Advocating for a 2e kid

[Anonymous]

DC - 4th grade - is extremely smart but extremely uneven, so that every iPad app seems to think this kid is dumb. We have advocated to the point that no teachers wish to talk to us. We are looking at what DC is good at (analytical things, math, science) and trying to advocate for those to be accelerated, but when the iPad apps suggest that DC needs to work on basic math facts, it’s frustrating for everyone. DC has some processing deficit or language deficit. We aren’t sure. DC is in tears daily. This kid’s standardized test scores (untimed) are north of 97%ile across the board.

What is the ideal setting for this kid? We are so stressed out about DC’s self esteem, academic development, and just…life. If you have suggestions for private placements or accommodations on a 504, we would be grateful.

[Anonymous]

Has he had a comprehensive evaluation to determine the problem?

[Anonymous]

What do you mean iPad app? they are using apps in school for evaluations?

You can ask them to do an evaluation if there are a lot of imbalances in performance. My kid is extremely bright but only has typical processing speed and major impulse issues and those were formally noted during an evaluation by the school and we now have some accommodations around that.

[Anonymous]

Do you have an IEP? 504 plan? It sounds like he needs accommodations for extended time?

I would supplement and encourage his interests outside of school, look for cool science camps and that kind of thing, get lots of books for him to read on his areas of interest, and not worry about acceleration at school. They don't do much anyway, and TBH if he is uneven, he will likely struggle without supports. Focus on outside of school.

My 2E kid has a lot of trouble with things like getting the basic math right even though he can understand conceptually very sophisticated math. TBH, it does not get easier because you DO need to get the right answer and if you can't do the basic math reliably you can't. So he over-accelerated, IMO, in HS (because he wanted to) and then has really struggled.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC - 4th grade - is extremely smart but extremely uneven, so that every iPad app seems to think this kid is dumb. We have advocated to the point that no teachers wish to talk to us. We are looking at what DC is good at (analytical things, math, science) and trying to advocate for those to be accelerated, but when the iPad apps suggest that DC needs to work on basic math facts, it’s frustrating for everyone. DC has some processing deficit or language deficit. We aren’t sure. DC is in tears daily. This kid’s standardized test scores (untimed) are north of 97%ile across the board.

What is the ideal setting for this kid? We are so stressed out about DC’s self esteem, academic development, and just…life. If you have suggestions for private placements or accommodations on a 504, we would be grateful.

OP, you need to understand what his processing or language deficits are. Has he had a full neuropsych eval? Do testing privately and/or request the school to test. Unless you know what exactly is the root cause of his struggles, you cannot advocate for him effectively, and perhaps that's why teachers "wont talk to you". You need to understand the full picture, call for an IEP meeting and determine what supports or accommodations he needs (e.g. to be able to deal with basic math facts). Once these are written into an IEP or 504, the school is accountable for implementing and tracking progress under federal law. Simply lobbying the teachers to accelerate him in xyz is not advocating - there is a due process, and it's designed to benefit your child. If your child is in tears daily, then it merits a more systematic effort to help him (formal testing, IEP discussion, goals and accommodations).

[Anonymous]

You cannot figure out the ideal setting or what accommodations he needs without a full evaluation.

[Anonymous]

If you can afford it, do a private evaluation. We got a much more holistic view of our kid with someone trained to interpret all the different assessments and figure out the big picture. The school is also not going to recommend things for you to do privately- not everything is best addressed through the school.

I would also tread carefully around his self esteem/mental health. He’s probably getting mixed messaging and you don’t want to exacerbate any potential anxiety around school.

[Anonymous]

I’m not sure what you mean by a standardized test score. Is this like an IQ score, or estimate of ability, or his knowledge of school material? A well-prepared but normal IQ kid can be advanced in elementary school, but as the grades advance, he may not be able to keep up with smarter classmates.

Test results at a young age move around a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DC - 4th grade - is extremely smart but extremely uneven, so that every iPad app seems to think this kid is dumb. We have advocated to the point that no teachers wish to talk to us. We are looking at what DC is good at (analytical things, math, science) and trying to advocate for those to be accelerated, but when the iPad apps suggest that DC needs to work on basic math facts, it’s frustrating for everyone. DC has some processing deficit or language deficit. We aren’t sure. DC is in tears daily. This kid’s standardized test scores (untimed) are north of 97%ile across the board.

What is the ideal setting for this kid? We are so stressed out about DC’s self esteem, academic development, and just…life. If you have suggestions for private placements or accommodations on a 504, we would be grateful.

It sounds like there has been some testing done because of the mention of processing or language deficit but that might just be speculation?

If your child has not been evaluated for learning issues then write to the school and request an evaluation. Include the Teacher, Assistant Principal, and Special Education lead on the email. That should trigger an initial meeting to discuss the concerns and the evaluation process.

If your child has been evaluated then you should have a 504 or an IEP for the issues and you can call for a meeting to discuss the existing issues and altering the support/accommodations to help your child.

