Reading and writing difficulties do not always occur as the researcher expects

Making a prognosis about reading and learning difficulties is a tricky business, even if a large array of relevant variables is taken into account. The present article discusses such an endeavour, on the basis of a longitudinal four‐year study which started with an orthodox intervention on linguistic awareness. However, after initial success, new groups of reading, writing and math disabled children were identified in the course of years. Membership of these groups could not always be predicted on the basis of extensive cognitive diagnostics performed during the preschool. Rather, the pupil’s adaptive behaviour while coping with the demands of school work emerges as an important prognostic factor. This was particularly evident in an interaction combining math and reading comprehension in grade 3.