The Dyslexia, ADHD, and DCD-Friendly Study Skills Guide

Tips and Strategies for Exam Success

Ann-Marie McNicholas

• Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9781787751774
• eBook ISBN: 9781787751781
• Topic: Study Aids
• Subtopic: Study Guides

This practical skills guide helps young people with who learn differently including those with dyslexia, DCD/dyspraxia and ADHD, study for their exams.

Students who learn differently can often find exams challenging and can experience a good deal of anxiety around exam time, leading to exam results that may not accurately reflect their capabilities. Much exam stress arises from a lack of confidence with the ability to learn and retain information in a meaningful way. This engaging workbook is designed to help students to overcome these issues. It not only shows students how to develop a positive success attitude towards study and exams, but also aims to equip them with powerful strategies and techniques for learning and remembering.

The book offers strategies for learners whose methods of learning are multisensory. When learning is active rather than passive, it happens faster, and is easier, more enjoyable and more effective. As you progress through the fun, engaging activities, so your confidence and belief in your ability to learn will increase. Struggling students will become confident, successful learners, with a positive attitude and access to a wide range of effective strategies, and in this way, you will achieve the results in exams that you have worked for and deserve.

Chapter 1

Give Me Attitude!

Students with specific learning differences such as dyslexia, DCD/dyspraxia and ADHD learn differently. Study and learning can seem so hard that it creates a lot of stress and anxiety. Some students can feel that they are not smart enough and some even want to give up.

But did you know that your attitude to learning can really help you to become smarter and grow your brain? It can also help you to feel more relaxed about learning. Complete the activities in this chapter to help you to develop a mindset or attitude for success.

Do you have a success attitude?

Take the My Mindset quiz. Tick the statements that you believe to be true.

My Mindset
Column A		Column B
Smart people don’t need to try hard to learn.		The more you learn, the smarter you become.
You can’t change your intelligence – it is what you are born with.		No matter how much intelligence you have, you can always develop more.
Some people are just not good with numbers, no matter how hard they try.		People can always learn number skills, even if it is challenging at first.
To be good at sports or music you have to be born with a talent for it.		People who are good at things like sport and music put in a lot of work and practice in order to succeed.
You can learn new things but it doesn’t change how smart you are.		The harder you work at something, the better you will be at it and the smarter you become.

Did you tick mainly in Column A or mainly in Column B?

Column ____________

It has been shown that students who believe statements like those in Column B are more likely to be successful with their studies than students whose attitude or mindset is more like the statements in Column A.

Students who believe they can learn things and persist with difficult tasks are more successful than those students who do not want to try something challenging, in case they are seen to fail (Dweck 2012).

So, your success as a student has less to do with your so-called ‘intelligence’ and more to do with your thinking and attitude to learning!

The good news is that you can change your views and attitudes and start to develop a success attitude. Why not start today?

Developing a success attitude

The human brain contains millions of neurons. Neurons send and receive messages from one part of the brain to the other, helping you to think an...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Contents
• Foreword by Henry Burscough
• Introduction
• 1.  Give Me Attitude!
• 2.  Chill Out! Exam Stress is Quite Normal
• 3.  Arggh! When Effort Doesn’t Equal Results
• 4.  Reading More Than Texts and Movie Reviews
• 5.  Great Thoughts that Won’t Appear on the Page
• 6.  Making Numbers Easier
• 7.  Smarter Organisation for Exam Success
• 8.  Revision Should Be Fun
• 9.  Keep Calm and Get Ready for the Exam Room
• Template 1: Multisensory Spelling Sheet
• Template 2: Cover Card
• Template 3: Weekly Work Planner
• Template 4: Matching Cards
• Template 5: Ladders
• Template 6: Brain Frame
• Table of Exam Access Arrangements
• References
• Index
• Join our mailing list
• Acknowledgements
• Dedication
• Copyright
• By the Same Author