Patricio Bello grew up like any other kid, thinking he was just like everyone else.  But, in elementary school he discovered something that made him different.

“After a visit to the doctor I was diagnosed with dyslexia,” Bello said. “When I was 8 years old I was very frustrated to be the only one of my friends who still couldn’t read,”

Bello inherited dyslexia from his father, however, this didn’t stop him from socializing or excelling in his class. Despite this, he now admits that he was always embarrassed for not being able to read like other kids when he was younger. He would take medication in order to try and assist him with his schoolwork.

“My friends in elementary used to joke a lot about my condition and I would laugh with them,” Bello said. “They didn’t know that as soon as I [was] home I would cry.”

The hardest transition for him proved to be when he moved from Mexico to the United States. Even though he quickly grasped English, he unfortunately had difficulty reading it. He would come to school an hour earlier than the rest of his class in order to attend coordination therapy for his condition.

At 11 years old, he could’ve just imagined that this was going to be the most difficult thing for him. It took Bello over a year to properly learn how to read English. He was offered lots of help to facilitate his transition from Spanish to English.

“Now as a junior in high school I can see that with hard work, I can do anything.” Bello said.

Bello is currently an AP student with high academic achievements.