Approximate reading time: 3 min

Written the 15th of July 2021

So today I had a lesson

of an epic kind

When I felt hurt, angry

and so undermined

I spoke to my headteacher

(a couple of days ago)

would she mind if I let three

of my parents know…

That their child “might” be dyslexic

(They all show early signs)

I’m not qualified to diagnose

But I’ve seen it so many times

Working one-to-one

with these kids for ten years

makes it easy to spot

 how they stand out from their peers

Especially when they’re super

 articulate and bright

Very creative

Often clumsy

 and just cannot read or write

Dyslexia, sadly

is only tested for in year 2

Leaving these kids struggling

 Those first couple of years through

It’s my personal belief

that we are so missing the mark…

 If these children got help earlier

Things wouldn’t need to be so hard

The biggest problem is the havoc

 It reeks with their self-esteem

 Leaving them constantly overwhelmed

 “What is wrong with me?”

I believe it’s better

for parents to be informed

They can do their own research

Take time to explore

Because so often the comments

 that these parents make

Signpost their concerns

that they simply cannot shake

They often feel frustrated

Confused and uptight

Worried why their child

can’t seem to get things right

The indication is always

that they know SOMETHING’S wrong…

but they genuinely have no clue

about what’s really going on

Thankfully my headteacher

 agreed with me

That it is always much better

Parents are informed early

So, yesterday I spoke to Liz

(The very last mum)

She took it well

We really got along

She herself was dyslexic

 only diagnosed at 16

 She spoke about how sad

and frustrated she had been

The anger that she had felt

That it had taken so long

For anyone to help her

And tell her what was wrong

Liz took my number

Asked if I could do lessons online

 with her child while thanking me

so many times

Words to the effect

“I’m so glad my child had you

You are such a wonderful teacher

 through and through”

I’ll admit after being handed

The big Heave Ho yesterday

I felt grateful for the appreciation

And the kind words she conveyed

I’ll admit, my tender ego

 was still feeling somewhat bruised

But it felt a little bit calmer

And ever so slightly soothed

Then this morning I got called

into the office once again

To see the headteacher

(Good Lord, would this ever end?)

Another angry email

Apparently complaining about me

(Am I stuck in Groundhog Day

Could I have a reprieve?)

Did you tell Liz her daughter’s dyslexic?

She irritably asked

I stared at her dumbfounded

slightly aghast

She said she’d got an email

From this irate mum

who was upset that the school

had waited so long

To inform her of her child’s

Struggle with dyslexia

Why hadn’t I said anything

This whole entire year?

How do you go from thanking

 a teacher so profusely

to a 180 degree about turn

And then blaming me?

 Good Lord women

Your child is only four

 saying anything much earlier

 would have been highly irresponsible

I needed time to get to know her

 I needed to see how she works

 To understand her baseline

and recognise her quirks

I knew it wasn’t personal

Parents need someone to blame

 When they are angry or frustrated

and dealing with their own shame

But my heart still ached

(Frankly, I was feeling a little pissed)

I’m so tired of being number one

On this head teacher hit list

As fate would have it

She suddenly got called away

and I was left alone in her office

My feelings to survey

I sat for 5 minutes

 conscious of taking deep breaths

 “You’ve got this

You’ve got this”

my internal voice said

By the time she returned

 I was still angry but calm

I simply stated what I said

To this now frustrated mum

I pointed out to the head teacher

 I spoke directly to her last week

I asked her for permission

to call these parents in and speak

I explained that I told Liz

 Schools normally don’t say anything this soon

 that children only get diagnosed

When they are in year two

To that my reply was

“Well I know you’ll disagree

 But this really and truly isn’t

The school’s responsibility

It is up to the parents

If they have concerns  

To get the assessment done

 It’s up to them to discern”

It was at this point I wanted

to just throw my hands in the air

 in utter frustration

(and complete despair)

How can we expect parents

Who’ve had no training at all

To recognise the signs of dyslexia  

What they’d need to look for?

As a teacher, it took me

a good part of ten years

To understand it properly

Through blood sweat and tears

What’s wrong with these kids?

Why are they struggling so?

What is holding them back?

 I just had to know.

So no, I’m sorry

I wholeheartedly disagree

 It’s not fair to put the onus

onto these families

 It’s your job to make sure

that your teachers are trained

 to identify the early symptoms

 before they become ingrained

Oh my god why are we

Still, getting this so wrong?

When there is truly so much more

 that can be done?

But in that second of anger

What came to mind

is me stepping off my soap box

and calming right down

I didn’t say anything

I kept my mouth shut

 Again, this voice spoke

Deep from my gut

“Just be grateful that soon

You will be moving on

This isn’t the place for you

This is not where you belong

I didn’t get over emotional

I didn’t give my power away

She is entitled to her opinion

At the end of the day

 I simply stated the facts

 As benignly as I could

I didn’t defend, or justify

Or try to make myself understood

Then I stood up calmly

And got the hell out of there

There was nothing else to say

I no longer cared

Five more days to go

 I can’t fucking wait

6 weeks of nothing

to just write and create