[Anonymous]

OP, you sound dismissive of the child's deficits (has some xyz, we don't know), dismissive of testing (ipad) and focused on strengths only (understands higher math). You need to understand the whole picture - find a provider you trust and do a full evaluation.

If you come from the angle of unbalanced view, lobbying based on isolated strengths only, you will continue to be frustrated because the school won't magically see it your way.

If your child is tears daily, do the extended testing.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I am not dismissive of anything. We are obtaining independent testing and suspect adhd or dyslexia or both. DC reads slowly but comprehends everything. Anything timed gives a poor explanation and anything untimed is a different child.

Slow processing speed with academic strength is the twice exceptionality that we know about (we suspect the others and that’s why we are seeking testing). The iPad apps are the school’s apps - all of them apparently rely on speed, which our child doesn’t have. How have you advocated for a child with very slow processing speed but the ability to cope with higher level thinking?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I am not dismissive of anything. We are obtaining independent testing and suspect adhd or dyslexia or both. DC reads slowly but comprehends everything. Anything timed gives a poor explanation and anything untimed is a different child.

Slow processing speed with academic strength is the twice exceptionality that we know about (we suspect the others and that’s why we are seeking testing). The iPad apps are the school’s apps - all of them apparently rely on speed, which our child doesn’t have. How have you advocated for a child with very slow processing speed but the ability to cope with higher level thinking?

Does your child have ADHD? My gifted child with ADHD did extremely well at Commonwealth Academy

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I am not dismissive of anything. We are obtaining independent testing and suspect adhd or dyslexia or both. DC reads slowly but comprehends everything. Anything timed gives a poor explanation and anything untimed is a different child.

Slow processing speed with academic strength is the twice exceptionality that we know about (we suspect the others and that’s why we are seeking testing). The iPad apps are the school’s apps - all of them apparently rely on speed, which our child doesn’t have. How have you advocated for a child with very slow processing speed but the ability to cope with higher level thinking?

Request that the school evaluates your child for ADHD and Learning Issues. You start by demonstrating that there is an issue. The school is required to respond to your request in a certain period of time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I am not dismissive of anything. We are obtaining independent testing and suspect adhd or dyslexia or both. DC reads slowly but comprehends everything. Anything timed gives a poor explanation and anything untimed is a different child.

Slow processing speed with academic strength is the twice exceptionality that we know about (we suspect the others and that’s why we are seeking testing). The iPad apps are the school’s apps - all of them apparently rely on speed, which our child doesn’t have. How have you advocated for a child with very slow processing speed but the ability to cope with higher level thinking?

What school is this? It’s very hard to reconcile your description of what is happening with anything either of my kids have experienced in school. Very confused what these apps are. My 2e kid has a diagnosis of a learning issue and high IQ. She also has comparatively low processing speed but that doesn’t really factor into the 2e diagnosis on its own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I am not dismissive of anything. We are obtaining independent testing and suspect adhd or dyslexia or both. DC reads slowly but comprehends everything. Anything timed gives a poor explanation and anything untimed is a different child.

Slow processing speed with academic strength is the twice exceptionality that we know about (we suspect the others and that’s why we are seeking testing). The iPad apps are the school’s apps - all of them apparently rely on speed, which our child doesn’t have. How have you advocated for a child with very slow processing speed but the ability to cope with higher level thinking?

You need to ask for a 504 or IEP plan - both can have accommodations attached. The accommodations you need to ask for are: 1) extra time and 2) use of a calculator. For slow reading, you can ask for extra time, use text to speech and you can ask to be qualified for Bookshare so DC will have free access to books on tape (you qualify if you have a reading disorder but ADHD is not qualifying.)

I am a big unclear what the iPad app is for - if it is for testing, then there should be either settings for extra time and an included calculator function OR the teacher is administering time and providing calculator. If your kid is using an iPad app to practice-acquire math facts, then your school-district should be using apps that are compliant with disability access - if not then that is a problem for the school district - they are “out of compliance”. Ask the teacher and/or the 504 team to come up with some ways to adapt the method of math fact learning (and any awards) to your kids needs. Maybe there is a different exercise (that doesn’t feel punitive) like copying math facts or audio-recording and listening to math facts or simply asking that the timing element be taken out - i.e. record not how many were done in a minute but how many minutes a student worked on the app (regardless of #right/wrong) or focus on improving personal best correct total, not speediest.

Even if you don’t have a 504 or IEP plan, write the teacher and say you suspect slow processing and is she willing to make informal accommodations to adjust for time. A good teacher will do it because the point is to get the kid to learn the facts and not necessarily the time. But, there are always those (PITA) teachers who insist that accommodations would “break the rules” or “be unfair”. Whether the teacher is or isn’t willing to accommodate informally, either way it will help you when you finally get to the IEP/504 table - if the accoms help, then you are adversely impacted by the disorder and qualify, if the teacher refuses to give accomms and DC is struggling then you have the poor marks to prove adverse impact.