private school for ADHD kid with executive functioning issues

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thoughts on McLean? Edmund Burke?

PP here. Should have mentioned that DD didn’t feel like Burke or Field would be a good fit. One of them was kind of loud, and both are a little looser and more unstructured - not ideal for her anxiety. We have friends with kids at both and I’m sure they are both excellent for many students, but kids have to know what feels right to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What grade? Does she have a Dx? What kind of supports does she need? Holton has girls with ADHD but it’s always more difficult to be admitted with a Dx.

If she gets in, it will be in grade 5. What is Dx? She forgets to take materials or HW to class despite multiple reminders and check lists. She complains that she hates school because of all these lists she has follow. At class, her teachers complain that she is not paying attention and does not have context of where the class is especially during reading.
Most of all she finds her current school stressful.

We got her tested for ADHD and she indeed showed all signs of it. She is a capable kid and understands grade level math and does well in vocab etc. Only reading she is behind. I am not sure if it is the school's fault or her ADHD that is causing this difficulty. Looking to move her to a more nurturing environment. Is Holton Arms a nurturing place for such kids or is it for all straight A/ perfect discipline type kids?

This is serious. Get her into a special program school. Sounds like dyslexia as well.

This is a bit extreme. My child sounded very much like yours in grades 3-4. We did a full neuropsych, confirmed the ADHD diagnosis, learned some other things about relative strengths and weaknesses, and made a decision to medicate to help improve focus in school and reduce anxiety and unhappiness about what a struggle it was. In addition, we did the Unstuck and On Target curriculum through a private provider - it is a targeted executive function intervention that was designed originally for children on the autism spectrum, but is now shown to be very effective with kids with ADHD who struggle with executive function. Being medicated allowed my child to access the benefits of that intervention and apply its strategies in the classroom and home front. Moving to a nurturing environment can also help a ton with kids who struggle with focus, but it's not a panacea by itself. You have to be willing to invest time and resources in other strategies to build success with your kid. Medication may or may not be the right choice for now, but it should be seriously considered while you get other tools in place. There is a ton of information and compassionate support for these struggles on the special needs forum.

Great. Do as much as possible to create a sense of personal responsibility, executive functioning skills, and independence.
I know many women who quit their careers to care for similar child. Some had results, many did not. Some have adult kids now, I. Their 20s, 30s, 40s. It isn’t pretty. But the worst cases are those who were denying or deluding themselves that there was ADHD.

[Anonymous]

Wasn’t

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you KIDDING?

Field is total chaos with kids who don't listen
St. Andrews is amazing with every kind of learner
Sandy Spring great
Sheridan school great
Siena School great
Bullis--spoiled kids, entitled, terrible teachers until you get to the high school
Holton is the least nurturing place you could every go with the exception of NCS
GDS MS is insane, US great
Stone Ridge work too intense for someone with severe ADD ADHD in upper school, but fine for mild ADD/ADHD
Holy Child supportive
Burke is for kids who are totally unsuccessful somewhere else from what I understand.

Why is GDS middle insane?

[Anonymous]

Are progressive schools good for ADHD Inattentive kids for K onwards?
Or will all that play and slower pacing/kid driven (ie hyperfocus) just delay the diagnosis and create bigger problems later? I.e. can’t decode, doesn’t like math, only likes hyperfocus and school progressively lets him focus there, no tests or grades, standards are based on your own progress, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are progressive schools good for ADHD Inattentive kids for K onwards?
Or will all that play and slower pacing/kid driven (ie hyperfocus) just delay the diagnosis and create bigger problems later? I.e. can’t decode, doesn’t like math, only likes hyperfocus and school progressively lets him focus there, no tests or grades, standards are based on your own progress, etc.

I don’t know, I’d guess more play or slow pacing would delay the inevitable... and who wants to be in 4th or 5th grade relearning foundational sounds and reading....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous[b wrote:]Are progressive schools good for ADHD Inattentive kids for K onwards? [/b]
Or will all that play and slower pacing/kid driven (ie hyperfocus) just delay the diagnosis and create bigger problems later? I.e. can’t decode, doesn’t like math, only likes hyperfocus and school progressively lets him focus there, no tests or grades, standards are based on your own progress, etc.

Not at all. The philosophy depends on the child being internally motivated and self directed with their learning and this starts early on. There is structure to the day and classes but kids need to organize themselves and their work. Often they are put in groups to work and it is expected they will self organize and then work on the project or work. There is also some reliance by teachers that if a child doesn't understand a concept or encounters a new situation they will take the initiative to find answers for themselves

[Anonymous]

My kid is at a progressive but doesn’t have adhd. She seems to go with the flow, I guess that means she’s going slow and doing the minimum since she doesn’t know any better.

[Anonymous]

Progressive schools are no more likely to admit a kid with ADHD than any other private. The label doesn’t mean they necessarily welcome all types of learners.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you KIDDING?

