social model of dyslexia and social enterprise an innovative and positive way forward for the dyslexic community

Picture takes out side Cupar Youth Café with Brogan right and Steph left

Hello blog readers.......or should I say watchers. I find doing these vblogs very difficult so much to try and remember. Where is a teleprompter when you need on lol.

Just a little vblog today with some text. The vblog is about 10 minutes long 

Here are some of the photos people have sent me for the #iamdyslexic campaign. If you would like to get involved just send me your photo in like those below. If you have not got the software or don't heave the tech savvy just send me a photo and I will add the banner. steve_mccue@hotmail.com



 

if you want you can copy the banners above yourself and add it to your photo or your own social media

 

 

 

Social media links Please join us on our social media

　

https://www.facebook.com/Unique-Dyslexic-Get-Creative-1431413910440768/?sk=app_415675701824636

 

 

　

https://www.facebook.com/groups/unique.dyslexic/　our facebook group page

 

 

　

 

https://www.facebook.com/stephen.mccue.5　my page

 

 

　

 

https://www.facebook.com/Unique-Dyslexic-Get-Creative-1431413910440768/　kinda like our Unique Dyslexic　campaign come　business page

 

 

　

 

http://www.dyslexiapathways.com/　company web page

 

 

　

 

http://www.uniquedyslexic.com/　our unique dyslexic campaign page

 

 

　

 

http://sdyslexia.blogspot.co.uk/　dyslexia blog page

 

 

　

 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVKyJJgQWkYUa93-GdtX3fg　you tube channel

 

 

　

 

https://twitter.com/SteveMcCue1　twitter

 

 

 

　

 

 

https://uk.pinterest.com/raelthing/　Pinterest

 

 

 

　

 

 

https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=AAIAAAdBzacBPEi2aZeiCBELxGTTQBM_mq3HKU4HYPERLINK "https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=AAIAAAdBzacBPEi2aZeiCBELxGTTQBM_mq3HKU4&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile"&HYPERLINK "https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=AAIAAAdBzacBPEi2aZeiCBELxGTTQBM_mq3HKU4&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile"trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile　Linked in

Anyway ta for watching. If anyone has a video blog or would like to write a blog about dyslexia especially if you have something positive to say just contact me@

steve_mccuw@hotmail.com



A week of high highs and low lows here for me

Hi blogsters hope you are all fine and dandy out there in social media land

Its been a bit of an up and down week since my last blog.
 
On Sunday I felt very down a couple of negative remarks that I would usually let roll off my back and upset me. At the time I felt like closing everything down from my company Dyslexia Pathways CIC to all my associated social media.
 
Firstly I had been feeling down because I lost three friends to cancer over the past month or so. Fab people who I respected and cared about. It kinda brought back all the upset from when my mum passed away.
 
Secondly money worries have been getting to me as well. When I was a kid my dad was an alcoholic and gambler. He was always drinking and gambling his money away. I remember once we went away on holiday to Scotland. On the day we arrived my dad just disappeared. He came back later and all the holiday money was gone.
 
My mum and dads marriage was a total train wreck. One of the reasons I started working as a milk boy on a milk round was to make sure there was money there. I have always managed to support myself and people I love so these are unsettling times for me.

Who is the specialist?

Much of what I have learned about dyslexia and Neuro diversity I have learned from the students I have worked with. My qualifications say I am a dyslexia and inclusion specialist.
 
However, I would say I am the only specialist in myself as a dyslexic. Only I have lived my life as a dyslexic and have my own life experiences as a dyslexic.
 
All of us in dyslexic and neuro diverse communities are really the only specialist in ourselves? The better we understand ourselves the happier we can be. Not sure if that makes any sense though?


 What makes us happy?

Many dyslexics are unhappy and from their perspective those of us who have a positive dyslexic message must have lost our marbles. Frankly even I think I have lost my marbles at times lol.
 
It is society that disables us and this disabling begins at school that fail us. We can end up leaving school feeling like failures and with little self confidence and self esteem and even mental health issues.
 
But we fail not because we cannot learn or because we are not smart enough but because we are not taught in ways that enable us to learn. So it's not surprising and understandable that there are so many unhappy dyslexics out there who hate being dyslexic and who do not like school.
 
If we are failures it is because society has failed us. We can and do succeed in many different ways. Me personally I am a very happy, positive and confident dyslexic but this was not always so most of the time. When I walked away from school I believed I was just someone who could not learn.
 
We dyslexics can be an enigma to ourselves, our parents and teachers.   Solving that enigma for myself started when I as first assessed as dyslexic. I would say that everything I have achieved in my life would not have been possible if I were not dyslexic both before and after I was assessed.
 
All the negative experiences I have experienced I would not change one of them because that have taken me to a place and time where I am very happy and fulfilled as a person. 

