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The Learning Success blog

Plain-language help for brilliant, struggling learners.

Articles, education news, infographics and a podcast for parents of children with dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia and ADHD. Written parent-to-parent, grounded in neuroscience.

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The newest article, news story and infographic
How to Teach Your Child to Prioritize: Get the List Out of Their Head First Latest article How to Teach Your Child to Prioritize: Get the List Out of Their Head First Dyslexia · Oct 19 · 5 min read Pick Private School on the New Scholarship, and the IEP Stays Behind Latest news Pick Private School on the New Scholarship, and the IEP Stays Behind Education - Policy · Oct 18 · 7 min read Learning Success infographic: when your struggling reader decides they are not smart. Neuroplasticity: the brain gets better at the specific skills a child practices. Growth mindset: reading ability grows through effort, strategy and targeted teaching. The power of yet: I can't read this yet. The fixed ceiling spiral: working harder and still struggling is taken as proof of lower intelligence. That leads to less practice. What moves reading: targeted practice on specific skills, so the brain improves at what it works on and progress shows in that skill. Focus on skill, not identity. Parent checklist: add yet out loud, separate effort from outcome, praise trying, strategy and persistence rather than being smart, and model the mindset. Takeaway: your child's brain is not finished, and neither is their reading. Latest infographic Your Child Says “I’m Not Smart” Because Reading Is Hard. Name the Skill, Not the Child. Growth Mindset · Oct 20

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Quotes worth sharing with another parent All quotes
“ADHD isn't broken focus—it's democracy of attention. Everything gets a vote until something earns devotion. Then watch the hyperfocus ignite.” — Learning Success
Dyslexia
“The same brain that stumbles over spelling effortlessly builds three-dimensional worlds in imagination. Different wiring, not defective wiring.” — Learning Success
Dyslexia
“Einstein's 'problem' was seeing in pictures when others saw in words. Jobs' 'deficit' was connecting dots no one else noticed. Your child's difference is tomorrow's advantage.” — Learning Success
Dyslexia

Highlights by topic

Dyslexia

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How to Teach Your Child to Prioritize: Get the List Out of Their Head First Article How to Teach Your Child to Prioritize: Get the List Out of Their Head First Oct 19 From Dyslexia to a Neuroscience PhD: The Part the Story Skips News From Dyslexia to a Neuroscience PhD: The Part the Story Skips Oct 11 Learning Success infographic: Reversing letters is not the sign of dyslexia. Shift focus from letter orientation to reading effort and decoding skills. The common myth: believing letter reversals like b and d, or reading was as saw, are the primary sign of dyslexia. A reversal alone does not confirm or rule out dyslexia. Reading performance is the true signal: word decoding and connecting letters to sounds, not the direction letters face. What points to a reading difference: 1, persistent reading effort and inaccuracy over time, even after structured teaching and practice; 2, look at the complete skill pattern, since no single sign tells the whole story; 3, seek focused, structured reading support and ask for an evaluation of word reading. Parent takeaway: focus on how hard your child works to read the word. Infographic Your Child Writes b for d. Is It Dyslexia? Watch the Reading Instead. Oct 20

Dyscalculia

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Math Tears and Dyscalculia: Making Math the Problem Gives Your Child a Teammate Article Math Tears and Dyscalculia: Making Math the Problem Gives Your Child a Teammate Oct 19 California’s New K-2 Math Test Won’t Label Kids. Here’s What Scores Miss. News California’s New K-2 Math Test Won’t Label Kids. Here’s What Scores Miss. Oct 3 Learning Success infographic titled Dyscalculia: 5 Real Strengths That Often Sit Beside It. It explains that dyscalculia is a specific difficulty processing magnitude and quantity and is not a measure of intelligence, and lists five strengths often seen alongside it: verbal reasoning, practical and spatial problem-solving, creative and lateral thinking, strategic thinking, and determination and stamina. It notes these are patterns rather than a guarantee, that naming strengths fosters engagement and protects the math teaching, and that explicit math instruction continues alongside strengths-building because strengths do not teach math. Infographic Struggling With Math Is Only Half the Picture: The Strengths That Often Sit Beside Dyscalculia Sep 24

Attention Deficit Disorder

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It Looks Like ADHD. Ask What Else Was Checked First. Article It Looks Like ADHD. Ask What Else Was Checked First. Oct 17 L-Theanine Was Called a Focus Factor. What Did the Study Find? News L-Theanine Was Called a Focus Factor. What Did the Study Find? Oct 13 Unlocking Math Potential: Beyond Dyscalculia Infographic Dyscalculia Is Not a Life Sentence: What Neuroplasticity Research Says About Your Child’s Math Potential Oct 18

Parenting

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Myers-Briggs Looks Like the Answer. Watching Your Child Is the Real One. Article Myers-Briggs Looks Like the Answer. Watching Your Child Is the Real One. Oct 19 0aafruit-jelly-1351299_960_720 News 5 Things Kids with ADHD Should NOT Eat #adhd Jan 8 Learning Success infographic, Filling the Tank a Hard School Day Empties: using the five love languages after a hard school day for a child who struggles with reading or focus. Intended love versus received love: homework help feels like more correction to a tired child. Watch what makes your child soften. Words of affirmation: praise the effort, not only the result. Quality time: focused attention with nothing to get right. Physical touch: a gentle hug that asks nothing back. Acts of service: help as care, not as one more correction. Gifts: a small token that says you thought of them. Try each language for a week. A struggle at school is not the measure of your connection at home. Infographic Your Child’s Love Language After a Hard School Day: When Help Feels Like Correction Oct 19