Field is total chaos with kids who don't listen
St. Andrews is amazing with every kind of learner
Sandy Spring great
Sheridan school great
Siena School great
Bullis--spoiled kids, entitled, terrible teachers until you get to the high school
Holton is the least nurturing place you could every go with the exception of NCS
GDS MS is insane, US great
Stone Ridge work too intense for someone with severe ADD ADHD in upper school, but fine for mild ADD/ADHD
Holy Child supportive
Burke is for kids who are totally unsuccessful somewhere else from what I understand.

“From what I understand”?

Is any your info above based on direct experience?

No, I thought not. This parent is genuinely trying to find the right fit for their child. If you can’t help - and your post is not helpful, you should be quiet.

[Anonymous]

PP, did you hear it when it whooshed over your head?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Progressive schools are no more likely to admit a kid with ADHD than any other private. The label doesn’t mean they necessarily welcome all types of learners.

The question was is progressive pedagogy more or less effective at teaching or motivating ADHD inattention student of any age?
Ie should I keep my child in the program or not?

[Anonymous]

OP- my 7th grade boy has executive functioning issues and ADHD. We recently started a low dose medication (a very hard and necessary decision for my DS and our family life) which is helping but does have some side effects.

I have found for my bright son with ADHD and executive functioning impairments that a structured environment works best.

In our case DS became increasingly anxious and defiant when a school mixes up routine, have a curriculum reliant on huge self-driven projects that are of low interest, and have inconsistent amounts of homework each night (e.g. one night it's none, the next night it's three becasue the core teachers don't communicate well)

Our school (a different state) has after school tutorials so that students who need some additional support with the day's instruction can get help in a particular class. Additionally, my DS has an advisor who helps him write out a homework list and after school tutorial priority every day until he "graduates" from needing the support. He also has a full year of study hall (most students have 1 semester) and he uses it to finish his math homework (he's more focused and in the flow to do math when he's at school vs. home, where it was becoming a major battleground).

These are the kinds of things that I would look for. OP, I don't know if you have gone the medication route (and maybe it's not entirely necessary for your DS, every child is different), but we discovered very quickly that it's almost impossible to survive in a rigorous private MS environment if a child cannot focus during the day. DS is a very, very smart boy and he simply could not manage to teach himself every new concept that he missed at school and still manage the homework load.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you KIDDING?

Field is total chaos with kids who don't listen
St. Andrews is amazing with every kind of learner
Sandy Spring great
Sheridan school great
Siena School great
Bullis--spoiled kids, entitled, terrible teachers until you get to the high school
Holton is the least nurturing place you could every go with the exception of NCS
GDS MS is insane, US great
Stone Ridge work too intense for someone with severe ADD ADHD in upper school, but fine for mild ADD/ADHD
Holy Child supportive
Burke is for kids who are totally unsuccessful somewhere else from what I understand.

PP, if you don't know what you're talking about, shut up.

Can't speak to the other schools but your comment about Burke is both nasty and inaccurate. As parent of two Burke kids, I would NOT actually recommend it for kids with serious ADHD, because it is a little too rigid and demanding. But it is hardly for kids who can't hack it elsewhere. Class of '19 college matriculations include Brown, Williams, U. Chicago, Vassar, Bryn Mawr, Bates, Wash U, Tufts, Tulane, Davidson, Mount Holyoke, Skidmore etc. Burke kids are pretty varied and the school is truly racially and socioeconomically diverse - and they do just fine in college and in life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP- my 7th grade boy has executive functioning issues and ADHD. We recently started a low dose medication (a very hard and necessary decision for my DS and our family life) which is helping but does have some side effects.

I have found for my bright son with ADHD and executive functioning impairments that a structured environment works best.

In our case DS became increasingly anxious and defiant when a school mixes up routine, have a curriculum reliant on huge self-driven projects that are of low interest, and have inconsistent amounts of homework each night (e.g. one night it's none, the next night it's three becasue the core teachers don't communicate well)

Our school (a different state) has after school tutorials so that students who need some additional support with the day's instruction can get help in a particular class. Additionally, my DS has an advisor who helps him write out a homework list and after school tutorial priority every day until he "graduates" from needing the support. He also has a full year of study hall (most students have 1 semester) and he uses it to finish his math homework (he's more focused and in the flow to do math when he's at school vs. home, where it was becoming a major battleground).

These are the kinds of things that I would look for. OP, I don't know if you have gone the medication route (and maybe it's not entirely necessary for your DS, every child is different), but we discovered very quickly that it's almost impossible to survive in a rigorous private MS environment if a child cannot focus during the day. DS is a very, very smart boy and he simply could not manage to teach himself every new concept that he missed at school and still manage the homework load.

If you are looking for a great NOVA school, check out Flint Hill in Oakton. Our DD is in 7th and loves it. They have honors classes, full time counselors and learning center specialists. Our friends with kids who use the learning center are very happy with the support. We like that parents are down to earth no matter what car they are driving. And they are building. New middle school that’s supposed to open next fall. I think it’s a max of 100 kids per grade.