I just relooked at her WISC and her Working Memory scores jumped out at me - Wow - the spread between WM and Verbal is 2 standard deviations!!! (Her processing speed of 115 is 15 points above average - 1 standard deviation, and by itself 'weak' but still stronger than most folks (67% plus half of 33%, I think)

Without super strong Processing speed to balance out the average WM, she's got some challenges. Look into what WM tests in depth. Every sort of WM issue can be strengthened, and worked around, but that needs to be taught if it's not going to take a long time to learn through trial and error. I've got super fast processing speed but 'average WM' and I'm the queen of all the 'extended mind' tricks: programing reminders into my phone, taking notes at all times, writing things down on paper, making little 'concept maps.' All that 'Getting Things Done' by David Allen sort of stuff. It's been a lifetime project for me to do what comes easily to most people. Luckily I can easily do what is difficult for most people. ((shrugs)) I like Chess (at a low level) because one can see all the pieces and their locations right in front of one, cutting down the need for working memory - and yeah, If allowed, I'll write down 'possible ideas' to follow up on later and check them every turn.

The nice thing about low working memory is that life contains so many delightful surprises! and it's really low percentage to hold a grudge - too much work for so little reward. Boy was I surprised while raising my son who is quite strong in WM and quite average in Processing speed!

I'm not anywhere near as bad as http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/50_first_dates
but I do have that flavor. I cried so hard at that movie, it sort of illustrated the struggle of my sweet 'living in the moment' life. Perhaps too scary for your daughter, but sneak off and watch it when you get a chance.

Has ADHD-I (Inattentive) been looked into? (Spelling, sloppy handwriting, careless Math are classics for a lot of things, including ADHD-I - and stimulant medication does help that 'working memory weakness' in many bright kids.) Also I've read that about 50% of kids with ADHD have 'co-morbidities' that is: Learning disabilities or anxiety or other challenges. Some people think that ADHD-I is precisely a deficit in Working Memory. How can an average score be called a deficit? Well, it's probably more of a "bottleneck" which is a term we nurture here to describe a relative deficit that is big enough to cause internal discord when the highs are very strong and the lows are average.

BTW - small motor challenges (handwriting) is one of the 'cluster areas' of NVLD.

Congrates on the speech contest. Good luck with the OT. If you already have a 'Nintendo DS' type machine in the house, pull out the game brain age, or something like it and start playing around with it. http://brainage.com/launch/index.jsp

Also get a soft ball you can play with in the house and start playing 'catch' etc, as a fun break. Koosh makes a nice one. Or try and learn (yourself) to juggle with silk scarves and see if DD gets enticed to try and learn.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katamari_Damacy is also said to be good for practicing eye/hand/speed connections.

What does she do for fun? Anything that requires movement or speed? Maybe we can think of some ways to riff off what she already loves?

Love and More Love,
Grinity

Coaching available, at SchoolSuccessSolutions.com