Thanks to Richard Branson, LinkedIn has added Dyslexic Thinking to its list of approved skills. It’s heartening to see how dyslexia is increasingly framed as a learning difference instead of learning disability. Lucie M. Curtiss has a unique take on dyslexia. Her book involves her describing how she found out about dyslexia when she was 25, as well as the methods she used to help her dyslexic son. That’s why I picked up this book: to get into the mind of a person with dyslexia. I think the disadvantage of me being neurotypical is that try as I might, I cannot empathise the struggles my dyslexic students go through. Hopefully, this book will bridge the gap somewhat.

Lucie writes that she literally thinks about ten different things at once and talks about two subjects in a conversation. It makes me wonder if she has comorbidity, that is dyslexia coupled with ADHD. Being ENFP, my mind always runs all over the place, so I can somewhat relate to how difficult it is to stay focused and on topic. It made me examine one of my current students in a new light. He talks incessantly and at inappropriate moments. Just knowing that his brain is wired like this may help me empathise with him better.

Anyway, if you are someone who likes to get to the point while reading, this book is perhaps not for you. Lucie has plenty of thoughts, some of which are written in parentheses. Honestly, she comes across as a loud cheerleader whom you either love or dislike. No middle ground. I don’t mind all her rambling thoughts, I guess. I used to write like her haha.

From the get-go, Lucie wrote about how people with dyslexia are often right-brainers. She followed through by including a summary at the end of every chapter. Kinda like a cheat sheet to what she discussed in the chapter, presented succinctly in point form. It makes me wonder about how I can better present information to my students. The interesting thing is, sometimes she adds new information in the summary that wasn’t discussed earlier in her chapter. I’m just fascinated by how her roving mind works.

Lucie likes to bold her words too. Rather randomly, if you ask me. But one thing stood out: keep your vision clear and simple, and see miracles happen. As someone who is rather verbose, I appreciated the brevity of her message.

Lucie writes three questions that I can use with my students. I have been looking for such questions forever, so I am penning them down for future reference:

Lucie has dysgraphia. I need to learn more about it. Interchanging letters and numbers is common for her. She can see words accurately in her mind’s eye, but when she writes it down, it comes out in the reverse order.

Just to end this on a positive note, dyslexic people see things in 3-D. Must be grand being able to see the big picture so conveniently in their everyday lives. I am a parts-to-whole person, so I usually get lost in the details haha.