7 year old boy with reading and writing difficulties

Poor reading and writing. Reduced self-confidence. Avoidance of reading and writing. Maths and following directions were also difficult. High activity level – “on the go”, easily distracted. Writing was slow and labored, out of sequence with many reversals.

7 year old boy, the youngest of 4 children living at home with Mum and Dad.

Difficulties with body awareness, processing sound and whole body movement (vestibular) sensations. Testing showed clinically significant difficulties with starting tasks (initiation), working memory and planning & organisation.

Over 2 months, at home and in the clinic, a sensory diet was implemented. Therapy worked on improving his awareness of his body in space and the rhythmicity of his movements, while we simultaneously addressed word and number recognition and visual attention, and modified reading strategies to increase engagement. Following initial improvement, Cogmed was initiated.

Improvements seen in reading, writing, duration of focus and confidence associated with improved number recall, smoother writing (but still slow), improved spelling (mostly right). Improved ability to work through challenges. Able to remember content read from earlier pages.