Oh, how frustrating for your ds! The handwriting thing is one of my biggest pet peeves. I'd say, go with a private eval to get him the help he needs--if the school hasn't recognized and worked toward fixing the problem by now, they're unlikely to, ever.

We're lucky enough to have found a school for ds6 that does writing as a class seperate from subject work ... But that was a barrier at his public school last year that I just don't get.

Now the talking ... That's a whole seperate issue and I've got no advice, but plenty of sympathy for the situation!

Good luck, whatever you decide to do next.

Mia