Dyslexia, like everything else in the universe, has its place and purpose. Watching the above trailer of "The Connected Universe" in Full Screen (click on the right hand lower icon) is an amazing experience.
As for the background to the above trailer, "The Connected Universe" posted on its Facebook page on Friday, September 23, that the film will be premiering in Los Angeles on Monday, September 26. The film, narrated by Sir Patrick Stewart (known for his role as "Star Trek: The Next Generation" 's Captain Jean-Luc Picard and as Shakespeare actor), explores the interconnection of all things in the Universe.
While "The Connected Universe" certainly does not cover dyslexia, the film's theme does raise the question -- why do we have dyslexia and what is its connection within the vast universe?
The clear answer to the above question lies in -- "without."
Without dyslexia, we would not have the amazing work of Leonardo da Vinci, August Rodin, Jorn Utzon (architect who designed Sydney Opera house), writer Agatha Christie, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gustave Flaubert, W.B. Yeats, Ann Bancroft (Arctic Explorer), Alexander Graham Bell, John R. Horner (Jurassic Park), Pierre Curie (Physicist), Werner Von Braun, Erin Brockovich, George Patton, Henry Ford, William Hewlett, Charles Schwab, Andrew Jackson, Thomas Jefferson, John F. Kennedy, Nelson Rockefeller, Woodrow Wilson, George Washington, Cher, John Lennon, Harry Belafonte, Tom Cruise, Whoopi Goldberg, Jay Leno, Keanu Reeves, Henry Winkler, and Robin Williams.
There are many more famous (and not-so-famous) dyslexic individuals -- past and present -- whose talented contributions have made the universe brighter.
While fighting the challenges that accompany dyslexia, especially in a traditional environment, parents and teachers might ask themselves -- what would the world be without dyslexia?
Reading and hearing the words of famous people with dyslexia and witnessing the pain they experienced as a child is heartbreaking. What is even more heartbreaking, however, is the fact that not much has changed in our school system.
Children with dyslexia are still suffering in school and dropping out. How many psychologists are able to trace a child's depression, alcoholism, drug abuse or even suicide to the fact that the child was actually dyslexic -- but never diagnosed?
If, as Canada reports, 1 out of 5 children is dyslexic, imagine being a teacher in a classroom of 25 students. Even if one child is being diagnosed as having dyslexia, what happens to the other four children?
Dyslexia and what's the deal with learning disabilities?
Below is an excerpt of our book What's The Deal With Learning Disabilities? Since we have discontinued the publication of the book due to costs, we do want to share some of its insights in the hope that it will make a difference in the lives of children with learning disabilities.
In contrast to most books about learning disabilities like dyslexia, our book actually focuses on the amazing abilities in the word dis-ability.
After sharing some of the painful experiences of famous people with learning disabilities, the book actually focuses on what amazing abilities they discovered in their "dis-abilities" -- and what made all the difference in their lives.
Here are the painful voices of famous dyslexics:
“When I was growing up, no one knew what learning challenges were. So, I was called ‘stupid,’ ‘lazy,’
and ‘not living up to my potential’ … Inside you feel one way, and people are telling you that you are
another way, and I couldn’t reconcile that.” (Henry Winkler, The Fonz)
“I only remember one B in my life. The rest were a few Cs, mostly Ds, and lots and lots and lots of Fs. …Throughout college, I learned a lot but I kept flunking out. I still couldn’t memorize. It was also hard for me to keep up with lectures. In chemistry, I remember my teacher writing on the board and talking about something else at the same time. I couldn’t follow either. And I could never keep up with all the reading.” (Dr. John (Jack) Horner, a consultant to Steven Spielberg for the movies, “Jurassic Park” and “The Lost World” was the real life model for the paleontologist in the movie Jurassic Park.)
“When I was young, I went to a million different schools. I kept falling further and further behind in my schoolwork because of it. My spelling was terrible; I couldn’t read quickly enough to get all my
homework done, and for me, math was like trying to understand Sanskrit. It was embarrassing for me not to be able to do the schoolwork that everyone else was doing. Was I stupid? I didn’t think I was. But all the signs pointed in that direction. I didn’t like authority, and I couldn’t understand the lessons.” (Cherilyn Sarkisian LaPiere, better known as Cher, did not learn that she was dyslexic until she was 30.)
“It’s painful to think about it. The nasty little secret was that I couldn’t read worth a darn.” (Charles
Schwab, 66, dyslexic financier, in an interview with the New York Times.)
