During the remainder of this term, I have been working with two dyslexic girls…
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I was diagnosed with Dyslexia at AS level when I moved to Chethams School of Music in Manchester where I was studying the flute, piano and singing. Up until this point I went through school life unaware of why I found certain things more challenging than others. Being a musician, I just assumed that I was always more creative than academic.
Reading and writing always caused me problems. Words would be flying all over the page, I would read the same page several times and still not have any comprehension of what I had just read, I struggled with note taking in class and spellings would always slow me down. I gained a scholarship entry to the Royal Academy of Music. At the Academy I had a fantastic learning support teacher and after six years of her help and completing an MA, my confidence grew massively. Music theory was a big barrier for me for many years. The mathematical side of theory, such as rhythm, caused me great difficulty. It was only until I went to university that music theory actually started to make clear sense.
Memorising music was also a challenge. My principle study at the Royal Academy of Music was singing and music was always being learnt and memorised, especially in foreign languages which used to cause me a lot difficulty. However, I have learnt many different techniques to help with this.
Working as a Creative Mentor is a huge privilege to me. It allows me to work directly with pupils who have the same challenges as I do. I am excited to be able to share learning styles and techniques that I wish I had known about at an earlier stage in my education. I hope I can help pupils to feel more confident in their own abilities and not to feel that dyslexia is in anyway a barrier to their education.
Fiona Howell
Royal Academy of Music, 2013, Voice