 

 

 
My organisation is running a little campaign #iamdyslexic. The idea is to make we dyslexics more visible, to try and build a global dyslexic community, to show other dyslexics out there they are not isolated and alone and enable us to be dyslexia proud and positive.
 
All you need to do is take a photo holding an #iamdyslexic😎 banner. You can add your name and location if you want to. I will add them to a Pinterest gallery and if I can get enough people to reply maybe do something creative with them.
 
It's open to dyslexics of all ages. There are a couple photos I have been sent to far. I have created a couple banners that you can print off and use or add to your own social media. Please share with your contacts.

Many thanks. If you are from any other neuro diverse community you can get involved with an #iamneurodiverse😎 photo? You do not have to put any other information there but a first name and country would be helpful

above some of the photos people have sent for

 Anyway

many thanks for reading and for sharing my blog if you  feel it worthy of sharing.

PS: received a fab phone call today that brought positive and fabtastic news about new prospective opportunities for myself and Dyslexia Pathways CIC. More news on that to follow.

I am seeking guest bloggers for my blog so if anyone has something to say about dyslexia or neuro diversity let me know.

New dyslexia vblog?

Hi there blog readers hope you are all well. This blog is more of vlog today. Just so much easier to say what I have to say rather than write. By the way I was being attacked by a wasp at the start lol not picking my nose.

above is the link to my vblog

New tee shirts design here. I decided the tee shirt logos I did before were a little over the top, a little expensive to produce. So I went for something a little simpler. As I say in my vlog its about making us more visible. Is about us advocating for a more positive profile of dyslexia. About building a community and social movement and empowering us to self identify. Its often said dyslexia is a hidden disability. I say its about hidden abilities and lost potential. Here is my most recent design:

Any way here is one of my new designs. Once again thank you to Christian Boer for agreeing to let us use his dyslexie font. I used dyslexia friendly fonts and smilies to keep it simple and effective as possible. Also many thanks to Concept Northern for their support. This will soon be available to buy through our Dyslexia Pathways CIC online shop.

Please feel free to give me feedback. All the designs so far have male smilies but I will be adding a female one soon using the hashtag below.


Anyway thanks for reading please get involved in our:



#iamdyslexic:-))) some fabtastic news and something fun to do

My new banner for my twitter designed on Canva

Hi blog readers hope you are all feeling fab and ready for the week end.

I down loaded Canva graphic design package of my ipad a couple weeks ago. It was the best price of all and that's free for the basic package. Ok its not very functional but its easy to use that even I can use it lol. What do you think of my new Twitter banner?

Some of my regular readers may remember that my organisation Dyslexia Pathways CIC support and promote the social model of dyslexia. It basically says it is society that disables us as dyslexics. The same can be said for people in disabled and neuro diverse communities. This disabling begins in schools for many of us and society continues to marginalise many of us in the workplace, in training etc.

Some of you will remember that I do not believe I have dyslexia, like it is an illness. Or the idea that I am a person with dyslexia like dyslexia is a separate part of me. those terms just do not fit me or who I am at all. I had also had a little conversation with someone who said to me they were not dyslexic. He basically said, "I am normal".

I am very happy being dyslexic. Yes it was a real pain when I was a kid at times. it made my experiences not as positive as they could have been. My handwriting, even today, looks like demented unintelligible upper case scrawl. On the other hand being dyslexic has brought many positives with it.

I left school thinking I was soopid with or academic potential or any particular talents but after being assessed as dyslexic I was able to discover that I could succeed academically and that I was talented in so many ways. That's why I am so positive about being dyslexic and am driven to enable other dyslexics to succeed along their chosen paths and realise their potential. Its why I became a dyslexia and inclusion specialist and then a social entrepreneur  with my social enterprise Dyslexia Pathways Community Interest Company.

I know that for many dyslexic kids, parents with dyslexic kids and adults who may be dyslexic I must read like I lunatic lol. But as I have said it is not dyslexia that is our problem, that disables us. It is society that disables. Our schools still fail far to many of us, it is our negative experiences of learning at school which negatively impact on our self esteem and self confidence and can leave us with potentially long term mental health issues.   

Then there is the fact that between 10% to 20% of the population is dyslexic. This together with the fact that dyslexia is hidden. I cannot walk down the street and point out who is dyslexic or who is not. Being dyslexic can be very isolating. During our Unique Dyslexic campaign one person said it was the first time they had sat in a room with other dyslexics. It was the first time they had felt comfortable taking about being dyslexic to others. It was the first time they had felt supported and comfortable being dyslexic.

So long story short as they say. We need to start building a coherent dyslexic community. A global social movement even. we need to start speaking to each other and being open about being dyslexic. Social media has started to enable us to do this. Lots of fab online communities out there on Facebook etc.

That's why I started using the #iamdyslexic hashtag. I want to start to build bridges, making friends lets get our dyslexic community up and running on a global scale.

