lacks the access to Logic functions which enable him to give meaning to the questions and deduct the answer.

i. Often well coordinated and does well athletically – Gestalt function largely regulates body movements.

j. Intuitively gifted and therefore very sensitive and prone to being emotionally immature, easily hurt or bullied.

k. Tends to think in a high percentage of pictures and feelings instead of logical and abstract thoughts.

l. Creatively sort, blend and alter their perceptions to find a solution for a lack of immediate recognition and meaning – especially when they can’t access the Logic information that gives meaning to the visual or auditory coding that the Gestalt functions give to symbols or written characters.

m. Stores information as images and often has difficulty finding words to translate the images, or using words to recall the information.

If your child has many of these behaviors, then attention, reading and learning are interrupted continually during the day so that success in task completion and learning is unlikely.

Resolve this learning dilemma; expand your child's learning dimensions (LD) by being his LD Coach and using The Learning to Read Program.

Logic and Gestalt Thinking Complement Each Other

Logic thinking is linear and abstract, focused on the details.

Gestalt thinking is multi-sensory and focused on the big picture.

Logic and Gestalt lead functions initiate the processing of information as follows (Krebs p. 180):

Logic lead functions basically work in bits, they are sequential, linear and analytic. They are also time-oriented, which means they are ordered and organizational.

By contrast, Gestalt lead functions work simultaneously, allowing us to intuit or “know” things. There is no time in the conventional linear sense, there is only Now! or Not Now!

Logic Thinking and Gestalt Thinking Lead Functions are Both Necessary for Even the Simplest of Tasks to be Accomplished

Such tasks as going to the refrigerator for an apple or scratching your nose may be initiated by either type of thinking (Gestalt or Logic), and each requires the access, integration and synchronizing of information from many different areas of the brain. Information and communication move many times across the brain – between the hemispheres– and between various sub-cortical areas and layers and the many Logic and Gestalt areas that are involved in completion of the task.

Many Gestalt and Logic thinking processes and functions are needed for success in school... see the diagram at the left. To see a larger version of it and to read more detail about brain integration click on the diagram.

You will notice that full function of the inter-connecting pathways of the corpus callosum connecting pathways (between the left and right hemispheres shown in the diagram) is essential so that both the Gestalt and Logic functions can be accessed to produce the desired outcome-- reading, spelling, writing.

Disruption of Brain Integration Leads to Learning Problems

The following 4 characteristics have been commonly found in dyslexic learners (Research of Charles Krebs):

1.      Problem: Integration Pathways are Blocked

Any blockage or impairment of the communication pathways or integration pathways, and any restriction of access to required areas of the brain can lead to impaired performance and learning disability. (Krebs p. 181-2)

To the observer, dyslexic behavior seems to be inconsistent and unpredictable. We say he is consistently inconsistent. Sometimes he can read and do the learning task required, and sometimes he cannot. Perhaps his verbal skills are excellent. He may read some, and yet his comprehension and spelling are very poor.

One key regulator of his ability to be successful in school is his ability to access and integrate both his Logic and Gestalt functions at the same time and all of the time! Any stress that he experiences in the learning process can begin to derail his brain integration and become a blockage to his successful learning and performance.

2.    Good news: Seldom is Organic Blockage the Problem

In the majority of dyslexic learners, there is little to no organic blockage of brain pathways. In most cases of learning dysfunction or problems, there is a blockage of communication pathways and/or a restriction of access to key brain areas. (Krebs p. 182)

The blockage of brain pathway resulted from emotional stress that occurred at some time from conception up to the moment. At that time, these emotional stressors were contextually linked to a part of the individual’s life. They may have occurred just once or may have occurred repeatedly. Regardless of origin, they appear to have resulted in information being stored in areas of the brain that were not of high use at the time. When these areas are now stimulated, they can trigger a repeat of the same dysfunction that occurred the first time that the information was stored in this area.

During a child's development and education, he may attempt to develop reading, writing or math skills which require use of these “storage areas.” However, he may be unable to access and use them effectively because they are already occupied for another purpose. Instead, the individual may experience confusion and the inability to function in the way that he is being taught. When we can reduce the stress that promotes and maintains this kind of brain dis-integration, improved brain function and learning generally follows.

3.    The Cause of the Problem: Corpus Callosum Connection of Hemispheres is Compromised

The corpus callosum is the main cross-over structure between the cerebral hemispheres. It carries inter-hemispheric fibers from the nerve cells in one hemisphere to the nerve cells in the same area of the opposite hemisphere. Without the corpus callosum's full function, the operations of each side of the brain cannot be coordinated. Much brain dysfunction results from impairment of the flow of information across the corpus callosum.

