KidzGrow Malaysia - Helping Learning Issue

In order to learn effectively and optimise information fed to the brain, the fundamental mind skills must be functioning optimally. These skills consist of the visual-motor, auditory and attention. Each of these skills work together in order for learning to take place.

The first step to maximise our learning potential would be to identify barriers or signs of weaknesses which may be subtle and difficult to detect.

Smooth eye movement is vital to our ability to scan and read from one direction to another e.g. left to right. Thus, a person who has weak eye movement may have problems with reading, copying information from the blackboard etc.

The proprioceptive system provides us with information of our joint positions at all times. A person with poor proprioception may hold a pencil tensely to gain more feedback to better control his/her handwriting. Other characteristics include breaking objects that require fine finger manipulation, frequent falls and bumps etc.

The vestibular system located in our inner ear receives information about movement and body position in space. It helps to provide joint stability, postural control and balance, spatial awareness, a stable visual and attentional system. A person or a child may show signs such as excessive walking or running in circles, jumping from high places, difficulty walking on steps or over thresholds, or tendency to drag toes when stepping forward when the vestibular system is not functioning well.

A person with tactile processing dysfunction may also show fidgety behaviours as they are constantly moving to gain more tactile information for their bodies. Someone with tactile processing difficulty often dislike hair washing, cutting and bathing.

Fundamental Sensory-Motor Skills:

Learning Skill	Important For	If not developed, may exhibit
Vestibular	Balance Behaviour organisation Stable eye movements Posture	Poor balance Clumsiness Hyper Activity Excessively passive Skips words/lines during reading
Ocular Control	Visual scanning Left to right eye movement for reading Quick visual fixing and unfixing Eye-hand coordination	Disorganised reading/writing Slow/Careless when copying from the board Poor eye-hand coordination Poor ball skills
Tactile - Protective	Learning of safety Behavioural organisation	Fidgety behaviours Hyperactive Disorganised Dislikes clothes labels/cutting hair/washing face/ wearing socks & shoes
Tactile - Discriminative	Learning of concepts	Difficulty learning certain concepts, e.g. smooth and rough textures
Proprioception	Good pencil grasp Handwriting control Body posture	Inefficient pencil grasp (eg. gripping pencil too tensely) Untidy handwriting Slouches at desk Clings onto legs of chair

When we look at words on a page, our eyes receive information about the dark lines and curves that make up numbers and letters and the white space that gives each number and letter their distinctive look. Visual processing difficulties arise when the information from the eye to the brain is somehow incomplete or distorted.

This difficulty often manifests as uneven spacing between letters and words, or number and letter reversals where “2” becomes “5” and “b” becomes “d”.

Learning Skill	Important For	If not developed, may exhibit
Visual Discrimination	Learning to match Letter discrimination in reading and writing Noting details in visual material	Difficulty with reading and writing Untidy handwriting (uneven sized letters) Carelessness
Visual Figure-Ground	Form perception Picking up vital visual information from background	Difficulty with picking up important visual information from background
Visual Closure	To complete a picture visually (mentally) when external cues are insufficient	Difficulty with puzzles and games Difficulty with grasping certain Math/spatial concepts
Visual Sequencing	Following visual sequences Reason and logic	Difficulty with reading Difficulty with equations Difficulty with grasping certain Math/spatial concepts
Visual Memory	Remembering visual information	Difficulty with learning Poor recall of information

What is it?

When we listen, the ear receives a sound signal but it is the brain that processes these signals. This part of the brain is what we call the “Auditory System”. The auditory system allows us to attend to, discriminate, and understand verbal information.

How is it used?

Our Auditory System is responsible for a number of foundational skills like the ability to:

discriminate sounds - when a child hears “dog”, he can tell it is made up of the sounds, “d”, “o” and “g”, even if he is not able to explain this.
recognise different intonation patterns to allow us to learn the sounds and meaning of a language – which affects comprehension and ability to follow instructions;
interpret the mood of a person from the intonation of their voice - Is mummy asking a question, making a statement or just plain angry?;
remember sounds from the words we have heard and comprehended – which is vital for spelling, learning the time-table, and answering a Science question like what causes the sun to set everyday!

What are the symptoms arising from weak Auditory Skills?

There are several skills involved in our auditory nervous system. Confidence in communication, asking questions during a class and even making friends in a social context all require our Auditory Skills to be working strongly. And when the Auditory System is weak, one may show the following signs of auditory processing difficulty:

Learning Skill	Important For	If not developed, may exhibit
Auditory Discrimination	Identifying differences in similar-sounding words	Hear distorted speech sounds Be a careless listener Misunderstands information Have difficulty learning to read - Dyslexia
Auditory Figure-Ground	To grasp important information when background is noisy	Lose verbal information in classroom/ crowded places Day dream / be easily distracted
Auditory Closure	To "fill in" missing information automatically	Difficulty comprehending Misunderstand social communications
Auditory Sequencing	To follow directions and instructions in order	Be a poor/ careless listener Misunderstand instructions
Auditory Memory	Remember oral information	Be forgetful Have difficulty with spelling Have difficulty with learning

In order to learn, a person must be attentive to be able to absorb information. Attention supports 2 key channels where information can be received by the body, i.e. the auditory and visual channels

When these functions are weak, a person may appear inattentive or hyperactive. A person with attention difficulty may show the following signs:

Learning Skill	Important For	If not developed, may exhibit
Alertness	To stay focused Allows information to be absorbed/ learnt	Inattentiveness Poor concentration/ focus Poor academic performance
Stamina	To sustain attention over a long period	Day dreaming "Drifts off" after some time Difficulty completing work on time
Impulse Control	Maintain calm and ideal learning state	Impulsiveness "On the go" Hyperactivity Difficulty staying still Disrupts class

Untidy handwriting is often a symptom of poor body awareness such as difficulty differentiating between left and right. It may be associated with visual processing and tactile processing issues.

Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) has been found to contribute to learning difficulties faced by 5%- 15% percent of the population. DCD is characterized by “clumsiness” in a child with average to above average intelligence. These children often are late to start sitting, crawling, or walking. They often do not do well in sport, have untidy handwriting and may have associated language or attention difficulties.

Learning Skill	Important For	If not developed, may exhibit
Rhythm and Timing	Smooth coordinated movements Working memory	Clumsiness Difficulty 'chunking' information for memory
Body Schema	Body organisation Spatial awareness	Left - Right confusion Letter reversals
Motor Planning	To learn and execute new movements	Clumsiness Slow/ awkward learning new movements Dislikes playground activity Dislikes PE
Visual-motor Integration	Copying visual information	Untidy handwriting Poor copying abilities

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