Subtypes
Dysgraphia means difficulty with handwriting. Some people with dysgraphia have handwriting that is often illegible and shows irregular and inconsistent letter formations. Others write legibly, but very slowly and/or very small. When these individuals revert to printing, as they often do, their writing is often a random mixture of upper- and lowercase letters. In all cases of dysgraphia, writing requires inordinate amounts of energy, stamina, and time.
Dyscalculia refers to individuals who have difficulty with mathematics. Not all individuals with dyslexia have difficulty with mathematics. Some individuals seem very good at math. They may have problems remembering formulas, or the steps to solve a problem, or prefer to take short cuts when solving multi-step problems. Others will have difficulty memorizing math facts, especially multiplication tables, transposing digits such as 93 for 39, relating to directional aspects such as right-left, left-right, up-down, aligning numbes and page organization.
Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Dyslexia
While Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder is not considered a subtype of dyslexia, dyslexic children and children with AD/HD have some similar characteristics. Dyslexic children, like children with AD/HD, may also have difficulty paying attention because reading causes them to fatigue easily, limiting their ability to sustain concentration. Both may have difficulty with reading. The dyslexic person has major problems with accuracy and misreading large and small words. The person with AD/HD may skip over punctuation, leave off endings and lose his place. As a result, both may have problems with comprehension. Both may avoid reading and derive little pleasure from it.
The dyslexic person has difficulty attacking and calling words, but the AD/HD person often can read these words but does not understand what is read. Listening comprehension is higher than reading comprehension for the dyslexic but listening comprehension is lower than reading comprehension for the AD/HD person.
Both the dyslexic and the person with AD/HD typically have trouble with writing. The dyslexic writer frequently has significant problems with spelling, grammar, proofreading, and organization whereas the AD/HD writer often has difficulty with organization and proofreading. Both the dyslexic writer and the AD/HD writer may have handwriting difficulties. An AD/HD child can qualify for special education and an IEP as Other Health Impaired if he/she needs assistance and is not achieving appropriately on a 504 Plan.
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association, Attention Deficit Disorder comes under the category of ADHD. However, this disorder is harder to identify in the classroom for the student does not show the activity pattern of the ADHD child. ADD students are often hypoactive, tend to daydream, and have concentration problems. Thus, learning is affected.
Information taken in part from The International Dyslexia Association.