10-Year-Old Girl Admitted to Mensa After Dyslexia Test Reveals IQ of 136
Dyslexia is a common learning difficulty that can cause problems with reading, writing, and spelling. But unlike learning disabilities, dyslexia has no effect on intelligence.
That is the case with a 10-year-old dyslexic girl, Poppy O’Malley-Flack, from Snodland, Kent, whose IQ allowed her to be admitted to Mensa, an organization open to people whose IQ’s are in the top two percent, The BBC reported.
The IQ test was part of a dyslexia screening. Poppy was being tutored for the 11plus because she had difficulty with spelling and her tutor suggested she be evaluated for dyslexia.
Poppy’s mother, Lucy O’Malley-Flack, told BBC, “Poppy was spelling words correctly but from memory rather than through phonics.”
About the Test
The three-hour test was conducted by Glynda Cullen from Guiding Star Dyslexia. She was surprised by the results which revealed that Poppy has dyslexia but also an IQ of 136 – in the top one percent of people in Britain – that allowed her to work around it.
Cullen said, “I kept thinking she’ll get one wrong in a minute as it gets steadily harder, but she kept on going! Usually with children you can tell they are finding it difficult. They might squirm in their seat, but Poppy didn’t, she stayed completely calm and level-headed.”
The news shocked Poppy’s mother, according to MSN, because her daughter always excelled in creative subjects. “She had never been the type of child you thought was gifted or very academic who goes up to their room and studies and loves learning. She is creative and she is very good at art, O’Malley-Flack told MSN.
“However, she is very logical and has good reasoning skills and is very good at problem solving. We have always known that. We always knew she was quite grown up for her age.”
While people with dyslexia are often viewed as unintelligent, that is not the case. Poppy’s scores show that a person can have a learning difficulty and still be gifted.
Joining Mensa
After getting the results, O’Malley-Flack approached Mensa about getting Poppy into programs with other gifted children. She sent the IQ test results to Mensa and Poppy was accepted into the organization. Now, Poppy has a lot of Mensa merchandise including a certificate, sweatshirt, and mug.
Poppy passed her 11 plus exam and is hoping to get into grammar school but has no career goals at this time, reported the BBC. She is hopeful that the publicity about her IQ will change people’s attitudes about dyslexia.
She told BBC, “It isn’t because you’re not smart, it’s just you don’t think the same as everyone else and that’s a good thing.” Poppy described dyslexia as her superpower and who knows how far it will take her. One thing is sure; she will soar to great heights.
