The essentials in 30 seconds
Every day, a child with specific learning difficulties puts in more effort than their classmates to read, write, count or organise their movements. Supporting them well means first coordinating the professionals around them and protecting their energy. Here is how neurofeedback can fit into this pathway, alongside speech and language therapy and school, and what you can do at home.
Specific learning difficulties in brief
Specific learning difficulties (known in France as “dys” disorders, or specific language and learning disorders) are lasting neurodevelopmental conditions. They do not reflect a lack of intelligence or a lack of effort. The French National Authority for Health (HAS) considers them a public health issue and, in its 2018 guide, describes a stepped, coordinated care pathway centred on the child’s needs.
These difficulties often occur together or alongside ADHD. To understand which cognitive functions are involved (attention, working memory, executive functions), read our article learning disorders: the functions involved.
Who does what around the child?
Each professional has a specific role. According to the HAS, the child’s doctor (GP or paediatrician) plays a key role in identifying the difficulties and then in making the diagnosis, in liaison with the relevant therapist. Parents and the child are involved in every decision.
The doctor
Identifies the difficulties, requests assessments, makes the diagnosis with the therapists and coordinates follow-up.
The therapists
Speech and language therapist, psychomotor therapist, occupational therapist: they assess and provide therapy for language, reading and writing, maths or motor skills.
The school
Adapts its teaching and, if needed, puts in place a PPRE (personalised academic success programme), a PAP (personalised support plan for learning disorders) or a PPS (personalised schooling plan for pupils with a recognised disability).
Centre Élan
Trains attention and self-regulation through neurofeedback and biofeedback, alongside everything else.
Speech and language therapy and neurofeedback: two distinct roles
Neurofeedback does not teach a child to read, write or count. That specific work is the job of speech and language therapy (and, depending on needs, psychomotor or occupational therapy) and of the teacher. Training targets something else: the general resources that every school task draws on, which is why schoolwork is so tiring for a child with specific learning difficulties.
What training aims to doalongside other support
- sustained attention during a task
- managing fatigue and alertness levels
- self-regulation of stress before reading aloud or a test (biofeedback)
- relaxing the hand and shoulders while writing (muscle biofeedback)
What it does not replaceunder any circumstances
- medical diagnosis and assessments
- speech and language therapy, psychomotor therapy or occupational therapy
- school adjustments and adaptations
- prescribed medication, which only the doctor can change
What the research says
Studies remain few in number and small. In a randomised trial published in 2010, Breteler and colleagues followed 19 children with dyslexia who were all receiving educational support: the group that also received neurofeedback improved in spelling, but not in reading. A systematic review of 12 studies (López-Zamora et al., Annals of Dyslexia, 2026) concludes that neurofeedback alone has no demonstrated benefit for reading. The HAS guide on specific learning difficulties does not mention it.
We analyse the most frequently cited study in detail in our article neurofeedback and specific learning difficulties: what does the two-year follow-up study show?
School: the support plans to know about
Depending on the nature and duration of the difficulties, the school can draw on several support plans. These are the responsibility of the educational team, the school doctor or the MDPH (departmental disability centre): it is not our role to decide on them, but to share, with your consent, useful observations on the child’s attention and self-regulation.
| Plan | For which pupil? | Who puts it in place? |
|---|---|---|
| PPRE | A pupil at risk of not mastering essential knowledge and skills | The teaching team, for a short period |
| PAP | A pupil with lasting school difficulties due to a learning disorder, without officially recognised disability status | The school, after consulting the school doctor |
| PPS | A pupil with officially recognised disability status | Decision by the MDPH, monitored by the disability liaison teacher (enseignant référent) |
The personalised support plan (PAP) can, for example, allow for outside therapy during school hours, such as with a speech and language therapist, as well as adaptations: a lighter workload, photocopied lessons, adjusted tests. The centre also works with school teams: find out about our work in schools.
Our support, step by step
The schedule is planned with you so as not to overload a child who already has a lot to cope with. For details, see the programme: from qEEG assessment to training. If no diagnosis has been made yet, we will first advise you to see your child’s doctor.
At home: protecting your child’s energy
Shorter, better-paced homework
Break work into short blocks with breaks in between, start with what requires the most concentration and use the compensatory tools recommended by the speech and language therapist or occupational therapist (audio reading, computer, uncluttered materials).
Protecting sleep
Sleep consolidates what has been learnt during the day. Regular bedtimes and a calm, screen-free period before bed help the child recover. If nights are difficult, read our article sleep and ADHD in children.
Praise effort, not just marks
A child with specific learning difficulties is often told they are “not trying”. Highlighting their progress and the strategies they use protects their self-esteem and motivation, both essential for keeping going in the long term.
The Élan Minds app, coming soon, is designed to make it easier for families and teachers to stay in touch and to put support in place at school. Before an appointment, our questionnaire for parents helps you identify what affects your child most in daily life.
Frequently asked questions
My child sees a speech and language therapist: can they also do neurofeedback?
Yes, in fact that is the usual set-up: speech and language therapy works on written or spoken language, while neurofeedback targets attention and self-regulation. We schedule sessions so that they fit in with therapy without overloading the child’s timetable.
Can neurofeedback replace school adjustments?
No. The adjustments set out in a PAP or PPS meet the child’s needs in class and are the responsibility of the school, the school doctor or the MDPH. Training is used alongside them and is never a reason to reduce them.
Can a qEEG assessment diagnose specific learning difficulties?
No. Specific learning difficulties are diagnosed by a doctor, based on the therapists’ assessments. The qEEG assessment describes the child’s brain activity to guide training and track progress.
Sources
- HAS (2018). Troubles dys: comment mieux organiser le parcours de santé? Guide parcours de santé [Specific learning difficulties (“dys” disorders): how can the care pathway be better organised? Care pathway guide]
- Mon Parcours Handicap. PPRE, PAI, PAP, PPS: en quoi consistent les différentes possibilités d’appui à la scolarisation? [PPRE, PAI, PAP, PPS: what do the different school support options involve?] (updated in 2026)
- Ministère de l’Éducation nationale. Circulaire n° 2015-016 du 22 janvier 2015 relative au plan d’accompagnement personnalisé [French Ministry of Education circular No. 2015-016 of 22 January 2015 on the personalised support plan (PAP)]
- Breteler M.H.M. et al. (2010). Improvements in spelling after QEEG-based neurofeedback in dyslexia: a randomized controlled treatment study. Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, 35(1), 5-11
- López-Zamora M. et al. (2026). Efficacy of neurofeedback in the treatment of dyslexia: a systematic review. Annals of Dyslexia, 76(1), 137-155