What it means to be dyslexic

My daughter, Imogen, is telling me how she was attempting to explain to girl of her age at church what it means to be dyslexic. This girl’s mother tongue is English but she also speaks fluent French and attends an international French-speaking school. Imogen knows that, for her, a foreign language is far from a possibility.

She must explain her dyslexia in her own way and words but it makes me wonder if we and her education specialists and teachers have equipped her to do so.

Imogen has been told, by her educators, that dyslexic children are on average 20% more intelligent than their peers. This was a huge boost to her confidence.

The girl with the fluent French does not watch television but spends “down time” reading. A second-language and reading for leisure are incompatible with my daughter.

Imogen explains lightheartedly to the bi-lingual avid reader that her memory does not allow her to memorize things. It does not allow her to learn another language. Reading is not an easy task because she is dyslexic.

Who knows, perhaps this encounter and innocent exchange between the two girls will help our bi-lingual friend to understand the world of the dyslexic. And perhaps my daughter does not need to be given the words to explain her dyslexia. She is perfectly capable, equally intelligent and speaks the language that a fellow 12-year-old would understand and perhaps hold in her memory for future reference.