Picture drawn in oil and pencil. The term dyslexia literally means a speech disorder. It is used to describe unusual difficulties in learning to read and write by an otherwise healthy child. These children often have difficulty pronouncing words and reading aloud. There is no consensus among doctors and psychologists regarding the cause of dyslexia. According to some, it is caused by abnormalities in the brain pathways, while others believe that it is caused by minor brain damage at birth or a disease suffered in early childhood