Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, and School: How to Support Your Child When Resources Are Lacking

When your child’s needs are invisible at school

You're watching your child struggle night after night. Homework takes twice as long. Reading brings frustration. Writing triggers tears. You’ve spoken with the teacher, maybe seen a specialist, and heard the usual: “We’re doing our best.” But what happens when that “best” still isn’t enough?

For children with DYS-related challenges—dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia—the school environment can be like a puzzle with missing pieces. Many schools lack training, time, or tools to tailor their approach. And even well-meaning teachers rarely have the capacity to provide consistent one-on-one support. As a parent, it leaves you in an unbearable position: watching your child fall behind while running out of ideas to catch them up.

Learning to play a different game

A mother I recently spoke to, Claire, told me about her 8-year-old son, Hugo, who has dyslexia. “He tries so hard,” she said. “But when the class starts copying notes from the board, he gets lost. It’s like the game changes and he doesn’t know the rules.” After months of conflict at home and dwindling self-esteem at school, she shifted her mindset. “I stopped trying to force the school system to adapt—at least for now—and started focusing on how we could make learning work for Hugo at home.”

This doesn’t mean giving up on the fight for inclusive education—quite the opposite. But while that long battle continues, we also need to arm ourselves and our children with tools that work in the meantime. We need strategies that put dignity back into learning.

Compensating... without compromising

So how do you help your child learn differently, without making them feel different in the isolating sense? Here are a few directions that have helped other families like Claire’s.

Use strengths as the starting point

If school focuses only on what your child can’t do, you can shift the narrative at home. Is your child a great storyteller but hates writing? Let them dictate or record their stories. Does math click better through movement? Teach multiplication while jumping on the trampoline. Reframing learning to match your child’s strengths helps rebuild confidence—which is often the biggest casualty of learning difficulties.

For further thoughts on rebuilding confidence, this article about restoring belief in themselves might offer some comfort.

Let technology support cognitive load

One of the hardest parts for children with DYS challenges is juggling multiple cognitive tasks at once. Take note-taking: they need to read, understand, recall, and write—often while dealing with decoding issues. Choosing the right kind of tech can offload some of that invisible burden.

For example, some parents now use apps that allow children to take a photo of their lesson and transform it into bite-sized, personalized quizzes. Others convert a written lecture into audio or even an interactive story where the child is the hero, hearing their own name woven into the narrative. Resources like the Skuli App—available on both iOS and Android—bring smart adaptation home, and can be especially helpful during car rides or downtime.

Reimagine the learning environment

Children with DYS conditions often struggle not just with content, but the format and rhythm of the school day. Consider changing your child's study timetable to suit their natural focus periods. Maybe math is easier in the morning, and reading after a walk. Who says spelling has to happen at a desk? One parent told me her daughter does spelling drills while bouncing on a yoga ball—it’s the only time she doesn’t groan about them.

And don’t underestimate the emotional climate. A calm, low-pressure environment can drastically affect how willing a child is to engage with challenging tasks.

What schools don’t provide... yet

Of course, none of this erases the fact that school should provide better interventions. You’re not asking for extra privileges, just the right to an education that fits your child’s way of learning. And when that’s still out of reach—as it is for countless families—it’s not your child who’s failing. It’s the system.

If your child feels excluded or misunderstood at school, you might relate to what’s shared in this reflection on being sidelined by teachers or even how to respond when schools aren’t inclusive. These aren’t isolated cases—they’re part of a pattern that needs to change.

Hold two truths at the same time

You can be fiercely advocating for your child’s rights at school while also accepting that, right now, the system isn’t providing what they need. You can feel exhausted by this path, and still find courage to take one more step. You can allow yourself to grieve an easier journey, while also building a new one that is richer, slower, and tailored to your child’s emerging voice.

And above all, you are not alone. Many others are walking this same path—reinventing what school means for children who don't learn in conventional ways. If you're wondering what that reimagining might look like, this article about rethinking school might offer a new perspective.

The journey may not be easy. But your child is still learning, growing, and capable—especially when met with love, patience, and the right support.