MYTH: Dyslexia is just reading letters backwards or upside down.
FACTS: While reading letters backwards or upside down can be the results of untreated
dyslexia, it goes much further than this. With any medical or educational diagnosis, the
side effects and treatment plan is unique for each patient or student. This too, is true for
dyslexia. People with dyslexia can also struggle with word sequencing, pronunciation,
penmanship and mixing up letters, among dozens of other side effects.
MYTH: If students with dyslexia tried harder, they would succeed.
FACTS: If you spent one afternoon at Dyslexia School of Houston, you’d see students
with dyslexia are often working 10x harder than their peers without dyslexia. What truly
helps students and people with dyslexia succeed is learning with the proper tools and in
the proper environment so that they can succeed in life outside of the classroom.
MYTH: Dyslexia can be cured.
FACTS: According to the Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity, dyslexia is a
neurobiological disorder. This means that people who have dyslexia are wired uniquely
and this won’t change. Rather, they can use the proper tools and training dyslexia
therapy offers to read, write and speak with ease.
MYTH: Dyslexia is caused when parents don’t read enough to their children.
FACTS: We definitely encourage parents to read to their children because it opens up a
world of imagination, but a limited library or reading schedule does not make your child,
or anyone else dyslexic. Again, because dyslexia is a neurobiological disorder, it’s not
something that can be “caught” or “created” due to nature or nurture disconnections.
MYTH: You won’t know your child has dyslexia until they go to kindergarten.
FACTS: At Dyslexia School of Houston, we offer therapy for students as early as 4
years old. If your child is dyslexic, the earlier they receive a diagnosis, the better. With
an earlier diagnosis, we are able to focus on prevention rather than intervention. It’s
never too late to teach someone how to read or write, but if we can prevent poor habits
from starting before they start kindergarten, the smoother your child’s transition into the
classroom will be.
MYTH: Anyone who has dyslexia has a low IQ.
FACTS: This couldn’t be further from the truth. The fact of the matter is that some of the
world’s most intelligent and successful people have or had dyslexia. A few famous
figures you might recognize include: George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Thomas
Edison, Henry Ford, Charles Schwab, Agatha Christie, Richard Branson, Kevin O’Leary,
Barbara Corcoran, Tommy Hilfiger, and Erin Brockovich….just to name a few. It is true
that many people with other learning and intellectual differences like ADHD or autism
may also have dyslexia or signs thereof, but dyslexia does not impact a person’s IQ.
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