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CNN Live At Daybreak
Student to Ride Bike from Olympia to Sacramento to Raise Awareness for Learning Disabilities
Aired June 19, 2001 - 07:49 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN ANCHOR: Teachers may be surprised when Alex Smyth turns in his paper called "What I Did on My Summer Vacation. The 13-year-old is riding his bicycle 800 miles from Olympia, Washington to Salem, Oregon and then on to Sacramento, California. He hopes to raise awareness about learning disabilities.
Alex Smyth joins us now from Seattle. Good morning, Alex. Thanks for getting up so early being here.
ALEX SMYTH, RIDE FOR AWARENESS: You're welcome.
MCEDWARDS: Alex, why is it important to you to raise awareness for learning disabilities like dyslexia, like attention deficit disorder?
SMYTH: Kids like me, if they had dyslexia, they'd probably want to not have to struggle the rest of their life. So, I think it'd be better if they were caught early, around preschool, because 90 percent of kids that are caught by preschool go on to be average or above- average readers even if they have dyslexia.
MCEDWARDS: Is that right? So, catching it early is really important?
SMYTH: Yes.
MCEDWARDS: How hard was school for you, Alex?
SMYTH: Well, back in second grade -- actually, way back in kindergarten, I used to be calling -- like, if my parents were like is that's OK, Alex? I'd be like that's too hot when I mean that's too cold. So, I'd get those mixed up. I'd call my grandma uncle, and I didn't even know how to spell my name. And in second grade what me -- what took other kids maybe an hour took me six hours to practice 10 spelling words, even though I only got two right.
MCEDWARDS: And then how did things change for you once you were diagnosed and once you knew why this was happening to you? How did things change for you?
SMYTH: Well, we knew what was wrong, and we went and got some help. We went to tutors and they helped us. But what was surprising to -- that we found out was that we didn't -- since I had talked fine, I like to talk a lot. We didn't expect that the help I needed was actually from a speech therapist.
MCEDWARDS: And it affects people in different ways, too. I mean, you describe in your biography, you've got a really high IQ. Your IQ's in the 98th percentile, it's just that language part that's tough for you; right?
SMYTH: Right.
MCEDWARDS: You've also got a great sense of humor about this, Alex, and I just want to share this with people because in your bio, you say that in spelling, you spelled sore throat as sour trout.
SMYTH: Yes.
MCEDWARDS: That's very cute. Punctuation you've got, in brackets, what's that and then under writing, you've got in brackets, only on computers with spell check.
SMYTH: Yes. That's what I do.
MCEDWARDS: How do you keep your sense of humor?
SMYTH: Well, I just don't take it as hard as most people would because you know there's something wrong, you know it's going to be with you for the rest of your life. Just get over it. Just get help and you're over it.
MCEDWARDS: Good for you. Now, when do you head out on your trip?
SMYTH: Actually, later today.
MCEDWARDS: Well, good luck. We wish you all the best. Appreciate it.
SMYTH: Thanks.
MCEDWARDS: OK, take care.
SMYTH: All right, bye.
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