3.25.2009

The one with Hyperlexia...

Hyperlexia
I came across a special needs resource center recently with a lending library. I called them up, got a couple of books in the mail the next day and set about reading.
One of my current reads is 'Reading too Soon' by Miller.
Page 1 might as well be DS's Biography.
Hyperlexia is not a recognised disorder in and of itself & I don't really know why but there is very little literature out there. My hunch is that there are a group of children that present in this very similar way, but that it is so tied into the Autism Spectrum that it doesn't really deserve to be set apart. Just my hunch.
It hilighted that these hyperlexic children usually begin to recognize letters and numbers between the ages of 18 months and 2 years. Spontaneously, coming out of nowhere they begin to read words before the age of 5. Most of them are reading by the age of 4 - but the intense love of numbers and letters comes well before that.
Well, last night after reading a few chapters, i had the opportunity to go to an event for
moms of children on the autism spectrum. The room was filled with these moms along with five professionals. I was intrigued to find out that the woman sitting next to me has a son only one month younger than my own. And he is a 'reader' too. We didn't have a huge amount of time to chat, but her son has a reading vocab. of about 50 words. It is extremely amazing to me for children of this age to read, but even SHE was blown away by the extent to which my DS reads (and that made me feel bad, not sure why, except I didn't like the way that felt). I would have never walked into a room like that and announced my child's abilities - but RON made a point of telling everyone 'This is DS mom, he's the one who reads and memorizes 53 song CD's' etc... [Thanks Ron...]
People just can't get over the 2 year old who can read them a book.
Yet, when we pass by 'On the Border' or 'Right turn only'. I am nearly oblivious to the little voice in the back seat reading all the signs.
I say this to just pose the thought in my head. How many children who are 'on the spectrum' AND have this thing called Hyperlexia are reading 76 page kid books before bed at 2 1/2 years old? How many kids in general can do that? How rare is this thing happening in our house? Our first video of him reading a book was on 9/20 last year. That was 6 months ago!!!! What?
If I sound a little braggy in this post - eh - that's ok. I need that every now and then :-)
I'm learning things about Hyperlexia that are really intriguing - about how they process language etc.. The most encouraging thing I've read so far is that some of the children lost many of their autistic traits by the age of 10-12. It seemed that most of the behavioral challenges were directly related to the communication/understanding deficits.

4 comments:

Shari said...

His reading and number abilities are amazing. And you should be proud of that. With all the "deficits" that our kids have, it's nice to see them excel sometimes. :)

BTW, a "Ron" gave an autism meeting in our area on Tuesday night. It was called Effective Treatments for Autism. I think we're in different states, but the coincindence is just too weird.

Laura said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Laura said...

It really is amazing. He's definitely going to keep mommy on her toes. And girlfriend, brag away. Also, think about the next person to find your blog. Some one who might just think "same as my DS!" Your would-be mommyblog soul mate will never make that connection if you don't record his special abilities. Just sayin. ;-)

Ann said...

I have a daughter who is 11 and quite bright - ahead of her peers in all academic subjects. She talked early (and a lot, and hasn't quit! lol) However, no way was she reading at your son's age! She started reading in kindergarten, regular kindergarten-type stories. I believe your son is quite amazing, and you should well have bragging rights!