Hi Moms,
I am trying to teach my darling MIL something related to our online business. She is 70 years old, so I know that some of the difficulties stem from her age, and her not being very computer savvy. However, she also has quite severe dyslexia, and I am trying to understand what that means in terms of how she perceives and processes information. Any suggestions for how to teach her more effectively? I will be researching this online, but in the meantime I thought I would ask here as well.
Thanks in advance!
Wish I could help. My dad is dyslexic and it's so hard to teach him anything. He has a hard time even listening to me. His mind goes on its own thought tangents. So frustrating.
It really depends on what you are trying to teach and what her weakness is (every dyslexic varies in strengthens & weaknesses). I have severe dyslexia but can read and write where some can even more severe and can not even read.
Anyway it is really hard to help without knowing what you are trying to teach and what her strengthens and weaknesses are.
For me learning anything new, and I am only 30, is extermly hard BUT I do my best to learn that skill if it is a must for a job. It takes me WEEKS of practicing and training in the skill. Also I have horrible short term memory so what I am learning needs to be written down (preferable by someone else) on what to do so I can go over the steps on my own. If it gets frustrating it is best to take a break, step away and come back when ready to tackle it again. Being fristrated and put under a time crunch, at least for me, makes it even hard to learn anything and increases the dyslexia.
In the end it may be something she can not do. So you will either have to do it yourself or give her a step by step print out on pastel paper of how to do that thing. She may never remember how to do it from memory due to being dyslexic and due to age (kind of a double whammy).
I have homeschooled our children and 2 of the 5 I've raised have been diagnosed as dyslexic, one of them severe. the biggest thing that made a difference in the way I taught them is in understanding the way they see things. a dyslexic is actually highly gifted in some areas and struggles with others. one of the gifts is their perception of life and all it contains. they primarily see things in 3D. you and I see things predominantly in 2D. We see letters as flat fixed items on a page. they see them as an object floating in space. That is why they have trouble with "b" and "d". it is the exact same object flipped. which makes it the same as a "p" or a "g" or even an "a" if written a certain way. There's a great book that has been helpful to us called "the Gift of Dyslexia". let me know if you want to know more or if you'd like the names of other helpful books. Best wishes!
K.
Patience is the best. Since she's older, her brain is "set" and will be hard to "retrain"...
Keeping it short and simple is the best. Using ALL CAPS helps as SOME people with dyslexia can read all caps better - my son - Greg has dyslexia and does better this way. He also has a tutor.
Check out www.diannecraft.org
Write out simple words and number phrases. Ask her to copy the words or phrases, or to say them allowed. This will help you figure out what she is seeing.
Does she see bag as gab or dag
Does she see ball as ball or dall
Does she see 123 has 132?
My daughter is dyslexic. She has always said it is much easier for her read on paper than it is on a computer. She has to concentrate A LOT more if she has to read and comprehend on the computer. I think it can be different person to person, depending on how the dyslexia manifest itself in that person. Your MIL probably has some idea what is easier for her....if you ask the right questions she might be able to give you some feedback.
At this point in her life it may depend more on how intellectually "flexible" and open she is...my mother has trouble dealing with anything on computers because she is afraid of them (thinks she might break something) and that makes it hard for her learn anything related to them.
