Why does my child make spelling mistakes when copying from a textbook?
Why does my child make spelling mistakes when copying from a textbook?
Molly's parents approached me after my presentation on handwriting development in the early years. It is not uncommon for parents to want to
talk about other problems and another child unrelated to the topic I had presented.
These parents revealed that their older daughter Molly was seven years old and struggling at school. They also explained that Molly was engaging, articulate, and funny, and they were surprised she had problems. "She seemed so advanced for her age when she started school." The parents further volunteered their daughter was a daydreamer and loved drawing and creative things but did not like writing, and weekends were a nightmare trying to get her to teach her 'spelling words' before the spelling test on Monday. Molly's parents expressed concern that they were losing their once-happy child to the pressures of school and academic challenges. While they understood that spelling and reading were difficult for her, they recently discovered that copying passages from a storybook proved just as complicated and demanding. This alarming realisation made them want to understand what symptoms might indicate her struggles.
The mother explained that they could not obtain a diagnosis for their daughter because she was not severe enough, and the school would not recommend her for formal psychological testing until she turned eight. Molly, a summer-born baby, had just turned seven, making her almost a year younger than some of her peers. She would have to endure nearly an entire academic year of waiting. The parents had done their research and suspected that their child might have dyslexia, but they couldn't understand why copying from a book was so challenging for her.
“learning is not solely a brain function but involves the body’s reflexes and movements. The brain translates information presented by the sensory organs”
The hastiness with which these parents approached me after my presentation ended (at their son's nursery) demonstrated they were hungry for any sort of guidance available. I needed to explain a few basic ideas to them so they could see a more holistic picture.
I took the time to convey that learning is not solely a brain function but involves the body's reflexes and movements. The brain translates information presented by the sensory organs. So, the brain interprets what we 'see, hear, touch, taste and feel'. I explained to Molly's parents that being forced to do more copying tasks would not change the situation for their seven-year-old.
“Both parents looked at each other and told me she had recently had an eye test, and her eyes were fine.”
In this instance, regarding handwriting, they said daughter Molly was able to draw well, so the problem was less related to her hands (or fine motor movement) and more to her eyes. They needed to have her eyes checked in case there were vision deficiencies. Both parents looked at each other and told me she had recently had an eye test, and her eyes were fine.
Explaining eye examinations to anxious parents can be challenging, especially regarding aspects of eye movement that opticians do not assess.
Symptoms that high street opticians do not check for.
1. Eye fatigue (about reading)
2. Needing to use a bookmark or finger when reading, or there is a loss of place
3. Re-reading the same passage over and over, but still struggling with comprehension
4. Skipping lines when reading
5. Trouble reading a long line of numbers
6. Misreading words
7. Headaches when reading
8. Problems copying from a textbook
“ These helpful tools, of using a finger or bookmark, cannot be employed when copying a passage from a book”
Copying written material is challenging for some children.
When children experience reading challenges due to the inefficiency of their eye movements, they can use a bookmark/finger to guide their eyes correctly. These helpful tools of using a finger or bookmark cannot be employed when copying a passage from a book. If a child's eyes cannot move horizontally, stay still at particular points, or move vertically from copying material to their page, copying will be a bigger challenge than reading for some.
When the eyes movement becomes compromised
The eyes move in particular ways and must have a full range of movements and abilities to cope with different tasks. The optician will check how we focus using our eyes for distance vision and near vision. If the eyes can't focus, they prescribe glasses to accommodate. They do not check further than these key areas.
“Parents reading this should know until the building blocks of development, primitive reflexes, are assessed, they will not have a clear insight into their child’s weaknesses.”
Molly's journey took over a year and a half.
I conducted a thorough Reflex Integration Assessment on Molly in the following weeks. A comprehensive evaluation provided a complete understanding of Molly's learning predispositions beyond her reading, spelling, and coping skills.
Parents reading this should know until the building blocks of development, primitive reflexes, are assessed, they will not have a clear insight into their child's weaknesses.
