Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional Where do I go from here?

Emmal, First, I'm sorry about your situation. It sounds like a frustrating situation all the way around.

I also have twins and one of them has dyslexia. The thing that helped him the most was knowing that he had dyslexia and wasn't dumb. We never said dyslexia was a disability, instead we told him we found out he learned differently, which was why he had a hard time with the way other kids were taught. Just knowing that he could learn but needed to be taught differently changed his outlook on school and learning. (At the time, he had started to hate school and was emotional anytime he had to practice reading.) So I hope you tell your son that it's not HIM that's having the trouble-- it's that his teachers didn't realize he needed to be taught differently.

I agree with Pemberly's advice on meeting with the school. The only caution I would have is to make sure he gets remediation for his reading and writing in addition to accommodations for his dyslexia/dysgraphia. He still needs to become a better reader and sometimes it's easier for schools to just accommodate and get out of the responsibility of teaching.

Separately, while you're waiting for the long process to unfold, can you start getting your son tutoring while he's with you? He's got a lot of ground to make up and the sooner he gets help, the better off he'll be.