At home — Insights from real experiences

Children show us so much in the small, everyday moments — during homework, routines, conversations, frustrations, and discoveries.
Over the years, working closely with my son Giacomo and with children and teens with specific learning difficulties, I’ve seen patterns that appear again and again at home: moments where learning becomes harder, heavier, or less clear.

The insights shared here are only some of those recurring patterns.
They highlight challenges that many children face, but also the small strategies that have helped them regain clarity, confidence, and a sense of progress.

Each tip comes from real experience — things that have worked well for many children, and that may offer a helpful starting point for others.

I am also preparing a series of short, focused deep-dives on these themes, each shaped by what I’ve learned directly from the children and families I’ve supported.

As more experiences are shared, these insights will continue to grow and evolve.

Four areas where children often face their biggest challenges at home

When homework becomes overwhelming

Many children lose clarity quickly when tasks include multiple steps — writing instructions, switching between book and notebook, remembering what to do next.
This often reflects a working-memory overload rather than lack of understanding.

Small tips that often help:

  • Break tasks into micro-steps
  • Read instructions aloud
  • Use visual cues

Difficulty decoding and processing written text

When reading requires significant effort to decode each word, little energy remains to understand what the text is saying.
This makes reading slow, tiring, and discouraging — and makes it very hard to manage longer passages or study larger volumes.

Children may read fluently one day and struggle the next; the challenge often depends on cognitive load, not capability.

Ideas that may ease the load:

  • Read the first paragraph together to establish meaning
  • Use short, predictable pauses to check understanding
  • Let the child listen to a section before reading it alone

Losing their place while reading or writing

Skipping words, re-reading the same line, or forgetting the meaning halfway through are common signs that memory load exceeds capacity.

Simple things you can try:

  • Use a coloured strip or ruler to guide the line
  • Pause every few sentences to recap meaning
  • Try alternating who reads each line or paragraph

Expressing ideas in writing and keeping the thread

Many children know what they want to say but struggle to translate their thoughts into written text.
Errors accumulate, sentences drift, and the thread of meaning is lost before the idea reaches the page.
Re-reading could help — but it often requires decoding a text that is already hard to follow, demanding energy they no longer have.

This often results in short, simplified written work — not because ideas are limited, but because writing itself is demanding.
(You can read more about this here →)
“Why written work often looks simpler than a child’s thinking”

Practical supports that often help:

  • Say the idea aloud together before writing it
  • Use a simple mind map to brainstorm and organise the structure
  • Separate “getting ideas out” from “making them clear”

Emotional moments that affect learning

Frustration, worry, or a sense of being “too slow” often appear before a child can explain what is difficult.
These emotions can quietly interrupt learning long before the task itself becomes challenging.
A pause, a reset, or a moment of shared attention can prevent escalation and restore clarity.

Ways to ease the moment:

  • Introduce short movement or sensory breaks
  • Name the feeling without judgement (“This looks hard — let’s pause together”)
  • Offer a quick, neutral reset (a stretch, a sip of water, a different position)

Strategies families and teachers found useful

Frustration, worry, or a sense of being “too slow” often appear before a child can explain what is difficult.
These emotions can quietly interrupt learning long before the task itself becomes challenging.
A pause, a reset, or a moment of shared attention can prevent escalation and restore clarity.

Practical ideas that made a difference:

  • Use simple colour coding to organise steps
  • Prepare the workspace before starting
  • Turn instructions into one short sentence
  • Use a short timer to make the task feel finite and manageable.
  • Model one example aloud before the child tries

Would you like to contribute?

If you would like to share an example from your own experience at home, you can also visit our Share your experience page, where you’ll find a brief overview of how contributions work.
You should share only what you feel comfortable sharing: no names or identifying details are ever needed.

If you prefer, you can send your example directly using the button below:

Parent/Carer

Every contribution helps us understand real moments more clearly, and we read each message with care.

What these insights tell us

Children learn in small, everyday moments — during homework, routines, conversations, frustrations, and discoveries.
This page gathers the patterns, reflections, and strategies emerging from the stories families have generously shared with Dysferent.

These insights are not clinical or diagnostic.
They help us notice where learning tends to become harder at home, and highlight practical patterns that inspire the strategies and tools we develop — helpful starting points, never guaranteed solutions.