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Moving away from dyslexia

January 24, 2001

People suffering from dyslexia can be helped by changing the way they move and exercise. Special routines, designed to tap into reflexes left over from birth, can lead to better co-ordination, improving both reading and writing abilities and greatly boosting the sufferer's confidence and self-esteem. These are the findings of psychologist Martin McPhillips of The Dyslexia Project, a joint venture between Queen's University and The Royal Maternity Hospital, Belfast. Mr McPhillips's work is featured in an article published today, Thursday 1 February 2001, in the February edition of The Psychologist magazine.

Mr McPhillips looked at the movements made by the foetus in the womb, and saw that certain 'primary reflexes' (such as the palmar reflex, whereby a baby will grasp your hand if you place your finger on its palm) assist the foetus's development. However, after birth, the infant starts to adapt to its new upright position, and 'secondary reflexes' take over, allowing the baby to walk around. He found that many of the dyslexic children he worked with still possessed strong primary reflexes, limiting their ability to perform skills such as following words on a page or holding a pencil.

Therefore, Mr McPhillips has developed a series of movements and exercises, designed to switch off the primary reflexes and promote co-ordination. The technique has so far been highly successful, and it is thought that it could be incorporated into school PE programmes, helping not only dyslexics but also the estimated five to ten per cent of school children who have some form of learning disability.

Other subjects in the new issue of The Psychologist include 'The future of clinical psychology'.



British Psychological Society (BPS)




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