Not all gifts come wrapped

A quick analogy…

So you’re an enterprising, dynamic ambitious individual. Imagine that you're bursting with enthusiasm for a new course or an idea for a venture that you've been dreaming about putting into action.

Now imagine that you’ve just received a ‘gift’ - Dyslexia, immensely frustrating and inhibiting Dyslexia. All of a sudden you seem unable to negotiate turning the very thoughts from your mind into reality. Remember, this gift has come out of no where and dropped into your lap. It may feel like one of those unexplained memory black outs that we all get from time to time; you know the ones - one minute you’re sitting down watching television, you get up during an interval of your favorite TV program, only to return during the Ad break completely and inexplicably unable to remember what you were watching two minutes earlier.

Dyslexia has been responsible in some cases for holding back sufferers by causing what can only be described as a stunting of their development as far back as Key Stage 1. In many cases the total lack of recognition and understanding of the condition has led to collapse in self confidence – made worse by teachers and parents who did not understand and quite simply thought those kids were stupid.

Years ago it wasn’t so easy to diagnose a 4 year old who wouldn't after all be expected to grasp spelling and literacy at such a young age. But that's certainly no consolation to an adult whose current status may well have stemmed from difficulties in learning coupled with little or no support back in their formative school years. Thankfully, there are now methods of diagnosing the different causes early on. Obviously once Dyslexia or any number of similar conditions has been diagnosed, it’s then down to creative teaching skills to ensure that kids are not only protected from being left behind, but are encouraged to fulfil their vast potential.

Individuals with Dyslexia tend to be extremely bright, in the same way that people that suffer with Bi-Polar disorder are said to be artistically creative. Hence the reason I call it a gift. Far from being in some way deficient, it has nothing whatsoever to do with a lack of intelligence - it's quite the opposite. Dyslexic minds are said to be able to perceive an alternative reality to the one they see in the real world. It's easy to see how unchecked or controlled this could cause problems in the school setting. But with self awareness and training there would seem to be no limit to the height of achievement potentially reached by some that are 'blessed' with Dyslexia. Isn't it interesting that those of us that have no choice but to battle to overcome adversity tend also to be naturally astute, sharp or creative soles.

With so many of these conditions now recognized to create countless bright a gifted people, it's good news that there’s now more available knowledge and understanding. But doesn’t this create something of a dilemma for today’s teachers? There simply cannot be one standard method of teaching large numbers of children. It's not feasible to continue to allow so much talent to slip by. The old systems of teaching simply don’t work in today’s society.

The list of talented and accomplished people with the ‘gift’ is very long. It includes people such as Richard Branson of the Virgin Group, Henry Ford of Ford Motor Company and William Hewlett of Hewlett Packard.

So if you have the gift, you're in good company.