New Delhi: Learning disabilities affect at least two to three per cent of children, and that is a conservative estimate. Here are truths that experts unveil about certain myths:

Myth 1: Many children who reverse letters do not have a learning disability.

"First and foremost myth - the b's and d's reversal. Any child who writes a b instead of d is learning disabled. This is one of 30 or 40 signs a learning disabled child can have," says special educator, Geet Oberoi.

Says another special educator, Ruchika Sachdev, "At five, reversing b and d is not a big issue. Most children will do it, till they learn better." It is only if it persists into primary school than that will be some cause of concern.

Myth 2: Children with learning disabilities have average to above average IQ.

"There is a big difference between learning disabled and slow learners. Slow learners have an intellectual disability. They are slow because their IQ is less than 18. However, it is a prerequisite that all learning disabled children have an at least average IQ if not high," says Oberoi.

Myth 3: Children with learning disabilities are lazy.

They actually need help. Sachdev says, "A lot of times they are told that they are just lazy. They don't want to do it."

Myth 4: A learning disability is a behaviour problem.

A learning disability is not a behavioural problem, though both conditions can exist together. Also, because of an undiagnosed learning disability, a child is put under all kinds of pressure and may start acting out, leading to behavioural problems.

"Seventy to 80 per cent children when diagnosed with learning disability would have behaviour problems," says clinical psychologist, Roma Kumar. And there is another big misconception - poor parenting.

Parents are not to blame for their children to have learning disabilities, though of course it doesn't help.