Inference is a lot to ask for a 6 year old. I was panicky when my son was 7-8 because he could not infer. It was limiting him in science (6th grade textbook). He is 9 now, something "clicked" developmentally and he can infer. AP Biology and reading at college level.

My son also has ADHD and struggles with writing, which turned out to be more about what he was being asked to write. At 6 years old / 1st grade he was obviously lagging behind age peers in writing. Turned out that writing assignments were too long and too... boring. I taught him grammar, vocabulary, spelling and handwriting all separately and away from writing. I used a lot of rote memorization - which seems to reduce demand on working memory. He didn't write for 2 years during this process. He read freely. Then I taught writing forms with rote memorization of outlines for persuasive and compare/contrast essays - enough to get him through most short answer questions in science. He took another semester off from writing and then started using "UnJournaling" book, which he LOVED.

Now he is doing poetry, which he is surprisingly good at. Closed and open couplets and haiku are short enough they're not overwhelming to him. He finally has motivation to learn to write short answer essays - he wants to take AP tests. His writing is well above what one would expect for his age now, although it's still a significant lag behind everything else.

Perhaps some of these ideas will help you with your son. Maybe not! I mostly wrote it all out to illustrate that kids have developmental plateaus and grow by "leaps and bounds".... and plateaus in between sometimes.

(tangent: my son could NOT count backward or subtract at 6-7 years old. It was crazy. I taught him multiplication instead of subtraction. One day, something "clicked" developmentally and he could count backwards, subtract - and divide! all at the same time. After that he started accelerating like crazy in math! 9 years old, he's doing Algebra 2. Insanity!)

My son's reading (inference) weakness never turned up on a reading comprehension test, it only came out in writing. I felt anxious like I was taking a HUGE risk with his future when I decided to teach him round-about ways. My anxiety was unfounded. I'm guessing yours is too. You know your child best. Don't worry! You're doing everything you can! You're being a fantastic advocate for him! He has the perfect momma for himself! ❤

Last edited by sanne; 03/04/17 01:07 PM.