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What To Do if You Think Your Child Has a Learning Disability

Experts don't know how many different learning disabilities there are or what causes them. They do know learning disabled students are often very bright. They just have a problem that makes learning difficult.

Because there are so many learning disabilities, it's hard to describe a “typical” one. One child may not be able to spell because “b” looks like “d.” Another can't read because his eyes sometimes confuse the order of letters from left to right.

If you think your child may have a learning disability, here's what you can do to help:

Talk to your child's teacher. Tell her what you suspect. Explain why you think your child may have a learning disability.

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Ask whether your child can be tested. A good test will help the school find out what learning problems your child has. It will also help the school plan how to correct them.

Give your child extra support at home. When school is hard, kids may act up at home. Let your child know you love him and believe in him.

Find things your child can do well. All kids need to know they're good at something.

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