Living with a Learning Disability: A Family Story: The Browns

By: Alyssa Stipcic

The Assignment

An interview with someone whose life is effected by Mild/Moderate special education

I took the approach of a family perspective

2 interviewsMother, Wendy & Kevin

Personal history with the family

Allow Me to Introduce….

The Brown Family Wendy Ryan Kevin

The Basics

The Brown family is a family of 6 Mother Wendy, Father Gregg, 4 sons

Josh, Ryan, Kevin, & AndrewThere is no known family history of

learning disability in the familyBoth Ryan and Kevin Brown were

diagnosed with a Learning Disability in their elementary years of schooling

What is SLD

Unexpected underachievement academically

A relatively new category of disabilityAs more is known more people are

diagnosed with a specific learning disability

There are Categories of SLD

READINGWriting MathThinking Processes (metacognition)

A Mother’s Perspective

The Signs

Ryan – prior to schooling Staying focused, hard time with fine motor

ability (working with building blocks, board game tokens)

Kevin – prior to schooling Verbal Development, Hyper, Attention

Cause for Concern

“Something’s is just not right!”

Declining GradesDiagnosis Yikes the IEP process

Ryan’s Life Before Identification

Poor GradesFew FriendsLow self-esteem/depressionEasily FrustratedInterested in sportsSecretive with older brother Josh

Kevin’s Life Before Identification

Poor GradesActing Up/ Getting in Trouble at SchoolClass ClownPopular with peersCommunication ProblemsInto sports

“Ryan and Kevin were both identified with a reading learning disability”

-Wendy Brown

Ryan After

Still withdrawn at firstLearned ways to copeProud part of his educationChanneled into athleticsBecame good at math

Kevin After

Grades improved immediately with intervention

Maintained sense of humorSpeech Language PathologistSupport of RyanSuccessful socially and athletically Didn’t talk about disability

Changes

Ryan & Kevin were given extra time on tests

Kevin was given reading books on tapeBoth boys spent their reading periods in

a special education room until high school

Taught strategies to read so that reading works for them

A Learning Disability According to Kevin

School as a Child

Had a speech issueCover with humor“I knew early that I didn’t see words like

everyone else”“I definitely thought I was stupid”Tried to find things I was good at

“I Don’t Need to Read”

Friends told me what happened in the reading

Excuses not to readCreated distractionsUsed the picturesCreated picturesGuessed

“I have what Ryan has”

Support of having a brother with a learning disability

Lied to friends about intervention“All of the sudden I could read, not well,

but I got it!!”SLP taught to channel verbally

Continued Education

In high school was part of student council and was named prom king

Went on to collegeSimilar services continued in college“By the time I got to Mount I had learned

how to not only manage my disability but succeed with it”

Life Now

Ryan’s Life Today

Graduated from Mount Union College in 2007 with a degree in Financial Accounting

Now works for NASA in Cleveland

Kevin’s Life Today

Graduated from Mount Union College in 2009 with a degree in Marketing and Advertising

Now the Operations Manager of HeatherLily, Inc event company

Got married in October 2011

A Special Thanks to

Wendy Brown, Kevin Brown, & the entire Brown family for sharing their story.