Dyslexia and Language: Why Early Speech Struggles Can Resurface as Reading Challenges

As parents, we often breathe a sigh of relief when our children “catch up” after seeing a Speech and Language Therapist (SLT) in their early years. Maybe your child had difficulty pronouncing sounds, struggled to follow instructions, or found rhyming tricky. With support, they seemed to grow out of it.

But then school begins, and suddenly you notice something new: reading feels unusually hard. Spelling doesn’t come easily. Homework takes twice as long. You might wonder, didn’t we already fix this?

The truth is: those early challenges and current reading difficulties may be connected. The thread that ties them together is auditory processing, one of the core skills linked to dyslexia symptoms.

Dyslexia: More Than Just Reading Problems

When people hear “what is dyslexia?”, they usually think of slow or inaccurate reading. But dyslexia is rooted much deeper in how the brain processes language.

Children with dyslexia often:

• Struggle to break words into sounds (for example, hearing the three distinct sounds in cat)

• Mix up sounds when spelling or speaking

• Have difficulty connecting letters to sounds

This isn’t a question of intelligence, it’s about the brain’s efficiency in processing language. With the right dyslexia reading program, children can build stronger literacy foundations and confidence.

Why Speech Challenges Can Be Early Clues

Many children who later struggle with dyslexia once needed speech and language support in their preschool years. Think about it:

• If a child couldn’t clearly distinguish sounds like p and b, how could they pronounce them and then recognize them in text?

• If following instructions was difficult, sequencing words and comprehending text would also be challenging.

At that stage, an SLT focuses on communication, but the underlying skill, auditory processing, is also the foundation for literacy and how to improve a child’s reading level later.

Auditory Processing: The Common Thread

Auditory processing is how the brain makes sense of sounds. Even if hearing tests are fine, the connection between the ear and brain may still be weak.

• In speech, a child uses auditory processing to distinguish sounds and blend them into words.

• In reading, it underpins phonemic awareness, the ability to break words into sounds and link them to letters.

If auditory processing is weak, early speech struggles can resurface as reading difficulties in school.

Phonemic Awareness: The Bridge to Reading

Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear, notice, and manipulate sounds in words. It is a cornerstone of kids’ brain development and literacy.

• Children with strong skills build fluency more easily.

Children with weaker skills may need targeted braintraining programs like the BrainRx Program to strengthen these foundations.

Why This Matters for Parents

If your child needed speech therapy when they were younger, it doesn’t mean they’ll automatically have dyslexia. But it does place them at higher risk for reading difficulties. That’s why it’s important to:

• Monitor reading progress closely once school starts.

• Take concerns seriously instead of waiting for them to “catch up.”

• Look beyond grades to see how much effort your child is putting in just to keep up.

Knowing how to help a child with reading difficulties early can prevent bigger struggles later.

How The Brain Accelerator Helps

At The Brain Accelerator, we don’t just focus on “more reading practice.” Instead, we address the root causes with specialized brain training programs.

We strengthen skills like:

• Auditory processing and phonemic awareness – improving how the brain interprets sounds and supports fluent reading.

• Working memory and processing speed – making reading smoother, faster, and less exhausting.

Through our dyslexia reading program in Dubai, children not only improve literacy they also build confidence and resilience.

Final Thought

Dyslexia isn’t simply about mixing up letters; it’s about how the brain hears, processes, and works with language. Early speech struggles and later dyslexia symptoms are often connected through underlying cognitive skills.

The good news? The brain is adaptable. With the right kind of training, like our BrainRx Program, children can strengthen their reading foundations and discover the joy of fluent learning.

Explore our dyslexia reading programs in Dubai and give your child the tools for lasting success.

FAQ

• What is Dyslexia and how is it linked to speech delays?

  Dyslexia is a language-based learning difference that affects how the brain processes sounds and words. Children who experienced early speech delays may later show signs of dyslexia, as both challenges are connected to difficulties in processing and distinguishing sounds.

• What are common Dyslexia symptoms parents should notice?

  Some common dyslexia symptoms include difficulty breaking words into sounds, confusing letters, slow or inaccurate reading, and challenges with spelling. Early speech struggles can be an early clue that later turns into reading difficulties at school age.

• How to help a child with reading difficulties linked to dyslexia?

  To know how to help a child with reading difficulties, parents should focus on strengthening underlying skills like auditory processing and phonemic awareness. Specialized brain training program can make reading smoother and less stressful.

• Can Brain Training Programs improve how to improve reading skills in dyslexia?

  Yes, targeted brain training programs can improve the cognitive skills that support reading. These programs focus on auditory processing, working memory, and processing speed, which are essential for how to improve reading skills in children with dyslexia.