Pine-Richland student advocates on behalf of peers with dyslexia

Think back to the ups and downs of your early years in school.

Then consider how the experience must have been for students like Brenyn Caplan.

“I remember sitting in class, and I just wanted to read, but I couldn’t, at all. It was really difficult for me because everybody else was reading, and I was very upset with myself because I thought that I was disappointing people,” she recalled. “But I’ve really improved, and I love reading now.”

Brenyn, an eighth grader at Pine-Richland Middle School, was invited to speak at the state Capitol during Dyslexia Awareness Day in October. Even though she addressed hundreds of members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly and their guests, she wasn’t nervous.

“I was really excited to get to share my story and to inform people about what I think is important about dyslexia, and how to help kids with dyslexia,” she said.

She was diagnosed with the condition, caused by differences in the parts of the brain that process language, after two frustrating years of kindergarten.

“Because of my experiences, I know how important it is for struggling readers to get the help that they need,” Brenyn told Capitol audience. “I would like all stakeholders to know that spending time and money on helping kids with dyslexia will result in more confident and successful young adults.”

The Pine resident attributes much of her reading success — “about 15 books last year, when before I could not even get through one” — to working with tutor Christine Seppi, who has chaired the Pittsburgh Region of the Pennsylvania Branch of the International Dyslexia Association.

“Being taught in a different way helped make it click,” Brenyn said. “When I started going to my tutor, she knew how to teach it to me so it made sense, and I learned so many things about the rules of the English language through doing that. Once you know the rules, everything starts to come together.”

Her mother, Carol, complimented Seppi’s efforts while acknowledging the support Brenyn receives at school.

“She’s always been fortunate enough to have teachers who were very willing to work with her and accommodate, and she’s been able to get that help,” Carol said. “But the unfortunate thing is there are a lot of kids out there who aren’t getting that help, and they’re still labeled as being lazy or not trying hard enough, not listening.”

Brenyn spoke about the difficulties that students with dyslexia may encounter in taking exams for academic assessment.

“We are then told we did not do well on the test, and we should be placed in lower-level classes,” she said. “We are smart, creative, intuitive, athletic students whose intelligence should not be defined by standardized tests.”

For her part, Brenyn is an honor student who, in addition to her scholastic pursuits, puts in six days a week honing her ballet skills.

“If I’m stressed out about school or I need to let my mind go, going to dance really helps because I love to dance, and I’m so focused on dancing, I don’t have to think about anything else,” she explained. “I’m so glad I get the opportunity to do it.”

She has the role of a clown in the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s annual production of “The Nutcracker,” scheduled for Dec. 6-27 at the Benedum Center.

As for her message to state lawmakers, she summed it up with:

“I would like for kids who have dyslexia to know to never give up, because they will learn to read, write and spell. I would also like to remind them that they are not dumb or disappointing anyone because they learn differently.

“But most of all, they are not defined by dyslexia.”