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    Joined: Apr 2012
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    Janette Offline OP
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    I've known since my son was 3 that he was twice exceptional (severe apraxia/dyslexia and gifted). The main reason I know he's gifted is that his LDs are so severe he shouldn't be able to function in a regular classroom. (That and the fact that he has that crazy gifted out-of-the-box thinking.) Yet he manages just fine in a regular classroom, reads at grade level, and on the surface seems very average.

    Except he's only average in the way a man with his head on fire and his feet in ice water is average. And the poor kid has to spend so much of his school time working on his issues that he gets very little time to work on his strengths. He would absolutely love it if he could do some of the activities the identified gifted kids get to do-- like the science fair or the stock market game-- but he has speech and writing help and spelling help and we don't want him to miss classroom time either.

    I'm not sure what the answer is, or even if there is one. But I'd love to hear from anyone whose kiddo needs more support on the LD side than he/she does on the gifted side, and learn how you supplement the gifted side outside the school day.


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    We were lucky to end up at a school where the teachers and administration really listened to us. I explained that DS was a child with some weaknesses but he also had really strong strengths and that I expected those strengths to far exceed the weaknesses in the long run. So basically, I asked them to help remediate his LDs, but to also acknowledge and nurture his gifts. He was allowed to accelerate in the areas where he is capable (math) and was given help in reading, writing and some OT. There is no gifted program at this school but they use flexible ability groupings for all academic subjects and a hands-on curriculum that encourages critical and creative thinking, so it is very gifted friendly.

    DS9 has done really well. He continues to excel in math, his reading went from below grade level to 99th percentile this year, he graduated from OT and continues to see the EC teacher a few times a week for writing, which is still below grade level. He seems happy and motivated to do well at school, and that is great.

    Out of school I make a point of taking to him and encouraging his ideas. That crazy, out of the box thinking that you mention is his forte too, so we spend a lot of time discussing things like spinning magnets and the perpetual motion machines that he could build using them. He has all the GT friendly building toys. Next year I will try to finagle him into a weekend science program for middle schoolers.

    But mostly I want him to understand that he is smart and capable, even if every little thing is not easy for him in the short term. Reading biographies of eminent 2Es, what I notice over and over is an involved parent who really believed in their child from the early years and gave them support and self confidence to succeed later on.

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    Originally Posted by Janette
    Except he's only average in the way a man with his head on fire and his feet in ice water is average.

    Yes, this is my child, too. Love your wording..... perfect!

    DD 9.5 has dysgraphia/stealth dyslexia/ADHD. She seems, for all the world, like an average child. Her last report card had 3 A's and the rest were B's. She struggles with her written work, but can do a good job with her accomodations in place. She loves the social parts of school, but describes the rest of it as tedious, boring and VERY BORING!! Our situation is a little different in that there are no gifted programs in our area. She can choose to do enrichment in any subject she cares about, but it is left up to her to ask for it. And now that she has realized that it is simply extra work that she has to complete at home, she no longer asks for it. She has had some really wonderful teachers who engage her verbally whenever possible. They are always taken aback and amazed at her verbal abilities, and then days will go by where they just look at the written work and they seem to forget what she is really capable of.

    On our part, we spend a lot of time reminding the teacher what she is capable of and advocating for challenging and DIFFERENT work. We have successes here and there, but nothing consistent. For the most part, DD is a very happy child. Her anxiety and perfectionism keep her happy with less than challenging work. She only wants to go above and beyond when she can do a verbal presentation. I ask for these opportunites often, but have little success in getting them to replace other work. She is still required to do the regular classwork, too. We spend a lot of time and $$ allowing her to pursue activities outside of school. She takes private art classes and takes part in an all-girls science club at a local university. Whenever a topic excites her, we jump on it. Two weeks ago she was consumed by the Titanic anniversary and her aunt and grandfather whisked her off for an entire day at the Museum of the Atlantic, taking in lectures and viewing artifacts. When she was interested in anatomy and physiology we visited the science centre's "Grossology" exhibits.... and we took her out of school to do it! When she fell in love with the Anne of Green Gables book, we planned a family vacation to PEI and visited everything Anne-related. Now, she is Harry Potter-obsessed. I have promised her the entire collection of books and videos after she finishes an extra credit project that her teacher asked her to do.

    I guess, in short, it is a struggle to keep her giftedness as part of her profile. I tirelessly advocate and search out activities and ideas to engage her. We are very lucky that she has a fantastic teacher who wants our participation. She asks for our ideas and is open to all of our suggestions. I wish that someone else was in charge of arranging her enrichment, but at least her school is letting me do it. And I do know her better than anyone else. I feel like her public relations agent a lot of the time. I am her tireless promoter and cheerleader. It is worth the effort. Her school is getting to know her and her abilities. My goal for grade 5 is to get them to replace work in some subjects. God knows, I will probably end up writing her curriculum for that to happen, LOL!


    Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it. — L.M. Montgomery
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    Kathleen'smum, I really loved reading about what you've done with your daughter outside of school. It all sounds very exciting. The Museum of the Atlantic sounds so cool. My DD is in love with the Great Lakes. She has two more to go, to swim in, her big goal in life!

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    My dysgraphic/ADHD DS11 finally made the leap from the boy who "wouldn't try" or " never gives his best effort" before his dysgraphia diagnosis last year to the "smartest boy in the class" after diagnosis and accommodations this year. He does not have the best grades in the class but his teacher clearly sees a gifted boy with LDs and not JUST LDs (although she's a bit inconsistent with his accommodations at times.)

