Dyslexia: Struggling, Surviving and Excelling in School

My literacy experience more than likely differs from my peers greatly, in the first grade I was diagnosed with dyslexia. From that point going forward I was not confident at all in my reading and writing ability. My parents spent very little time working with me to better my learning disabilities. I struggled with writing and reading all throughout grade school; I felt as if I was falling behind and would never catch up. I developed a lazy mentality with reading because I never felt as if I would excel because I was always wrong. I am thankful that against my risk factors of failing I also had protective factors such as sports. In school the only thing I felt like I excelled at in school was athletics; I bonded with my gym teachers and coaches more than I did with any other teacher throughout my school years. All children in my classes were treated equally with the same amount of respect. Growing up I did not have experiences that I recall with teachers disrespecting students from a minority. I’m sure there were prejudices that took place that I just never noticed, as I am sure they still exist today. I never really

I would spend summers with her reading different books with green cellophane to make it easier for me to keep track of the line I was on. The first book we read together was Amber Brown Goes Fourth by Paula Danziger. I remember I absolutely hated reading that book because my confidence level with reading was so low. I was miserable and dreaded reading that book every night before bed. Those nights reading with my grandma is what put me on track to becoming the literate person I am today. My grandma would also take me to different programs at the local library, they would host read a louds and a few other programs to get kids engaged. The one that sticks out in my mind is where I got to create my own book; I was able to write and illustrate the