Hi! I'm going to try and cram all the necessary details into this post as possible without running too long...so please feel free to ask any follow up questions.
In short, I have an 8 year old that would be in 3rd grade and I think it is likely he is gifted. We are just now embarking on this journey to find out what exactly is happening. If I had to guess, I would think he is 2e (ADHD and dysgraphia).
We had struggles in preschool and I initially thought he was a bit behind the curve and I was going to hold him back from Kindergarten a year. It turned out to be the opposite. There was little to no support in our area so we decided to homeschool.
So I started to accept that he was probably a bit advanced at that age but also reasoned that it was likely just that he memorized information faster. I had been warned by others that around 2nd grade or so, it 'switches' over from just memorizing and parroting information to actual processing and that's why our local gifted programs don't start until 3rd grade.
Fast forward to this school year. He has shown an affinity for certain subjects but his struggles have become even more apparent (mostly the dysgraphia). I attempted a week or two of accommodation just to see what would happen (I scribed for him, we did verbal tests instead of written, etc) and his performance GREATLY improved! All of a sudden I could see his reasoning skills so much more clearly coupled with his memory.
Up until this point, we didn't see a need to do any testing since we homeschooled. Now, however, I feel that I need to know exactly what he is struggling with so I can be sure I'm accommodating properly and not enabling or encouraging poor habits.
Because of our personal backgrounds, my husband and I are wanting to approach this cautiously but thoroughly. We are planning the first step, which will just be a CogAT. In preparation of that, I pulled out my records to see if I ever took a similar test. It turns out that I did. I took the OLSAT at the end of 2nd grade and my non-verbal score was a perfect 150 but my verbal was something like 116. I had been recommended for gifted programs but never enrolled. A little background - I had switched schools something like 11 or 12 times in my childhood and typically due to traumatic events, including being in foster care. I know without a shadow of a doubt that my husband is also very intelligent but he struggled with ADHD and was told he was lazy and unfocused in school and also had his own drama filled childhood.
So, basically, we feel like we're flying blindfolded half the time. We are trying to do the best we can with what we know but we don't necessarily know what the best things are to move forward.
We know that we would need to consider an educational psychologist at some point for additional testing. How do you pick one? If I'm right about the ADHD and dysgraphia struggles, from my understanding, we would need to find one that specializes in 2e testing, correct?
Are there any other professionals that can administer that kind of testing? Is there a website that easily breaks down the differences between each kind of test so we know what might be best?
Any other thoughts would also be appreciated as well! Thanks for reading. :-)
