Currently, my son is 8.5 years old. A couple years ago, my son refused to continue going to Kindergarten halfway through the year. HIs first half was going great, seemed to be no problems. Academically or socially. Then he became very anxious, scared to go, refused to go, and I decided to homeschool the rest of the year until we could figure out what was going on. That was 2.5 years ago. We have continued to homeschool, a very relaxed and child-led version. (Along with his 2 younger siblings). He is a voracious reader. And loves to play, act like a "normal" kid. Legos, youtube, minecraft, the usual.
Over the past couple years, we recognized he has some major anxiety, and started having full blown panic attacks about 6 months ago. The panic attacks seem unprovoked, similar to My own personal panic disorder. We started some counseling to help him/us cope and deal with his anxiety. The counselor suggested we have an "assessment" done to get a better understanding of him, and rule out any "issues?". A psychologist gave him the WISC-V. His test results were as follows:
VCI: 142, 99.7%
Similarities: 19, 99.9
Vocabulary: 16, 98
Visual Spatial: 135, 99%,
Block Design: 16, 98
Visual Puzzles; 16, 98
FRI: 144; 99.8%
Matrix Reasoning:19, 99.9
Figure Weights: 16, 98
WMI: 107; 68%
Digit Span: 9, 37
Picture Scan: 13, 84
PSI: 98, 45%
Coding: 9, 37
Symbol Search; 10, 50
GAI: 147, 99.9%
Ancillary Scales:
CPI: 102, 55
WIAT-III:
Subtest:
Spelling: 106, 66%, average
(She gave him a spelling test because he told her he wasn�t sure how to spell his last name. We do have a last name that is difficult to spell, and he is not in school writing it every day. But I must admit, I am very surprised he didn�t score higher in the spelling test,he spells very well IMHO. Maybe it was timed? Felt too testlike for him?
My husband and I were surprised. Of course we considered our child bright, but what parent doesn't? But the Psychologist seemed to suggest, he's not just "bright", but really really gifted. How gifted? Does this explain his anxiety??
Honestly, I just do not understand the results, and the psychologists recommendations were just as confusing.
(�It is recommended that he and his parents re-evaluate his school arrangement based on academic and social-emotional needs.�)
Do I need to get more testing done? Is he gifted as well as having a learning disability? Are the discrepancies in the testing due to parts of it being timed? He HATES being rushed/timed. Do I simply need to be working on certain skills with him? Should I continue on our path or relaxed child-led homeschooling (almost unschooling)?
I asked the counselor at our next meeting, if we needed more testing, and she said, �no. doesn�t look like there was a recommendation for more testing. He�s very bright, which explains much of his anxiety, especially considering he identifies his 3 main anxiety triggers as : death, time, and space. �
I guess I�m hoping for guidance as to where to start. It was suggested by a friend, that with those scores I should try to get him into the Davidson Institute. Which is how I ended up here. Will the Davidson Institute help a homeschooler?
Will he be accepted without academic test results?
Thank you to anyone who can take the time to help me with any of this. I just want to do the best for my son, of course.
