My son has been diagnosed with stealth dyslexia. He is highly gifted, but shows many of the weaknesses of a dyslexic, including poor handwriting, and poor spelling. He is 10 years old.
He has been playing competitive chess since he was five years old, and is very strong in many ways. His coach feels bewildered, however, by my son's ability to think deeply about the board and understand many things that are going on, but his inability to consistently apply this knowledge.
His coach will show that my son knows something, has applied it before, but then will not apply it at another similar situation in a different game. We are trying to understand what is happening. My son's coach says that he doesn't see other kids do this. I am wondering if it is related to dyslexia.I would like to help my son figure this out. This is frustrating for him. He loves chess, and he works hard at it, and he can beat a very strong player one day, but in the very next game, lose to a weaker player. As a result, his rating is not rising as fast as some of the other kids that he plays with.
I should say that this only matters because it is a life lesson. I want him to realize that if he works hard at something, he will improve. And if he isn't improving, I want to help him understand why, and maybe find a solution. And I want to support him in his love of chess.If anyone has any thoughts or suggestions, I would love to hear them.
