Truth be told, learning disabilities (LD) are not easily explained. While they are "specific" to any number of areas of learning (such as reading, math, and writing) they are also often overlapping or co-occurring, meaning that individuals with LD can have significant challenges in more than one area of skill development and performance. Because learning doesn't take place in a vacuum, social-emotional and behavioral issues often mask or exacerbate the effects of LD. And as individuals are exposed to new information, gain new insights and experience, and build their own menus of strategies to overcome or work around their areas of struggle, the impact of their learning disabilities can change, for better or for worse. Add a person's overall personality and motivation and other factors like opportunities to expand one's repertoire of effective accommodations (trying things out and see if they work) to the mix, and it's clear that LD is not just one thing, is not easily captured in a simple explanation, and does not effect all individuals in the same way.

Visit the www.LD.org website for more information about learning disabilities, and download a free copy of the LD Checklist at http://www.ncld.org/publications-a-more/checklists-worksheets-a-forms/ld-checklist-of-signs-and-symptoms