It is helpful to break down the symptoms Molly showed and relate them to primitive reflexes.
Symptoms relating to reading, writing and spelling
1. Hands grasp - fine motor finger differentiation
2. Convergence/ Eye-tracking (to include eye fixation, pursuits and saccades )
The reflexes I focused on for these symptoms included: Symmetric Tonic Neck Reflex (STNR) and Robinson's Hand Grasp, along with specific developmental exercises from the MNRI program for finger/hand development. Molly's drawing was good, but formal writing required precision, so more work needed to be done. A lot of eye-tracking exercises formed part of the STNR exercises.
Symptoms related to focus and listening in the classroom setting.
1. Attention span control
2. Listening (auditory memory)
3. Analysis of objects in the visual-auditory field
The reflexes I worked on help the above symptoms included: Asymmetric Tonic Neck Reflex (ATNR) and Spinal Galant. These reflexes helped Molly stay on task, listen, and pay attention in class. It also helped her with reading and blending sounds when reading.
Movement and Orientation in Space
1. Copying from the board
2. Left-right/up-down differentiation
3. Space-time orientation
4. Reading the time
The reflexes worked on to help the above symptoms: Trunk Extension and Spinning. Molly did not understand how to sit up straight, often leaning or tilting her head to one side. Understanding what it felt like to have her body straight gave her a starting reference when twisting her head to the right or left. These exercises also helped her understand the difference between 'b' and 'd.'
Memorisation and thinking easily
1. Focusing and recalling names, dates and times tables
2. Memory for sequencing
3. The ability to study
The reflexes I worked on helped the above symptoms included: Legs-Cross-Flexion-Extension, Segmented Rolling and Segmented Turning. Molly found rolling very difficult and often resisted these particular exercises. It was challenging to follow through with the parents, but we did manage to do enough to make a difference in her focus and attention when studying and recalling.
Motivation and confidence
1. Courage for decision-making and self-expression (related to reading and comprehension)
2. Focusing and finding interesting facts
3. Motivation to succeed
The reflexes worked on to help the above symptoms included: Hands-Support, and Laudau. Molly experienced fear at the start of the work; after a while, she grew to understand how the fear in her body started to leave, and she was not as scared to try new things and have agency in what she was doing.
Being open to learning
1. Breathing from the diaphragm
2. Curiosity and joy
The reflex pattern used to help the above symptoms was the six-sided star. The 'six-sided star' is a movement pattern created by the founder of MNRI, Dr Muscatova and most children, including Molly, enjoy these exercises. It helped Molly feel more relaxed in the morning. She learnt how to move from mouth breathing to nasal breathing.
Beyond reflex integration
The reflex integration lasted for around eight months. Molly corrected most of her difficulties relating to reading, keeping her place and copying with ease, alongside other problems I found. There is a psychological impact of not having reflexes integrated, and we proceeded to the phonics side of things in a very different manner using thephonic integration program.
“ Although Molly is still a work in progress, her journey from initial concerns about copying and spelling to her current state demonstrates significant improvement. ”
A year on from the first meeting
When an educational psychologist assessed Molly, the only issues identified were below-age working memory and weak processing speed.
Although Molly is still a work in progress, her journey from initial concerns about copying and spelling to her current state demonstrates significant improvement. With appropriate interventions, nearly all children experience substantial progress. She is now reading at the correct age level and no longer faces challenges with writing or copying from a book.
This ongoing progress should provide parents with hope and encouragement.
Dyslexia? Dyspraxia? ADHD? ASD? Speech & Language? Developmental Delay? Anxiety?
Is every school day a struggle? As a parent, you may feel exhausted and on this journey alone. Each year you see the gap getting wider. You need to do something - change the approach, help your child learn for themselves, find a way to turn this around - to help while you can - do this NOW. the first step is free.
About the Author
Usha Patel is a Neurocognitive Therapist and Director at Raviv Practice London. Parents searching to help their suspected/neurodiverse child can get evidence-based solutions with results in as little as 8 weeks. Those in search of jargon-free help can get started straight away.
