Hyperlexia?

Has anyone heard of it or have a child who's been diagnosed with it?

Serena's new therapist brought it up at her session today. I'd never even heard the word until today, but after researching, honestly, it sounds just like her.

Hyperlexic children will learn to speak only by rote memory and heavy repetition.
Significant difficulty in understanding verbal language
Abnormal and awkward social skills
Fixation with letters or numbers
Memorization of sentence structures without understanding the meaning
An intense need to keep routines, difficulty with transitions, ritualistic behavior
Plus others, but those were the ones that stood out to me the most

It's still considered on the spectrum, apparently. I guess it's just a more definitive "label"? I still don't know a whole lot yet.

My son is considered to be hyperlexic-but it is not something formally diagnosed. My son does not speak to communicate but was very obsessed with letters at an early age. He couldn't tell you 'yes' if he wanted juice but he knew all of his letters, phonics, how to spell some words (mumbled under his breath at home, day care, at his school orientation), and pours over books like a crazy man. It really has no bearing in terms of treatment, but it is important to let teachers know so that they can teach based on his/her strengths.

Quoting mama3trish:" My son is considered to be hyperlexic-but it is not something formally diagnosed. My son does not speak ... [snip!] ... no bearing in terms of treatment, but it is important to let teachers know so that they can teach based on his/her strengths."

How old is he?

My daughter says some things. Like if I point to a cow and say "cow" she'll say "cow", or if I say "night night" she'll say "night night" (sometimes). And she can sing a million songs word for word. But she doesn't actually use words on her own to communicate. She can't answer questions at all or tell you what she wants. But she's extremely fixated with numbers, letters, and books. She knows all of her letters and the sounds they make and she has to stop and "read" everything.

Quoting Rain (aka Mama):" How old is he? My daughter says some things. Like if I point to a cow and say "cow" she'll say "cow", ... [snip!] ... numbers, letters, and books. She knows all of her letters and the sounds they make and she has to stop and "read" everything. "

Sounds hyperlexic to me, but I am no expert. Is she on the spectrum?

Quoting mama3trish:" Sounds hyperlexic to me, but I am no expert. Is she on the spectrum?"

Yes. High functioning autism.

I guess it doesn't really make a huge difference, but it's interesting to know. It explains a lot.