Hyperlexia

Hyperlexia is a syndrome characterized by a child's precocious ability to read. It was initially identified by Silberman, et al. in 1967. Children with hyperlexia have a significantly higher word decoding ability than their actual reading comprehension levels. Alongside a precocious reading ability, children with hyperlexia exhibit the presence of a significant language acquisition delay and the presence of autistic features.

Characteristics

Hyperlexia is characterized by the following features:

• Advanced reading ability or decoding skills significantly above what would be expected at their chronological age.
• Difficulty in understanding verbal language.
• Difficulty in socializing and interacting with people.
• Abnormal and awkward social skills.
• Fixation with letters or numbers.
• Repetitive or stereotyped behavior.
• Difficulty in understanding idioms or figures of speech.
• Specific or unusual fears.
• Auditory, olfactory, and/or tactile sensitivity.
• Difficulty in answering wh- questions, such as "what," "where," "who," and "why".

Types

There are three types of hyperlexia:

• Hyperlexia I: These are neurotypical children who read early.
• Hyperlexia II: These are children on the autism spectrum who demonstrate early reading as a splinter skill.
• Hyperlexia III: These are children who read early and have "autistic-like" symptoms, but the symptoms fade over time.

Diagnosis

Hyperlexia is typically diagnosed by a pediatrician, psychologist, or a speech and language therapist. The diagnosis is usually made based on the child's reading ability and the presence of other symptoms such as delayed language skills and social skills difficulties.

Treatment

There is no specific treatment for hyperlexia. However, children with hyperlexia can benefit from speech therapy, occupational therapy, and special education services. These therapies can help improve the child's language comprehension, social skills, and other areas of development.

See also

• Dyslexia
• Autism
• Asperger syndrome
• Reading comprehension
• Language acquisition

References

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  The Difficult Lesson by William-Adolphe Bouguereau, 1884