My daughter began to show reading issues almost immediately. The issues were subtle but if you were careful you could see there was something more than waiting for that moment to click. I had been told that I need to be patient and one day it would just click. Many have said that a child at the age of six who was not reading was no cause for alarm. I was reassured that many children do not read until they are eight years old. Yet, that mom instinct I held in my heart was telling me something different. Normally, I would have agreed with the reassurances but I could tell something was not connecting. Why should I continue down a failing road waiting for a moment to click? My daughter was becoming increasingly more frustrated. To be frank, I shared her frustration. To my shame, I found I was frustrated with her. Why could she read “pin” and not “in”? Why could she pick out the word in the sentence once prompted but could not read the sentence?
I decided to listen to my heart and searched for an answer beyond curriculum. I wanted to find the tools to teach my daughter to read. This was not a time for parental pride or hopes of overcoming difficulty. I was told that I should not give dyslexia its due as if not claiming it would disrupt the reality of it. I found power in seeking an answer. I found it would lead to an open door of learning not a door shut in the face of a helpless student. When we deny our children have issues and hope it goes away or it is phase or feel our pride is wrapped up in them, we are preventing them from victory. The only way to claim the victory is to admit there is a problem. I did not have trouble accepting the fact that my daughter was dyslexic. In fact, I was relieved to find answer. I knew that answer would lead me to the tools I needed to equip her to learn.