Is your child still reversing letters and numbers when writing?  If your child is just starting school or younger than 8 years of age, writing letters backwards is not something to be concerned about. 

However, if this continues beyond the first two years of school, it is something that should not be ignored.  

It is important not to leave your child to continue reversing letters and numbers when writing, as this will slow down their reading fluency.  If a child is having to stop and consider which way round their letters and numbers go, they are using up valuable working memory space.  Also, if a child continues to reverse letters in words, they are in fact practicing the wrong formation over and over creating a hard habit to break.

Are letter reversals a sign of dyslexia?

Let me start by endeavoring to answer this common question. 

“Are letter reversals a sign of dyslexia?”

In short, reversing letters is not what signifies that a child is dyslexic.  It can be a sign that a child’s working memory is overloaded and simply doesn’t have the capacity to use correct letter formation.  Just like a buoy on top of the water tells us that something may be going on below the water’s surface, so these can be tell-tale signs that may point to a broader difficulty.