That's why I wanted to start the #iamdyslexic campaign. Its easy and free to do and it will enable us to start building our dyslexic community. All you need to is send me a selfie our photo with the #iamdyslexic hashtag. You can add a smilie if you want and or your name and where in the world you are. You can print it or draw it by hand on an a4 size bit of paper.

I have designed a new #iamdyslexic logo for tee shirts etc. I have to thank Christian Boer who created the Dislexie font who answer little call to action to help me professionally realise my designs. He has also let us use the dyslexie font on one of our designs.

If anyone is interested in buying one please let me know. If I can get orders for at least 50 t shirts form you guys out there I can get them printed. The cost will probably be between £20 to £25 including postage. Cost of postage will depend on where you are in the world.

Below are the hasthtags I designed you can add to your facebook or twitter profiles if you like etc totally free of charge

 

Below are the new tee shirts

tee 1 above

tee 2 above

tee 3 above

tee 4 above

tee 5 above

Please let me know what you think of these new designs. Your feedback in much appreciated. Dyslexia Pathways CIC is a not for profit social enterprise.

many thanks for reading and please share share share my blog or news about our hashtag campaign and tee shirts.

#iamdyslexic #vivaladifference #uniquedyslexic and other stuff ;-))))



#iamdyslexic hash tag

Hi blog readers hope you are all well

Why I say #iamdyslexic

I am dyslexic. I don't have dyslexia. I am not a person with dyslexia. I do not suffer with dyslexia.

#iamdyslexic pls share the hashtag if you agree #uniquedyslexic #vivaladifference.

I say #iamdyslexic because I am not a person with dyslexia like there is another standing next to me.  I don't say I have dyslexia like its some sort of chronic illness.

I don't say I suffer with dyslexia because I don't suffer with dyslexia. What I do suffer with is a society which marginalises me, that denies me, and many other dyslexics, our human right to an education that enables us rather that disables.

As a dyslexic I see and make sense of the world through a dyslexic prism. I believe that being dyslexic informs my decision making, my problem solving and the way I interact with the world and with others.

I don't think I could have ever become a musician, or teacher, or specialist inclusion and dyslexia person or social entrepreneur or human rights advocate if I were not dyslexic.

Being dyslexic gives me a strong emotional intelligence, it gives me empathy, it gives me a feel for things, I tend to go with my heart and instinct. I am a lateral thinker rather than a logical linear one.

I am not saying dyslexics are better than non dyslexics I am just saying we are different. Like disabled people, neuro diverse people and like neuro typical people there are things that we are all fab at and things we just are not fab at. For me personally the things that being dyslexic makes me fab at far outweigh the things I am not so fab at.

The problem is that our education system does not enable us to achieve using our strengths. It takes a one size fits all approach which just does not work for so many of us from all communities. Its not the fault of teachers or schools even.

There are many fab teachers and schools. what we lack is governments that are more interested in league tables, more interested in telling teacher what they should teach and how they should teach it.

What we need is an education system where inclusion is at the forefront not just an afterthought. If we cannot have inclusion in our education system how can we expect to have inclusion in our society.

Of course the single most important factor in developing an understanding of dyslexia was my first assessment. I think I was around 35 years old and at university when student services suggested I go for an assessment.

It helped me gain insights into my early experiences of school and put them into context. The report is not entirely correct regarding a childhood illness. I got serious scarlet fever when I was about 4 years old and then a lot of complications after that which kept me in hospital for over a year no a few months as in the report.

Any thought I would show you my first dyslexia report see below:

My first dyslexia report

Its not being dyslexic that disables and fails us. It is our education system and society that does that.

#dyslexia is a difference that reflects #diversity #vivaladifference.

Neuro diversity is as important as biodiversity

What do you think? 

Bits and bobs of other news.

I have to thank Inspiralba for giving us support with out search for funding. They have kindly given us a list of local trusts that we can approach to seek funding from. As well as that they have written us a letter of introduction to one of the trusts. I have added some other text to this and once I have had it proof read I will send it off to them.

Their graphic designer is also helping me with a new design for our tee shirt logo range. As it happens I have just designed a new logo which is ready to go on tee shirt now.

Dyslexia is about invisible abilities but because of this we need to make ourselves more visible. we need to advocate for a more positive profile of dyslexia.

That's one of the reasons I decided to try the tee shirt idea. Lets make ourselves more visible lets start having the conversations and lets start supporting each other and building a community.

I have got through stage one of application for support with marketing with Just Enterprise. Now all I have to do is complete the stage two application.....wish me luck......I am so bad at marketing. On the list also is support with a business plan for the hub and business.

I am starting to get together the information needed for our stage one application for a Big Lottery Improving Lives Award. I have got a couple of other grant applications that I can use that fit the criteria for this Lottery Award.

Time to start making mind maps again I think. I want to have this done and dusted by the end of next week.

Anyway many thanks for taking the time to read my blog. If anyone would like to write a little guest blog please just let me know.

peace love and groovyness to everyone out there

Oh yes PS this blog will take me to 40.000 reads