Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Advice on Advocating for son

Hello,
I have been advocating for my son as much as I can, but I've hit some walls and I'm not sure where to take it. My DS7 hates to write and finds coloring boring. I think that we have the writing progressing with an OT who is increasing his confidence and a special ed teacher who is helping him write his own logic puzzles. But, everything in elementary school seems to be about writing and coloring (or crafts).

My DS7 loves science and loves animals and could probably do web searches all day on different animals (anything from parasites to whales). Have any of you had a child with this type of issue? If so, what types of educational changes helped to measure the child's ability better, or how did you get the child to spend more time on something s/he finds dull and mundane? I just need to know how to advocate, because I know the problem...I'm just not sure of the solution.

Hi, I don't know if this is an option for you but we decided to homeschool. My son was very upset at the criticism from his teacher on his writing. His reading was 3 hours/day too. So that means he was "checked out" for 3-1/2 hours a day. At home he has to sit down and write for 30 mins and read for 30 minutes a day. He usually reads for an hour now just because he has really started to enjoy it since he can read at his leisure and pick his own material. I have him write words and books/topics. He wrote a paper about a "rare" bird he saw. This has worked well for us. I am considering putting him in school PT for some of the "funner" subjects like social studies and maybe an advanced math. Hope that helps.

Thank you for the advice. Homeschooling sounds great, but I don't really have that option right now.:/