I’m dyslexic, how can I learn another language?

If you are dyslexic, you might think trying to learn and improve in another language will be almost impossible for you. I am here to tell you that you might be surprised!

Dyslexia is not really one thing, it is a name that covers a lot of different language problems. Some people with Dyslexia find it very difficult to remember the names of objects, some other dyslexic people don’t have a problem with that, but they really struggle to remember lists of things. Some people find spelling is their biggest problem, while other people find that reading is ok, but they have real problems remembering what they hear. This is why finding out your personal learning style is so important. I remember things best when I hear them, so I listen to a lot of audiobooks if I want to learn something new. My Mother likes diagrams, and she learns best when she writes things down. Your learning style is your personal roadmap of how to overcome your dyslexia.

Now for the surprising part. You might find that you have completely different dyslexia in a new language. Some people find that they are still dyslexic but now instead of reading problems, they have difficulty listening or speaking. Some people find they are not really dyslexic at all in their new language. Knowing your learning style is just as important in a second language. If you think of a language as a wall, English might be made of bricks, but French might be made of stones. They are both walls, and they both do the same job, but they are made of different things, and built in a different way. The challenges for one wall will be different to the challenges of the other.

How do I find out what my learning style is? You might already know. Many of us realise that we just remember things better if we write them down. If you don’t know try a learning style test: http://www.educationplanner.org/students/self-assessments/learning-styles-quiz.shtml This will help you to understand what your normal learning style is.

If you find out that your learning style is listening, try listening to English podcasts, or English talk radio. If you learn best through visual information, try looking for English infographics (information presented in a diagram or picture). If you are best at learning through doing (kinaesthetic learning) you might learn best through finding people to have discussions with in English, or join a games group where people play board games together in English. Everyone has a style that works best for them. The real trick is that the best way to learn is to do a little of all of them. Focus on your best learning style, and add little bits of the others for variety. A bored brain does not learn well!

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