Learning disorders include difficulties in reading and writing, disturbances in arithmetic skills, disturbances in speech and language, and developmental disturbances in motor functions.
If left untreated, learning disorders may lead to more extensive difficulties or significantly impair scholastic progress in the early school years.
Readiness for school
The cognitive and motor skills of a school beginner can vary considerably. A small number of children are permitted to start school a year early, or a year late. This decision is made in a consultation between the child's parents and specialists who assess readiness for school.
It may be difficult to decide to delay school attendance because school may well prove to promote the child's development by offering stimuli and experiences that cannot be attained at home.
A child whose school attendance has been delayed may benefit from intensified preschool education adjusted to the individual needs. Almost one fourth of children are in need of special individual attention during kindergarten age and early school years due to developmental delays in cognitive or motor domain.
In some countries, preschool education is provided for all children. This diversifies the possibilities to acquire learning experiences in general. The preschool education is planned so that it will also take into account the children's individual learning needs based on, for example, developmental delay or disturbance in the language abilities or in the control of self-conduct.
Learning disorders in family members increase the child's risk for difficulties in learning but this may, however, be reduced by early preventive measures.
Disturbances in reading and writing
Difficulties in reading (dyslexia), spelling and writing (dysgraphia) often co-occur.
These disturbances are not equivalent to retardation.
Over 10% of children have difficulties learning basic scholastic skills and the most common challenge is reading acquisition.
Almost 6% of adults have problems related to reading, especially in acquiring sufficient fluency.
Dyslexia can often be explained genetically. Problems with reading are almost without exception also found in near relatives. More than one third of children with a dyslectic parent have significant difficulties in reading acquisition.
Special disturbances in arithmetic skills
About 10-15% of schoolchildren have problems learning mathematics, and about 3% of these children have severe developmental dyscalculias.
In dyscalculia the child usually has difficulties in understanding basic numerical concepts, in correct placing and ordering of numbers, and in spatial perception and visuomotoric functions.
Special disturbances in speech and language
In dysphasia, the learning of speech and language is abnormal already in the early stages of development.
If a child does not use single word expressions by the age of 2 years or sentences by the age of 3 years, dysphasia should be suspected.
From the point of view of differential diagnostics, it is essential to differentiate between a developmental language disorder and a hearing disorder.
Language impairment can continue into adulthood as difficulties to use or understand language.
Approximately 3% of the population suffers from dysphasia.
The risk of language impairment is highest in a child with a delay in language development at the age of 2-5 years and a family history of language impairment, e.g. dyslexia, and who besides the delay in the production of speech also has delay in understanding of heard speech.
Interventions to support language development should be started as early as possible.
Developmental disturbances in motor functions
About 2-5% of children suffer from developmental coordination disorders, dyspraxia.
Developmental coordination disorder manifests itself as unusual motor clumsiness that is not related to intellectual retardation or general medical condition.
Motor clumsiness is often a part of a larger developmental problem, such as the MBD syndrome (nowadays often titled ADHD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).
Diagnosis and treatment
Diagnosis requires both an examination by a psychologist, preferably by a neuropsychologist, and an assessment of possible treatment options by a special education teacher.
Learning disorders can be treated with special teaching.
Untreated special learning disorders will affect the child's future harmfully.
If the child does not receive the necessary encouragement to motivate him or her to make a special effort, learning disorders can lead to other, more extensive difficulties or significantly hinder progress in the school.
If the child has an early receptive language disorder at the age of 2-3 years and one of the parents (and the family) has a history of dyslexia, the situation should be taken seriously already at an early stage. The corresponding risk regarding reading comprehension is therefore increased. Supporting vocabulary development already at an early stage is recommended. Appropriate computer or mobile phone applications may be used, starting (depending on the application) e.g. from the age of about 6.5 years and continuing as long as deemed necessary.
If the child's language development has been normal but he/she still has difficulties in permanently remembering the names of letters at preschool age (about 6 years), it is advisable to start practicing the basic reading skills a few months in advance before school start. This particularly applies to children with dyslectic near relatives.
Computer supported drilling of skills in need of intensive training may be very helpful if it has been made enjoyable enough for keeping the child interested until the learning goals have been achieved.