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    Joined: Feb 2013
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    Last night my 7th grader, who is in an advanced LA class, could not do the assignments. They triggered his anxiety disorder, as they required that he share personal information and viewpoints with the teacher, which he said is "too stressful".

    I've written about this before, and he is not an unwilling student - but he does have diagnosed anxiety, self-esteem and perfectionism issues.

    So far he's had about 1-2 outbursts a week in LA over these assignments as well as several at home. Finally last night my wife said "enough is enough" and told him not to do them anymore.

    We have requested an in-person meeting with his LA teacher and are waiting to hear back. She seems reasonable but handcuffed to the curriculum.

    In the mean time, we have this difficult situation. He is a straight A student who now has several missing assignments. Clearly he is not going to be able to do them if the result is a breakdown every time he tries. But he is also stressed at the thought of getting bad grades.

    I'm hoping we can find some way of staying within the curriculum and having his needs accommodated. We've been told that the district might not give him credit for the class if the curriculum is changed too much.

    We've considered home schooling in LA this year, but it would be a logistical nightmare.

    But we do need a solution. Too many sleepless nights and we are only 4 weeks in to the semester.

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    Originally Posted by BSM
    We've considered home schooling in LA this year, but it would be a logistical nightmare.

    But we do need a solution. Too many sleepless nights and we are only 4 weeks in to the semester.
    What part of homeschooling LA would be a nightmare? Would the school accept an online course for credit?

    Our district has online classes for kids with various needs but it is not advertised at all.

    Could your DS do LA over the summer, when he is not as stressed by other tasks?

    Feeling for you. You have to sleep or you won't be able to problem-solve.


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    LA is third and sixth period out of an 8-period day. To pull him out, my wife (who is stay at home) would have to do a lot of pick up and drop off. Maybe he could have study halls instead, but with his executive function issues, I'm not sure that he would use unstructured time properly.

    And maybe I'll be able to figure this out once I am well rested. This teacher seems nice so I'm hoping she can come up with some ideas.

    On the other hand, we can reopen the IEP but scheduling those meetings takes a few weeks and we need an immediate strategy.

    Thanks Eco.

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    Yikes! That is a lot of LA! Is part of it direct instruction and part work time?

    Thank goodness the teacher is nice. Does your DS resist writing in general, or is it these particular types of assignments? It doesn't seem like it would be so difficult to modify (but I am a dreamer).


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    I have always thought it entirely unreasonable that students should be compelled to share personal information and feelings. I can do it but resent the hell out of it.

    Can he present fake information though? Would anyone know or care?

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    Puffin - he has anxiety even faking the writing or trying to pretend he's someone else. He is very literal and cannot "deceive" himself like that. Hope that makes sense.

    This morning he told me that he anxiety is because his writing "is not good enough" and that "the teacher will judge me."

    We know that's not true, but such is the nature of childhood anxiety - you can't just snap yourself out of it.

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    Eco,

    He is fine with writing in general, especially non-fiction. In fact, he really gets into writing. He writes great essays. But sharing personal info or something that reflects on him as a person is a no go.

    The two periods include a lot of in-class work, which has been the source of many melt-downs.

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    Originally Posted by BSM
    Eco,

    He is fine with writing in general, especially non-fiction. In fact, he really gets into writing. He writes great essays. But sharing personal info or something that reflects on him as a person is a no go.

    The two periods include a lot of in-class work, which has been the source of many melt-downs.
    Okay--this sounds really familiar but my son doesn't erupt, he shuts down.

    Not a short term type of question, just something to ponder:
    --Has your DS been bullied, misunderstood, or treated unkindly by peers or school personnel in the past? I believe a source of my DS' shut-downs results from some school trauma related to his ASD (poor social communication) and the resulting treatment he received.
    --If your DS does not feel emotionally safe sharing his feelings, a CBT therapist might be able to help with that. I know that doesn't solve the immediate concern.

    I believe my DS12 (ASD) has some issues with alexithymia. Here is a link just to start:

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2092499/

    I haven't researched it enough to be articulate. Perhaps there is a way to communicate with the teacher that this a "can't" and not a "won't."

    I would think LA would be the most modifiable of all curricula (speaking as a former HS English teacher).

    Good luck. I feel sorry that your DS and family are in distress--this is not fun.


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    BSM, are your DS's disabilities documented through the school's process? Is there a 504 or IEP in place?

    If not, I'd start that process. It gives you a leg to stand on when you ask for accommodations.

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    My DD10 is in OOD at a spec Ed school because of severe LD issues. As a third grader they placed her in an 8th grade LA class. She found it moved "painfully slow" and part of the explanation was that they carefully edited the content for just the reasons you articulate. Much of the spec Ed population would have had difficulty with the content of the readings let alone the types of assignments you are describing. (Folks were concerned about DD - then 8 - but she takes it all in stride. While sensitive in real life she is able to handle just about anything that comes her way in written form...) While it is a spec Ed school they do conform (all too much IMHO...) to common core. This tells me that your DS's content can be adjusted if needed.

    I would not wait weeks for an IEP meeting or allow him to continue to have melt downs over this at home or at school. I would speak immediately to the school psych/SW/spec Ed teacher. Their hands probably feel less tied than the classroom teacher's. If this is triggering his anxiety disorder it needs to be addressed. Now. In my experience undoing the damage is much harder than making the needed change when the problem is first identified,

    Sadly is this world of ours I am sure yours is not the only child who is triggered by something in the school curriculum. There HAS to be a way around it. Hopefully an experienced person inside the school will be able to suggest an appropriate solution. I would call this morning and get that ball rolling,

    Good luck!

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