I really appreciate this thoughtful discussion.
@Val: My son does complain that his hand is sore after writing. While he has always been fine with repetitive fine motor activities like Legos or sewing or using tools, he resisted writing or drawing until he was five. He had a hard time switching from capital to small letters. Now that he has the small letters down, he often forgets initial capitals. His handwriting is not sloppy but he pauses before each letter and it doesn't seem to flow. His teachers note that handwriting is an area of relative weakness for him but they have insisted that it is grade appropriate and not something we need to get OT for.
My son's first grade teacher had a special ed background so she really focused on his weakness- handwriting. I know it's something he needs to work on but I always urged letting him spend some time on activities that challenge and excite him (problem solving, being creative, etc.) instead of spending all his extra time trying to improve his handwriting. This year's teacher seems to think lots of young boys struggle with handwriting and that it's not a big deal. He said that such kids often do better with cursive writing and that learning keyboarding will also help.
The Tourettes mostly manifests itself as verbal tics and some grimacing/facial tics but I have read that handwriting problems are common in kids with TS. Unfortunately, our pediatrician doesn't seem particularly concerned/interested in exploring how TS might affect my son, as he insists there isn't really anything to be done about it.
We don't want a high-achieving or competitive school. But we do want a school that can provide support where needed (and we still aren't clear on what support might be helpful!) and challenge where necessary but also let our creative, idiosyncratic kids stay excited about learning. My older son adores the gardening teacher and he spends recess tinkering with her and building a solar oven and structures with cob bricks. It's the highlight of his day. I am sad that he is unlikely to have that kind of experience at his next school but if it is possible to find that in Portland, I want to!
