When I dropped off my daughter at school early this week, I noticed something. Or, more accurately, I noticed the absence of this thing: The new is gone. The spick and span cleanness in the hallway has been replaced with skid marks and paint scrapes. The pencils are down to nubs, the markers missing their right lids, the lost and found is already near to overflowing. Even the energy is softer, reflecting the calm of kids and teachers settling into a groove. I love it.

Don’t get me wrong. The beginning of school, those first few weeks are special in their own way too. But there’s just something uniquely sweet about the end of the honeymoon phase, when the kids' personalities come out and teachers start getting to know your children as individuals.

It’s right around now, too, that we start to get a good grasp on students who may be struggling.

Emphasis on the may because really, it’s just too early to know for sure. A student who’s a little slow to catch on in fractions may just not clearly understand the type of instruction, or a little guy who hesitates in decoding may still be just a bit shy. Our teacher radar is on, though, and we’re watching.

This is also about the time parents notice the same thing, wondering if their child should be struggling with homework so much, or if, compared to his peers, he’s ‘on level.' Parents have radar too.

It’s a difficult, painful time for some families. Nothing is harder than watching your child struggle. So, how do you know the difference between a real learning problem and a mild delay a tutor, or perhaps just a little extra push, can help? The short easy answer is that there is no short easy answer. But there are some ways to help navigate this path.

For starters, let’s get some facts down. A learning disability (LD) is a neurological disorder; the brain of someone with an LD isn’t wired the same way other’s brains are. It’s a lifelong issue that cannot be cured or fixed, but students with an LD can, and do learn. A learning delay is an isolated incident (or sometimes series of incidences) in which a child eventually can, and does, catch up.

Also worth noting, 'Learning Disorder' is a term used to describe a broad sweep of causes, symptoms, treatments and outcomes.

If you think something’s up, the first step is to talk to your child’s teacher. When determining whether your child’s behavior or school work is normal or atypical, special care needs to be given to the difference between what may be a reflection of your child’s personality or an area of concern. Teachers are trained to look for the time in which skills emerge, along with the sequence in which they do. As parents, you hold the key to your child’s day-to-day behavior. Work collaboratively with your child’s teacher to put these two pieces together.

Secondly, know you’re not alone. One in seven children requires special assistance at some point in their educational career. When my son was in the early parts of first grade he needed a tutor. Later that year, he was recommended for a gifted program. Learning occurs at its own pace and measure.

And lastly, research, but be careful. The internet is full of information, some of it useful, some of it daunting. This site  http://www.readingrockets.org/helping/questions/ld/ helps to break down terms, defines policies and politics, and offers tips.

When a child struggles in school, it seems the whole family struggles. The most important thing to remember is your child is also developing his self esteem, which is often (how can it not be?) tied to academic achievement. Be sure to honor and praise your whole child, and explain that different doesn’t ever mean bad.

By Sharon Linde, Education Blogger forSmartParenting