An individual who has a hard time following instructions
Before an individual can read, most task instructions are provided by parents and teachers aurally. This can be problematic because kids with an APD have a harder time understanding and remembering multi-step instructions, particularly if they are not repeated multiple times. The tragedy for students with a learning difficulty or disorder is they may be told they are not paying attention or deliberately disobeying the rules, when in reality they fail to follow instructions due to listening comprehension deficits
An individual who has a hard time understanding people with accents
Individuals with an APD often have problems with non-standard speech sounds, including accents which are not familiar to them. That’s because regional accents in the student’s native tongue may vary in sounds, phoneme-length, stress, intonation and vocabulary. Individuals who speak with a foreign accent or speech impediment may be equally problematic for kids with an auditory processing disorder to understand.
5. CALCULATIONS
What is dyscalculia?
Dyscalculia is a learning disorder that affects a person’s ability to understand number-based information and math. People who have dyscalculia struggle with numbers and math because their brains don’t process math-related concepts like the brains of people without this disorder.
However, their struggles don’t mean they’re less intelligent or less capable than people who don’t have dyscalculia.
The symptoms of this disorder usually appear in childhood, especially when children learn how to do basic math. However, many adults have dyscalculia and don’t know it. People who have dyscalculia often face mental health issues when they have to do math, such as anxiety, depression and other difficult feelings.
What is the difference between dyslexia and dyscalculia?
Dyslexia and dyscalculia are both learning disorders, but they have key differences. In the most general terms, these two break down as follows:
Dyscalculia: This learning disorder affects a person’s ability to do math.
Dyslexia: This learning disorder affects a person’s ability to read.
While they’re different, the two conditions fall under the same diagnosis. It’s also possible for people to have both dyscalculia and dyslexia.
6. ORGANIZATION
Executive function refers to a set of skills that help you effectively manage your daily tasks and behaviors. These skills are controlled by an area of your brain called the frontal lobe. Let’s delve into the details:
Working Memory: This is like a mental notepad where you store information about your daily activities and the processes needed to complete them. When working memory isn’t functioning optimally, you might experience forgetfulness, disorganization, or difficulty completing ordinary tasks.
Cognitive Flexibility: This skill involves adapting to changes around you. If you struggle with cognitive flexibility, you may find it hard to switch tasks, readapt to stress, or handle unexpected events.
Inhibition Control: This affects how you manage your thoughts, feelings, and behavior. Poor inhibition control can lead to impulsivity, difficulty focusing on specific tasks, or challenges in keeping quiet when necessary.
Executive function skills begin developing soon after birth, accelerate between ages 3 and 5, and continue to evolve through adolescence. When these skills don’t work as they should, it can impact your ability to work, study, function independently, and maintain healthy relationships1.
Additionally, there’s a condition called executive dysfunction disorder, which goes beyond occasional forgetfulness or disorganization. It’s a long-term issue that affects your everyday life. For instance, you might struggle with tasks involving multiple steps, such as cooking a meal or completing work or school projects.
Who does dyscalculia affect?
Dyscalculia can happen to anyone, but it’s common for it first to draw attention when children are in their first few years of elementary school (between ages 6 and 9).
How common is dyscalculia?
Dyscalculia is uncommon but widespread. Experts estimate it affects between 3% and 7% of people worldwide.
How does dyscalculia affect my brain?
People who have dyscalculia are neurodivergent. Neurodiversity is a term that describes how no two people have the same brain, and everyone’s brain forms and develops in a completely unique way. For people with dyscalculia, that means their brain works differently from the brain of someone who doesn’t have disorders or conditions that affect how their brain works.
Solving a math problem like “2+2=?” might seem simple, but it takes several different skills — and the areas of the brain that manage them — working together to do it. Some of those include:
Visualprocessing: Your eyes see the entirety of the math problem and send the components back to your brain for processing.
Short-term memory: You use your short-term memory to hold onto the specifics of the math problem as you work on it. For example, the number amounts, the symbols and the order in which they appear.
Language: You use this part of your brain to translate the symbols in the math problem into what those symbols mean. That’s how you know what the plus sign, equal sign and question mark mean in this context.
Long-term memory: You access this kind of memory to remember the process of how to solve a math problem. In this case, your brain identifies that this is an addition problem based on the plus sign and the equals sign.
Understanding of quantities and amounts: Your brain translates the symbol “2” into the understanding that it represents a specific amount or quantity. Children usually learn this principle by giving them examples like fruits or animals.
Calculation: This process unites all of the above, helping you solve that 2+2=4.