Learning disabilities: help your child learn

If your child has a learning disability, there are steps you can take to help them learn. These range from changing how you communicate, to using local support services.

Lesley Campbell, of the learning disability charity Mencap, says: “If your child is diagnosed with a learning disability, you’ll want to ask the question that any parent would ask: 'what would help my child?’”

Below are some ways you can support your child’s learning:

Be very clear when you speak. Don’t use long or complex sentences or instructions.

Get face-to-face with your child. Come to their level and make eye contact.

Give one-stage rather than two-stage instructions, such as ''Put on your coat'' rather than "Put on your coat and do up the buttons so we can go".

Reduce clutter in a child’s life. Instead of lots of toys to play with, give them two or three at a time. Encourage them to make clear choices, such as, "Would you like to play with the cat or the rabbit?"

Dr Martin Ward Platt, consultant paediatrician at the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, says that loving your child and including them in stimulating family life is the best thing you can do. Make sure that your child is growing up in a household where they are:

Included in plenty of conversation

Encouraged to communicate and participate in activities

Read to by you and taught to value books

Most of all love your child and show it.

NHS UK