“He told me that his teachers reported that…he was mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in his foolish dreams. Apparently nothing came easily, except, I suppose, Physics, when he finally got there. In the meantime, he could not remember the time’s tables, he couldn’t read very well, and spelling defeated him. It was even suggested that Albert might be mentally handicapped.” (Hans Albert Einstein about his father.)
“Young Anthony was a sensitive kid, happier drawing, painting and playing the piano (he's now a
virtuoso) than hanging with the other kids. A dyslexic, he was poor academically, once saying of himself ‘I was lousy in school. Real screwed-up. A moron. I was anti-social and didn't bother with the other kids. A really bad student. I didn't have any brains. I didn't know what I was doing there. That's why I became an actor.’ To separate him from the many other Hopkins at school, he became known as Mad Hopkins.”( Anthony Hopkins Biography)
“Despite Andrew Jackson’s intellectual promise, he never showed much ability to write, and his poor
spelling appalled his friends.”King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden has had some "hard and bitter" experiences in his struggle with dyslexia. Queen Silvia, in a TV interview shown Thursday in Stockholm, spoke publicly for the first time about the king's learning disorder. It became publicly apparent during a visit to a copper mine in 1973, when he signed his name on a rock wall and misspelled it.
“Whoopi had a lot of difficulty in school, but it was not until she was an adult did she learn that she had dyslexia. When Whoopi was growing up, she remembers being called dumb and stupid because she had a lot of problems reading.” (Whoopie Goldberg, actress and entertainer.)
The future of dyslexia
Unless we want children to continue to suffer like the above famous people with dyslexia, schools, teachers, parents, and society in general have to change.
Our book about the amazing abilities in students with dyslexia or other learning dis-abilities (including emotional disabilities) is not for sale. Our school, the Academy of Exploration International, is closed for the major part.
However, we are continuing our work in trying to make a positive difference in the lives of children with dyslexia.
As such, we will be posting more excerpts from the book - which focuses on the abilities and not disabilities -- on our JTNews19 blog.
If you are interested in receiving the eBook copy of the book for FREE, send us an email to Exploration@cox.net. The discussion about the amazing abilities in children with learning dis-abilities is also continuing on Twitter.
The only thing we wish is that you will respect the purpose of the Academy of Exploration International -- to make a positive in the difference in the lives of children with learning disabilities like dyslexia.
After having spent 30 years teaching children with dyslexia,dyscalculia ADD, ADHD, auditory processing disorders, emotional disorders, tourettes, autism, OCD, depression, and about any other physical or emotional challenges that students are facing, it is time to write about why those students became successful in life.
Those kids turned out to be writers, poets, yoga masters, painters, veterinarians, an international ice-skating champion, and whatever road their life was meant to take.
To explain why and how those students with learning disabilities succeeded, would take a novel. In the meantime, this blog can provide a few insights -- one at a time.
As to the topic of time, the most important aspect of understanding children with physical or emotional learning disabilities is that these kids have amazing "abilities." There is a reason for the word "ability" in the word "dis-ability."
Creative individuals like kids with learning dis-abilities are most active at night because it is when the brain functions differently.
Most everyone who is able to remember his or her dreams ( a skill that can be learned) knows how utterly awesome the brain works in creating the most unimaginable images, metaphors, and story lines.
In contrast to kids who follow the "logic" left-brain hemisphere directions to sleep at night, kids with learning dis-abilities (governed by the creative right side of the brain), follow their "nature" to be creative when the brain works at its ultimate.
Imagine waking up every night when you have a dream and feeling the need to have to write it down, draw it, or express it in any other way.
As such, it is no surprise that children with learning dis-abilities are tired in the morning and have trouble following other people's understanding of "time" management.
More on the topic and how our school dealt with the "time" issue to be continued ....
"No one knows whether or not he is a writer unless he has tried writing at night." – H.P. Lovecraft pic.twitter.com/VUsZpq4SZ6
After having worked with dyslexic students for 30 years, the secret to successfully teaching children with dyslexia comes down to one single word. While some might consider one simple word a much too easy solution to a complex neurological issue like dyslexia, the success stories of many students and the success stories of famous celebrities speak for themselves.
