WHAT ARE LEARNING DISABILITIES?
Learning disabilities, or learning disorders, are an umbrella term for a wide variety of learning problems. A learning disability is not a problem with intelligence or motivation. Kids with learning disabilities aren’t lazy or dumb. In fact, most are just as smart as everyone else. Their brains are simply wired differently. This difference affects how they receive and process information.
Simply put, children and adults with learning disabilities see, hear, and understand things differently. This can lead to trouble with learning new information and skills, and putting them to use. The most common types of learning disabilities involve problems with reading, writing, math, reasoning, listening, and speaking.
While every kid has trouble with homework from time to time, if a certain area of learning is consistently problematic, it might indicate a learning disorder.
POSSIBLE CAUSES OF LEARNING DIFFICULTIES
It is not clear what causes learning difficulties, but researchers believe genetic influences, brain development, and environmental effects may all be likely to have some impact on their development.
While learning difficulties often appear in families, researchers are uncertain whether this is due to genetic causes or if this recurrence appears because children typically learn from and model their parents. Brain development before and after birth might also have an impact on the development of learning difficulties, and children who were born prematurely, had a low birth weight, or who sustained a head injury may be more likely to have a learning difficulty. Environmental effects such as toxins and poor nutrition in early childhood are also considered to be potential factors in the development of a learning difficulty.
