A child’s parent is the first person to be aware of issues with his learning abilities. It’s the parent’s sole responsibility to communicate the difficulties a child may be facing at school with the teachers in a calm way. Communicating with your child’s teacher effectively will help reap the desired results fast.

The communication between a parent and a teacher of a dyslexic child is critical for the child’s development. It is the stepping stone towards creating positive long-term outcomes for the child. Let’s take a look at some important pointers for talking to a child’s teacher regarding dyslexia:

• Book An Appointment: Be sensitive to the teacher’s schedule and book a 20 to 30 minute appointment. This much time should be sufficient for putting across your point without taking up too much of the teacher’s time. The teacher should be in a frame of mind to give you enough time and attention so as to understand your point. After-school is a good time for such an appointment.
• Be Friendly: It’s natural for a parent to be a bit anxious when discussing such matters with a teacher and may be looking for only positive responses from the teacher. If the discussion doesn’t seem to be going in the direction you intended it to go, still maintain a calm and friendly disposition.
• Be To The Point: Remember that you’ve got limited time to put across your point so do it smartly. Be specific and avoid hinting at what you think can be helpful.  After a basic introduction about the issue, move on swiftly to what you think your child needs and even give some suggestions. Share approaches that have worked and those that haven’t. Also ask the teacher if she has come across any material for dyslexic children that she thinks can be beneficial.
• Talk About Your Child’s Strengths: Shed some light on things that your child is good at doing. Dyslexia is just a part of your child, it does not define him as a whole. Talking about your child’s strengths and interests may help the teacher to focus on such activities so as to boost his morale by creating a sense of achievement.
• Express Your Willingness To Cooperate With The Teacher: Taking assistance of a teacher in helping a dyslexic child at school is a two way process. The teacher will be able to assist a parent only if the parent is equally willing to assist the teacher. Work in tandem with the teacher and reinforce the strategies your child is learning at school. Make it a point to stress on your willingness to cooperate with the teacher.