Alta Wehmeyer

Reluctant and Eager Writers: Both Present a Challenge!

It was an honor to raise two lovely young men who dwelled on the opposite sides of the willingness to write spectrum. As a home school mom, I learned much and am educated in aspects of writing that I could not have ever contemplated in my life before I had children. Teaching our boys  to write was literally like walking on eggs!

My younger son's writing journey is an inspiring story.  He has severe myopia and is totally lost without his spectacles or contact lenses. A phonetic writer at age four and being able to read up-side down, he designed all kinds of machines, sketched them out complete with a 'bill of materials needed' in shopping list format—ready for the next trip to town.  His interest in chemistry was well developed and after burning a 3ft diameter hole in our beloved living room carpet it was evident that he had hugely hot ambitions. The local pharmacist and staff placed him on a watch list list—no goods or transactions unless parents are present!  The pharmacist, a wise man, alerted us to his discussions with our son, and the fact that he used the Internet for real research in making astonishing concoctions. This young man was an innovator, a designer, and a writer—the real deal!  

During 2008 at a home school co-op writing class, the girl sitting next to the little innovator announced her intention of becoming an author.  To this he replied, 'Interesting... I am one already!'  He could outwrite and outwit all of his peers.  As we know, writing is only desirable when others want to read your output. He sharpened his skills to the delight of others. When he enrolled in the Cambridge A-Levels program a year before going to university, his lecturer was suitably impressed with his prowess and advised him to continue in his masterful style. Weeks later at a parent evening, the teacher conveyed that there was little else that she could teach him. In her opinion his poetry output was most striking. I must confess to my insistence and inclusion of rigorous poetry memorization, analysis, and composition practices. This young man graduated college well before time. He remains an avid reader with communication skills is in a class of its own!

My older son was born with strabismus, a curious eye condition that causes double vision. Not knowing that he observed the world differently than anyone else, and which did not manifest until he attended the International School of Cape Town, Somerset West, I had no idea of the journey ahead of us. After three months of 'learning to read', he had memorized many pictures and the exact texts that matched every depiction. This skill is still serving him well as near photographic memory was his reward.

Looking back, the clues to his discomfort were so obvious. How could we have missed it? If you have not been exposed to such a bizarre situation, you will never know! There was nothing amiss with the grade of his vision, and he still boasts 20/20 today. This perfect result contributed to the immense difficulty of pinpointing the physical problem of seeing double, and how the brain ultimately interprets the visual input, however, hindsight shows that there were tell-tale signs.

Energetic with gusto for life, he had pronounced difficulties in some developmental areas.  He could not catch a ball or hit one—no matter how slowly it was thrown or how massive the racquet was. My husband and I were perplexed about why he would express huge interest in some activities yet quickly depart from them while different undertakings seemed just fine. After careful analysis we realized that those which required a sharply focused vision such as catching/hitting a ball, reading, and writing all presented problems. He was unable to read or write.  Selective avoidance was the name of his game. He could play video games comfortably when presented on a TV at distance, yet the computer screen presented a clear problem. All kinds of reasons for gravitating towards the first-mentioned as his preference always presented logically.  Getting him to write anything was like pushing a lead-filled wheelbarrow uphill!  It just did not happen. The reason for all of this was double vision. By his age the brain generally blinds the subordinate eye. He was lucky—both still worked but the physical offset prevented conversion.

Apart from his vision difficulty, he struggled with aspects of sensory integration. Jeans could not be tolerated, labels had to be removed from the inside of all clothing, wearing socks with seams was out of the question, and shoes were not even and option! These issues also manifested in what he ate. Food had to be crunchy in texture. Mushy foods were not even an option! As the years progressed, we adapted his environment so that it was optimal for him. Occupational-, physical therapy, and biokinetics positioned him to have a positive outlook on his surroundings. Auditory integration therapy helped with plugging developmental gaps due to hearing, prediction, and cognition inefficiencies.

After two precision eye surgeries, ingenious sensory interventions, and unfailing support from experienced experts, his hurdles were mostly overcome, and he could get started with reading and writing.  By this time, he was a solid five and a half years behind his peers academically.  Our focus turned to remedial strategies and interventions for dysgraphia, dyscalculia, and dyslexia. Love, patience, and diligent practice closed the gaps. This was a far tougher journey than anticipated, but he was determined and made measurable progress. Constantly calibrating his environment, he built confidence in his own abilities and started to thrive.

As parents having to deal with this peculiar situation, we only discussed his diagnoses on a ‘need-to-know’ basis. Looking back, I know today that this was wisdom beyond what we ourselves understood at the time. We were still based in South Africa and although expert assistance was available it was not as cutting edge as in other parts of the word. My husband travelled to the US on a regular basis, and we were blessed to have acquired books, therapies, and teaching aids that was not readily available in South Africa. Reflecting on what transpired, I know the results manifested due to him being a stubbornly determined student who have parents with equal traits. Miracles like this happen quite often. It goes by the name—STUDIOUSNESS.

Where did all of this leave me? Teaching!

My boys taught me how to best approach all kinds of writers. I use my first-hand gained and lived experience as well as expertise accumulated from tertiary-level study to teach others especially those facing similar predicaments to write well!

Alta Wehmeyer
June 24,2018