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  If someone is diagnosed with an academic skill disability, they will exhibit deficits in one or more of the following areas:

	· Reading difficulties or developmental reading disability
	· Writing difficulties or developmental writing disability
	· Arithmetic difficulties or developmental arithmetic disability
	· Fine motor or developmental motor disability
	· Gross motor or developmental motor disability

   Additionally, someone identified with a learning disability is more than likely going to exhibit deficits in social situations, have difficulty with planning, organizing and attention and may also have difficulty taking tests.

   Typical signs of learning disabilities include difficulty (Adapted from A publication of the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities):

	learning the alphabet, rhyming words, or connecting letters to their sounds
	reading aloud with repeating and pausing often
	·comprehending what is read
	with spelling
	with handwriting
	articulating thoughts when writing
	learning language late and having developmentally inadequate receptive and expressive vocabulary
	remembering the sounds of the letters of the alphabet make and hearing differences in letter sounds and words
	comprehending jokes, comic strips, and sarcasm
	following instructions
	pronouncing words and using a word that sounds similar but is wrong
	organizing thoughts into expressive language and/or finding the right word to say in a conversation or when writing
	following social norms when having a conversation such as turn taking, standing too close or to far away from who is being talked to, using inappropriate eye contact etc.)
	confusing math symbols and misreading numbers
	retelling a story in order
	knowing where to begin a task and/or how to go on from here to there

   Thus far, research has not found a cure for learning disabilities. So, if a child is diagnosed as LD, she will be LD her whole life. Because children who have a learning disability have average to above intellectual potential, they can learn strategies to circumvent their deficits in processing with an appropriate Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Children with LD are more than capable of learning and succeeding in life, if their deficits are accurately identified ad appropriate intervention strategies are provided.

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	Diagnosing Learning Disability
	Dyslexia
	Dyscalculia