Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Overwhelmed

Hi all - I've been poking around this site for a few weeks, but this is my first post. I hope its OK to just jump in.

My son turned 5 two weeks ago. We've always known that he is very bright, but did not realize the full extent of his intellectual ability until recently. He's also displayed some signs that he might have ADD/ADHD (difficulty listening, easy to distract, wiggly, etc), and some sensory issues, particularly pertaining to loud or sudden noises, and an extremely limited diet.

A few weeks back, a meeting request from his preschool teacher and center director prompted us to seek a school for gifted children. Obviously, we were quite late to the game, as many of the schools had ceased applications in February. We had an assessment done, and his WPPSI-IV came back with an IQ of 137 indicated (I can elaborate if it's helpful). The psychologist who administered the test (recommended from the Hoagie's list,) noted his attention-seeking behavior and tendency to roam off-topic. A reading test given by his preschool came back with him reading at a second or third grade level (level 16), but difficult to pin down exactly because he would again go off-topic or insist on not giving a synopsis of the story in favor of making a story up on his own. I'm very confident that he comprehended the story, but whatever's in his head prevented him from staying on-task.

The school we applied to constantly assured us that they were fully capable of addressing his "intensity," going as far as promising me that we had found the right place and they'd help us every step of the way. I was very transparent about the concerns we had with regard to his behavior, some of which are tied to boredom, but much of it is again what I suspect to be ADD or a similar disorder. Regrettably, his behavior at the one hour long classroom visit ended up being extremely impulsive (he hid in a closet, and during gym activity, he pushed a girl who stopped short in front of him), so the school declined to admit him. (I do not excuse his behavior, but I do feel like they sort of invited it by literally snatching him away from me and pushing him into the classroom. He was expected to join in circle time and then in gym class.) Obviously, we were upset about losing this opportunity for him, and are feeling very much at a loss as to how we help him be successful for next school year, without being branded as a troublemaker.

Because it's so late in the school year, and because my husband and I both work full-time, our options for other private/gifted schools are essentially nonexistent. We have decided to proceed with public school, and in an effort to try to create an environment that will mitigate any problems for and from my son, my husband and I scheduled an appointment with the principal. I've reached out to the local Children's Hospital for a developmental assessment and to discuss the concerns with ADD or other neurological disorders. We also have our son working weekly with a psychologist who is helping his self-esteem, self-regulation, and impulsivity.

I just feel really overwhelmed. I'm scared that in a public school, the teacher won't see this amazingly smart, sweet, joyful child... she'll see a kid who is out of his seat again, talking over her, getting distracted from his work, allowing his frustration to lead to an epic tantrum, and possibly disrupting the classroom.

Really long posting short, I guess I need suggestions how to move forward. Some of the things I'm wondering are:

1. What should I be certain to discuss with the principal now to plan for next fall?
2. Are there activities that we can focus on over the next 4 months to help prepare him for kindergarten? (He's in pre-k now, but obviously regular kindergarten requires more focus).
3. In anticipation of the developmental assessment with the Children's Hospital: Any ideas what we should expect? Is medicating a 5 year old typical, or is the standard still to wait until 6-7 years of age?
4. Will one year of a potentially poor/negative school experience be really detrimental to him in the long term? We will have him tested for GT/HGT in the fall for the following (16/17) school year - and potentially, based on the result of that, we could push to have him moved to advanced kindergarten halfway through the year (but at this point, I am not banking on that)

And bonus question 5: Has anyone in Denver been successful in getting DPS to permit a GT/Advanced Kindergarten test outside of their normal testing period?

The composite scores were:
Verbal Comprehension: 135
Visual Spatial: 141
Fluid Reasoning: 136
Working Memory: 131
Processing Speed: 115.

The psychologist indicated that a lower score in processing speed is something she often sees, and that she felt that the overall score was valid.

We met with the principal this morning, and he was wonderfully receptive to our concerns. The school seems to have quite a bit in place to help kids who fall at all different points intellectually, and even a small group setting for those who have behavioral issues that may pose problems in the classroom. He offered to get the (part-time) GT teacher, our son's kindergarten teacher & para, and us together to come up with a plan that will keep our boy engaged and working at his own speed without disrupting the class. We were really pleased with our discussion.

Thank you for the advice on areas we need to focus on over the summer - we will work especially on the transitioning thing, which is a definite struggle for him. Something that we were pleased with is that they use the Promethium boards to display a "countdown clock" to help remind them about how much time they have for a particular activity. We do something similar at home, so at least there is consistency for him there.

Welcome to the boards Steph! Portia has given you excellent advice, and it sounds like your meeting with the principal went well. You'll also be getting additional info and suggestions from the evaluation by the Children's Hospital, so you're on a good path - it may get bumpy at times but it will be ok!

A few thoughts:

1) This is kindergarten. It's great that the school is willing to differentiate, and definitely advocate for it as much as possible, but if he doesn't receive differentiated academics, at the end of the day (year), it will be ok. The thing to focus on and fight with every bit of spunk you have for is to understand what's at the root of his behavior challenges, help him learn coping strategies, remediate if there is a need to, and put accommodations in place so that he can be successful in school. f you can accomplish this, then he will be ready to *fly* later on when it's easier to get differentiation in upper grade levels.

2) Again, remember this is kindergarten. Your son most likely be the only child with issues with transitioning etc. I'm not mentioning this to downplay his needs, but to help you feel a bit less worry It may be more intense with your ds - or it might not.

3) Do you have the subtest scores for processing speed? I've heard that a gap such as your ds' is quite common, but fwiw, I also am sure I've seen similar range gaps posted here on the board where the gap is in a child who has a challenge that is reflected in the processing speed. My ds has an issue that impacts his processing speed score on the WISC, but it's a larger gap so perhaps not relevant. The thing is, if you see a large gap in the subtest scores, you might want to look into some further testing - which the Children's Hospital eval might also pick up on and test. If there is something up there, I'd want to know, because when a child is young, frustration with a hidden challenge can erupt as poor or impulsive behavior, and addressing the behavior might help, but it won't make the underlying issue disappear and the frustration will continue.

Best wishes,

polarbear

Im new to all this as well, so I cant help with any advice, but wanted to say I'm right there with you, going through similiar issues with picking a school & how DS will go

I have no idea how they calculate the scores or what to make of the results.....I had DS4 tested a couple of months back (at 4years 5months) using the WPPSI-IV, he had a very similiar (but lower) sum of scores yet there is a difference in FSIQ; is each area weighted differently?

My DS results were:
Verbal Comprehension: 145
Visual Spatial: 131
Fluid Reasoning: 123
Working Memory: 138
Processing Speed: 110
FSIQ: 149

subtest
Vocabulary Acquisition: 128
Non-Verbal: 138
General Ability: 150
Cognitive Proficiency: 125

The psychologist we saw said his GAI of 150 was more likely to represent his ability & said that it would be highly unlikely to find a school (where we live) that would be able to cater to his needs.