    Of course, this change in perceptiion takes the concerted teacher education and PR that Kathleen'smum so eloquently describes. I met with DS' teacher several times before we connected but now she is his best ally. Alas, he will change classes for core subjects next year so I will have to educate three teachers on the opportunity for professional growth that DS presents them next year instead of one. First team meeting is a week from Monday. The struggle is the glory, right?

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    I'd start by getting a complete evaluation from someone like Ed Amend who is familiar with 2E kids, and then using the results to get an accomodation plan in place under section 504 and get a gifted identification. If he is intellectually gifted, but his disabilities are interfering with his ability to access the gifted program, then legally he should be getting accomodations to enable him to access the program, such as a text-to-speech and speech-to-text software, or use of a scribe and/or a computer, instead of simply being placed at the level he can achieve at with his unaccommodated disability.

    Last edited by aculady; 04/27/12 07:44 PM.
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    THIS is why I love this site so much! Nowhere else can I find parents who not only understand my DD's circumstances but who have also walked a mile in our shoes. Your question and the responses you have already received paint a very good picture of what we too have been dealing with.

    When I first learned of DD's 2E situation last summer I read everything I could get my hands on and spoke with every expert I could reach. The advice was always that focusing on the strengths is the best way to work on the weaknesses. This has not always been possible for us, though.

    As the year has gone on DD (first grade) has been having more and more services added to her IEP. She now receives 6 hours a week in pull out services (reading, OT, speech, math, anxiety) along with daily small group tutoring during what they call "tier time". I was concerned that all the emphasis was on her weaknesses with no attention being paid to her strengths. I realized, though, that DD really likes this special help. Her anxiety seems to decrease when she has one-on-one help in areas of weakness. We have decided to support this and try to get as much help in school as possible while we focus on the enrichment ourselves. Since the high level group is still below her comprehension level it just makes more sense for her to get the extra help when it is available and then provide the comprehension work separately.

    At our last meeting I really stressed the need for differentiation. I realized that the school thought having her write 2 sentences instead of 5 was proper differentiation. I had to explain to them, with help from information I had gathered here, that reducing the quantity of written work wasn't sufficient. I asked that whenever possible she be allowed to give her answers orally. Her teacher had started doing some scribing on extra creative writing tasks in response to this request but it took serious effort to convince the team that this needed to be done on regular assignments too. The principal said "We don't have time to let every kid in the class tell their stories." I explained that they didn't have to allow every kid to answer orally but they did have to allow DD. The other kids are able to write their responses but DD HAS to answer the question orally in order to complete the assignment in the allotted time. I finally convinced them that writing for her is just not the same as it is for the other kids and it was unfair to put her in a position where she was providing only a small portion of her answer in writing when she should be able to answer completely and then use the time to practice her writing on a portion of her answer.

    I gave her classroom teacher a copy of the book "101 School Success Tools for Smart Kids With Learning Difficulties" which explained it better than I ever could and gave her something tangible to work with. DD is THRILLED. She now comes home with long, detailed paragraphs mostly scribed by her teacher with 1 or 2 sentences written herself. Comparing this to the totally illegible sentence or 2 she was bringing home before - what a difference! No wonder she was experiencing crippling headaches on a daily basis before.

    We are also doing a ton of enrichment with her on our own. She loves, loves, loves audio books and educational videos. We started with Greek mythology and American Tall Tales and Legends. She likes to "play the games" on the videos which are actually created for teachers in grades 4-8 to use as class assignments. We do lots of museums and performances of all types too. In the fall we listened to and read aloud everything we could on Pilgrims, watched videos, etc. Then we spent a weekend at Plymouth, attended a harvest dinner and toured the Mayflower II. Over the winter we did the same thing with revolutionary war and colonial history then visited Boston. A friend who is a teacher at DD's school said "you do realize that's 5th grade curriculum - right?" I just smiled and shrugged my shoulders.

    We also use the summer for enrichment - spending time at camps focusing on things she loves like marine biology, ecology and acting. It's funny because so many people at school see her as "the special ed girl" while people at these camps and other programs see her as "the really, REALLY smart girl." Both are true and we have to learn to accept that...

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    Originally Posted by Pemberley
    We also use the summer for enrichment - spending time at camps focusing on things she loves like marine biology, ecology and acting. It's funny because so many people at school see her as "the special ed girl" while people at these camps and other programs see her as "the really, REALLY smart girl." Both are true and we have to learn to accept that...

    As she's at the school longer, that gap may close. Our DS is pulled out a fair bit, but sometimes it's for things like math with older kids, and sometimes it's for remediation of disabilities, and among his peers nobody seems to know which is which. They seem to accept that DS gets a unique schedule, they know he's smart, and it's all quite routine. For which I am thankful.

    Pemb, you've done a fabulous job.

    DeeDee

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    My son's teacher made him redo an assignment this weekend of making a mosaic - literally tearing pieces of paper up and gluing them to another paper to make an identifiable picture. His first one had only three pieces that remained glued to the paper, and the teacher gave him a zero. This is so in violation of his IEP, but this year has been so tough that we're at the whatever stage.

    And your question points exactly to why my son's year has been so hard - it has focused completely on what he can't do, not giving him opportunities to shine with what he can do.

    You've inspired me to go be a gentle but persistent thorn in the side of the administration until they're willing to make some better options available for next year.


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