by Lokemun Magar

Created on: August 12, 2007   Last Updated: November 01, 2008

Detecting learning disabilities in the first grade can mean priceless help given to the first grader at the beginning of his formal years of education. It can make or break a child's educational career. Habits of learning are formed in these early years. The faster the learning difficulties are discovered and remediated, the easier it will be for the learning disabled child to cope and succeed in his educational pursuits in the later years.

The first sign of learning disabilities in a first grader may be great difficulties in reading or numeracy. In most schools, first graders are given reading and numeracy screening tests. While these tests are not able to point out specific learning difficulties, they help schools identify first graders who may have difficulties in coping with school in their first year.

Most of those identified will be given special lessons to 'catch up' only at the first grade. Many of these may not have gone through kindergartens or may have families who are not able to provide the necessary educational support or learning environment in their early childhood. Unfortunately, as children develop differently and at different stages of the learning continuum, there will be a few children whose learning disabilities will go undetected at the first grade until it is too late to remediate and catch up on the lost years.

While some of these first graders do manage to 'catch up', there will be a few first graders who will need more help. These will usually be given individual attention in or out of class or help by educational psychologists who will try to identify any social or emotional problems that may be impeding a child's progress.

For example, some children are elective mutes, so called because they choose not to speak and not because they suffer from any physical disorder. Elective mutism in a child could be the result of parental disputes or some other disturbing circumstances. Usually once the cause is identified and dealt with, the first grader is then able to move on without much difficulty.

It is usually towards the end of the first year after all the internal help that the school can give that a first grader is referred for specialised testing. This is usually done after proper documentation of all the pre-referral help given by the school is provided and after parental consent is sought.

In most countries which have such specialised testing, the child goes through a battery of testing and interviews which include the physical, socio-emotional,

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>