The Dynamics of Dyslexic Learning

The 3-dimensional thinking style of a dyslexic makes him sporadically symbol/word blind when working with written characters. All letters and words are symbols. They are abstract representations that are intended to point the reader’s mind toward an implied meaning and understanding. However, the 3-dimensional thinker does not easily move to the part of his brain that abstracts. When he looks at symbols that have no inherent meaning (for example: at, the, I, to, of, also, and, is), he often sees meaningless symbols or blanks. He may see meaningless symbols and blanks in one sentence and may read the same words accurately in a different sentence or paragraph. His reading pattern tends to be very inconsistent. It becomes very difficult to read and comprehend when he meets sight words that can become blanks in many sentences.

Comprehension occurs when the meaning of all words in sentences, paragraphs and pages of text has been understood. When the reader inconsistently reads words accurately, meaning and understanding of what is being said by the author tends to range from nonsensical to poor. As a result, confusion builds and frustration follows. Confusion and frustration evolve when the student inconsistently stumbles, hesitates, omits words, inserts words, replaces one word with another, or skips lines when he meets many sight words that he cannot read and understand. The reading material that causes confusion and frustration to evolve can be simple material that the student knows or challenging, new material.

 

The dyslexic is a 3-dimensional learner who works with and demonstrates his intelligence well in the 3-dimensional world. In school, this child is asked to make sense of 2-dimensional written characters and to abstract them into meaningful words. Unfortunately, there are more than 290 sight (abstract) words for which there are no sensory experiences (3-dimensional experiences), and the first 29 most commonly used English words are sight words. This means that your 3-dimensional thinker can make no sense (literally, he has no sensory experience) of the written characters and sight words he is required to learn to read and write. However, he may have a full understanding of spoken language as he has learned it through his senses during his developing years. Your child may be very intelligent and fluid with words and concepts when he is speaking, and yet be unable to read and write without great effort, confusion and frustration.

Schools show students what letters look like and how they sound (phonics). Letters are 2-dimensional symbols with no inherent meaning. Phonetic sounds and phonemes are 3-dimensional sound symbols with no inherent meaning. A person must be able to abstract these representations – i.e., they must be able to attach meaning to them that is not inherent within them. If a child or adult thinks primarily with the Gestalt functions of his brain, which cannot abstract, it is very difficult for him to learn to work with written characters and words. The information that is missing for him is a sensory experience of the letters/words that gives him a sense of meaning to associate with the 2-dimensional written symbols and 3-dimensional sound symbols. It is indeed a wonder that the dyslexic learns to read at all!