I appreciate your help.
I agree that VSL stuff might be a factor. But I don't think that explains everything. And he may have developed his visual strengths *because* of an auditory problem. It may be another coping issue.
The "filing" stuff you suggested in several of your comments doesn't ring true to me for DS6. It doesn't seem like he's trying to access something that's there. It seems like it never got there in the first place. It isn't like he's trying to figure out where or how to file info when he has listening problems, it seems like he doesn't understand what is being said to him. Until I have him repeat it aloud, he literally doesn't know what I said. The porch light is on but no one is home.
No, he's not a literal kid. He's very imaginative.
He is a perfectionist, but that doesn't seem to explain his reading issues. When he tries to do it, it is clearly hard for him. He cannot read, and it seems almost painful for him to try. He doesn't throw a tantrum the way he does when he is frustrated because he can't perform perfectly enough. He seems more...pained?..I guess...than angry or frustrated. Not the same.
135 was a surprisingly high working memory, according to my tester. WMI can go up if one works on it. *I* have not been working with him on his memory at all, and I had no idea that he had such a good memory, saw little evidence of it (aside from his doing 2-digit multiplication in his head, which took me completely by surprise when he started doing it). So I strongly suspect that he's been relying upon his working memory to cope with whatever is wrong.
No, he doesn't seem like he has something to say and has to get it out in a rush. He never does that, actually. He's slow and steady. He does occasionally forget what he was going to tell me if I make him wait while I talk to someone else, but *I* do that, too. That doesn't seem abnormal to me.
The not remembering info is *after* I have his attention. It's not a focus problem. He just can't always make sense of things that I say unless I have him repeat what I said.
I'm sure many of these things can improve with practice. We're not there yet though. We're still just trying to figure out what is wrong. And these *are* things that seem to fit yes answers to the questions.
As many parents of 2E kids do, I suspect I'm having some trouble answering those LD questionnaires with definite answers because gifted kids are so good at compensating. But I did have an awful lot of yes answers...