In his research, Charles Krebs has found that “blocked flow across the corpus callosum is found in almost every case of learning difficulties. And blocked flow across the corpus callosum is usually most strongly correlated with the poor development of Logic lead functions.” (Krebs, p. 173)

In school, skills like reading and spelling require a highly integrated and synchronized series of Logic and Gestalt lead functions (that is, reading and spelling are initiated consciously from both Gestalt and Logic areas simultaneously). If the individual cannot access one or more of the necessary “lead functions” (part of his brain that initiates the thinking appropriately) or cannot integrate the lead functions and auxiliary functions from different areas of the brain, then the individual will not have success in learning to read or spell. (Krebs p. 174)

4.    Symptoms: Characteristic Gestalt Processing Behaviors

Gestalt (multi-sensory thinking) dominance in mental processing is characteristic of the majority of dyslexics. (Krebs p. 183-4) They sense the whole picture with all their senses, and compile a perception of the composite of their senses. They cannot always access the logical functions of their brain that would enable them to see and hear the parts of words, link meaningless sounds and abstract words, and abstractly and logically understand the word.

The list at the top of the page gives typical Gestalt Processing Behaviors.

Dyslexics Often Experience Learning Stress They Cannot Resolve

When dyslexics experience stress that they cannot resolve due to their multi-sensory way of processing information, they easily lose brain integration.

Their brain dis-integration prevents them from being able to learn and to resolve the tension of their situation. Their frustration level sky-rockets, and their learning is limited. They develop behaviors to avoid further frustration.

In contrast, the not-dyslexic student has good communication between his Gestalt and Logic functions. He is able to think in a high percentage of verbal-thought and therefore can tolerate a high level of ambiguity and confusion with things he may not understand. As the not-dyslexic works through the challenges of unsuccessful attempts to process the information, he may resort temporarily to such avoidance behaviors as stumbling, stuttering, hesitating, omitting words, guessing words, inserting words, skipping lines, daydreaming, wiggling/fidgeting, or going blank. However, he can be brought back to complete his task, and he expects to eventually be successful in his task completion.

The Dyslexic is Likely to have Repeated Failures

The not-dyslexic might feel frustrated by a learning challenge, he might even temporarily give up and leave the situation for a while. However, he will return to it at a later time, ready to resolve the conflict. He is prone to task completion – he often finds success in his learning efforts.

The dyslexic has similar reactions as the not-dyslexic to the stress of conflict. The dyslexic primarily thinks with the composite perception of his senses and is unable to "make sense" of written abstract words. Because he often cannot resolve the conflict of the mismatch of his thinking style and the thinking required to read abstract words, the dyslexic is more likely to have repeated failures in his efforts to resolve symbol and word stress in school. He experiences increasing brain dis-integration with the lack of conflict resolution, and he becomes used to being unsuccessful with written characters and words. He drops his interest in learning and avoids returning to exercises that stimulated his brain dis-integration. The more frustrated the student becomes with the task, the less willing he is to return to it at another time.

How Brain Integration Works

As you can see from the Gestalt and Logic Towers Analogy diagram, both lead functions (thinking styles) are required and must work together with optimal timing and sequencing in order to accomplish a task-- even for a task as simple as opening a book to read.

The Corpus Callosum connecting pathways between the two cerebral hemispheres (the two towers) must be highly functional in order for the information on the two sides of the brain (the two towers) to interact and co-operate.

What Blocks Corpus Callosum Function & Disrupts Integrated Brain Function?

The Stress of Learning, Performing, Thinking, & Any Other Unresolved Stress in Your Life.

Any demonstration of the loss of brain integration is always a sign of blocked corpus callosum function.

Signs of loss of brain integration can include:

Dis-integration of thinking, coordination, performance, recall, writing, reading.

Fortunately stress can be released and the blockage in the corpus callosum can be opened up for full communication between the two sides of the brain.

Detailed information about brain integration and the role of the corpus callosum is available in the article Understanding Brain Integration.

MELT™ Techniques Promote Brain Integration and Learning

The MELT™ techniques are designed to accomplish the goal of brain integration and optimal brain function during thinking, learning and reading.

The Tune In & Turn On Exercises assist student and coach in temporarily reducing the stress of the moment of difficult learning so that successful thinking dynamics (brain integration) can occur and build the confidence of success in learning.

The Integration and Posture techniques help to stabilize the mind's eye so that perceptions can be stabilized, the brain can be integrated and learning can occur.

(next) ... Mind's Eye View: Learn how to help your child to maintain brain integration while learning. Learn to recognize and work with the unique dynamics of the View from the Mind's Eye of a Dyslexic.