Does your child grow increasingly frustrated when they tackle their reading assignment?

While it could be that your child dislikes reading, if you begin to see a pattern of problems in one particular learning area, your child may have a learning disability/difficulty (LD).

If there is a common theme of difficulty reported by teachers or problems that you have seen yourself, it is worth having your child assessed because a LD is not always that easy to identify, says Dr. Janet Kemp, the director of The Reading Clinic. (See side bar for list of common learning disabilities.)

A learning disability that has gone unidentified can result in number of future academic and social problems, Dr. Kemp adds.

Children with a LD are more likely to perceive themselves as dumb because the disability is often less obvious.

That?s why it?s commonly called the invisible handicap, she says.

?It?s a tricky balance because you don?t want to overreact but you also don?t want to leave the problem for too long.?

There is also a tendency to blame learning difficulties on laziness or acting out but listen to what your child is telling you and don?t ignore your own knowledge of him or her, Dr. Kemp advises.

?We underestimate a child?s sensitivity. At a very early age kids are aware of what stage they should be (learning) at.?

If your child has been identified with a LD keep yourself informed about learning styles and accommodations that your child might need. Find help with local support groups such as Bermuda Overcoming Learning Disabilities (BOLD), which has also produced a useful resource guide with information on LD.

In Bermuda, it is often difficult to have your child?s learning styles accommodated since mandatory mainstreaming in the public school system and the closure of the Island?s special schools. This has left teachers with the huge task of inclusion of special needs students in their classroom.

As a parent or caregiver, you need to be an advocate for your child. You must encourage school officials and teachers to accommodate LD children so they are learning in the best possible environment for their disability.

?Intervention for many learning disabilities is usually just a few subtle changes,? says Dr. Kemp.

On top of finding academic accommodations for your child it is also important to boost an LD child?s self-esteem, she adds.

?Children need to understand their weaknesses but also their strengths so that they can see that they may not be good at this but they are good at something else.

?If we were all required to be good at music we would have a world full of very bad singers,? she adds.

At times, whether intentionally or not, others can be very cruel to children who learn differently and label them as dumb or stupid so parents need to be sensitive towards their children?s difficulties, Dr. Kemp advises.

Even if a child doesn?t excel academically there are other areas that they can be good at such as the arts, sports or computer skills.

?Be in a position to highlight your child?s strengths. You have to accept that there are areas that your child is not always good at,? says Dr. Kemp.

Bermuda does have several resources for bringing up a child with LD including support groups and services. is a parent support group of the Learning Disabilities Association of Bermuda (LDAB) and meets at 7.30 p.m. on the last Monday of every month at The Reading Clinic on Serpentine Road. Contact Maria Frith at frithsnorthrock.bm for further information regarding meetings. offers educational and psychological services. The Reading Clinic?s motto is: If they cannot learn the way we teach, can we teach the way they learn? The Clinic also offers tutoring, parent consultations, an information centre and advocacy. is a Government programme directed toward pre-school children and their families and assists with speech and language development, behaviour concerns, the needs of children with special developmental challenges, overall developmental enrichment through play and family issues. is a solid foundation for education and information and support, for parents, professionals and others living with Autism. Meetings are held the first Monday of every month at the Reading Clinic at 7.30 p.m. Call Tricia at 293-5333 for further information. is a support group for parents with special-needs children. Meetings held the second Tuesday of each month at the Friendship Vale School, Warwick at 6.30 p.m.