Dyslexia and the Corpus Callosum
Parents and teachers might be utterly surprised to learn about the power of the word "Help" when it comes to teaching dyslexic children how to read and how to be successful. Here is a brief and somewhat simplified explanation:
Scientists have linked dyslexia to the Corpus Callosum which is the structure that connects the left and the right brain hemispheres. In dyslexic children and adults, the structure of the Corpus Callosum (including its thickness and neuronal pathways) affects how and how fast dyslexics process information between the left and right brain hemispheres.
Most often, the structure of the Corpus Callosum -- best understood as an "Inter-sphere Highway" between the left and right side of the brain -- is determined by genetics.
Charles Schwab, the famous banker, discovered his own dyslexia only after his son was diagnosed.
The Corpus Callosum or “Inter-sphere Highway”of dyslexic children or adults is like a very rocky road that is difficult to travel and can only be driven at a slow speed.
Dyslexic children prefer and tend to stay on the right brain hemisphere because it is their strong visual, creative, and imaginative side. Having to cross the Corpus Callosum or "Inter-sphere Highway" from the creative right side of the brain to the left side (associated with math and language skills) results in confusion and disorientation for individuals with dyslexia.
The simple word that makes all the difference for children with dyslexia
Children with dyslexia can learn to read at or beyond grade level if a parent or teacher can strengthen the "Inter-sphere Highway" and prevent the dyslexic child's brain from becoming disoriented. For some dyslexic children, the mere fact of being forced to read can cause disorientation and a blockage to even try to cross over to the left side of the brain. Most often, however, it is trigger words that cause a disorientation in a dyslexic child's brain.
There are more than 200 small trigger words like "not," "she," "on," or "to" that will cause disorientation in a dyslexic child’s brain. To prevent a dyslexic child's brain from becoming disoriented and to be able to read, teach the child to say "Help" BEFORE a word causes disorientation.
At first, most dyslexic students react suspicious when they are told that all they have to say is "Help," when they encounter a word they are struggling to read. It is important to let a student try to read and not say anything until he or she actually says "Help."
Once the teacher, parent, or assistant just reads the word for the student -- instead of giving some phonetic lecture or explanation -- the student will trust that when an adult says, "Just say 'help'" -- this is all a reader needs to do.
Reading with a dyslexic student can turn into a most enjoyable interaction of "you read -- I read the words you are struggling with" within just one or two reading sessions.
Once a child learns to say "Help" while reading instead of becoming disoriented, he or she will gain confidence, become a better reader, and -- most importantly -- focus on and discover the treasure of what literature is all about.
The word "Help" in finding the "ability" in a dis-ability
Famous authors Agatha Christie and F. Scott Fitzgerald are just two of the famous authors who struggled with dyslexia in their lives. However, unlike Christie and Fitzgerald (and many other famous celebrities), no child today should have to endure the emotional pain that can come with dyslexia.
In order to protect children with dyslexia from embarrassment in the classroom and to provide them with the individualized support that they need in the traditional school environment, it is crucial that dyslexia is recognized worldwide as a learning disability.
James Middleton with his two older sisters "Pippa" and Kate. James is next to "Pippa".
(Photo by Hugo Burnand/St James's Palace - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
As James Middleton, Kate Middleton's brother, shared about his horrific experience of living with dyslexia: “When I read out loud in class, it was a joy for everyone else because I would mispronounce things so badly. I used to try to count how many people were in front of me and then work out which paragraph I would have to read out and start trying to learn it. And I would sit there thinking, ‘Please let the bell go so that it doesn’t get round to me’.’’
”When I was about seven, I was labeled dyslexic. I’d try to concentrate on what I was reading, and then I’d get to the end of the page and have very little memory of anything I’d read. I would go blank, feel anxious, nervous, bored, frustrated, dumb," said Tom
Cruise.
·“I was lousy in school:
a real screw-up, a moron. I was antisocial and didn’t bother with the other
kids… I didn’t know what I was doing there. That’s why I became an actor," shared Anthony Hopkins.
·''I was so single-minded
about acting….I drove myself into the ground trying to get over dyslexia and
when I finished school I had the top grades," revealed Keira Knightley. By the time Keira Knightley was 15, she left school to pursue
acting.
Dyslexia -- and why it exists
Without dyslexia, the world would be deprived of some of the most creative and innovative people as described in Dyslexic children and how dyslexia can be a gift in disguise. However, in order for children to discover the purpose for their dyslexia and the "ability" in the word "dis-ability," it is time for them to say one more time the word HELP!
