Another thought-- gifted students might struggle more (and later) with such problems because their intellectual gifts have allowed them to "get away with" being less organized.
I have seen this especially with one of my sons (15 yrs old) as well as with a very highly gifted nephew. I remember once when my MIL was complaining about how disorganized these two grandsons are (compared to all the other boys that age she knows), I suddenly realized both boys are so very bright they have rarely had to "manage time" for homework or review for tests. Left totally unchallenged in school, how or when would they have had the chance to learn proper study or organizational skills?
Maybe your son is short on such skills because he also has not had the chance to develop them.
