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Discovering Dyslexia
One Mother's Journey By Mary Beth Castell
Upon getting the diagnosis, we immediately set out on a mission to learn all we could about all aspects of dyslexia. We headed off to our daughter's school to get some information about how best to meet our daughter's educational needs.
Hours spent on the phone with local agencies provided little help and confirmed the fact that there was no local group for children with dyslexia. It was evident that while information and support was abundant for many other disabilities, very little was being done to meet the needs of families living with dyslexia. Just getting information to educate us was difficult. We still needed to educate her teachers. This all seemed inconceivable to us, as conservative estimates indicate that approximately 15 percent of the population is dyslexic!
We turned our efforts elsewhere. We found comprehensive, up-to-date information online when we came across SchwabLearning.org. SchwabLearning armed me with the tools, support and resources I needed to become a better parent to my daughter with learning differences. SchwabLearning also provided me with the guidance, practical information and support I needed to become my daughter's best advocate and more easily navigate her journey with dyslexia.
Personal contacts were established within SchwabLearning, and I received a great deal of guidance from key individuals. They encouraged me to forge ahead and make a difference in my community.
That evening I approached my husband with the idea of opening a resource center offering materials and support to other families who were going through what we were. He agreed immediately, and together we started the Learning Brook, a not-for-profit organization based in Cleveland, Ohio, to help empower children with dyslexia and related learning differences.
A turning point for my daughter came when she decided to do a required three-month research project culminating with a 30-minute presentation on nothing other than dyslexia. As she began to better understand what dyslexia was, she felt much better. She was fascinated with what she was learning. Her embarrassment and nervousness were replaced with confidence and strength. She wanted to teach others, a true self-advocate. Her presentation was incredible and well received by her teachers and classmates.
The most important thing to come out of her independent study was her empowerment.
True to her dream, our daughter has started a "club" for kids with learning differences. She and I recently hosted the first "Saturday Social" for kids. The theme was "my gifts and talents." You see, my daughter has always been a gift to others. Her ribbons are once again brightly colored. As I looked around the center, her eyes and the eyes of her new friends shone so brightly and their smiles were huge.