Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional Cross Post: A Reintroduction

Thanks, Kristen. We are located in suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota. I was doing some research last night to find someone that is well versed in both areas, but to be honest, I am getting a bit overwhelmed.

I am going to be honest when I say that this is really hitting me hard and I am having a difficult time emotionally. I work myself up to the point of getting on board and doing the research and then I start reading and I become very sad and overwhelmed. I am in the grieving process right now and that is making it very difficult for me to get anywhere.

I think any parent with a child on the spectrum understands the grieving process. Please give yourself time to process the emotions. At the risk of sounding like Pollyanna, you are so fortunate to have discovered your sons needs (and his gifts!) so early. There is so much that can be done to help kids like your son and my daughter -- and the fact that you will be taking action early will give him such a boost.

I really do share your pain, but I also remain very hopeful about what the future holds for your son. In many ways, we found Juliet's diagnosis to be a bit of a relief (some might say blessing) because it helped us understand her "funky wiring."

Best of luck on your 2e journey, and just know that there are parents out there who understand what it feels like to walk in similar shoes.

Kristen

Mamabird, there is a very supportive discussion forum for ASDs and a lot of good information here:

http://www.aspergersyndrome.org/Home.aspx

Yes, the learning curve is steep at the beginning, but it's totally worthwhile.

Best,
DeeDee

Hi Mamabird,

For your question on how to go about testing for gifted: I took a look at your state and wanted to provide you with the following link, just in case you haven't found it yet.

http://www.davidsongifted.org/db/state_policy_minnesota_10024.aspx

Minnesota is a state where gifted programming is mandated: partially funded by state, but there are no set guidelines at the state level for gifted so it will depend on your district. My state, Texas, is very similar to this and each district is different. The best thing to do is to check out your district's website and see if they mention what age they test for gifted. If they don't mention it than definitely call and talk to a counselor. Be prepared to provide information on 2e because they might push the one-sided approach. There is also links from that page for state level support groups. They are usually the best ones to talk to and they might be able to offer up evidence of other students that have gone through the district that are 2e. They will also have a contact person who they work with in your district.

I hope this helps and I totally agree with Grinity that you need a medical diagnosis, especially since your son sounds HG+ and what you have described could very possibly be SI. My daughter has a classmate who could easily be IDed as on the spectrum but he is a HG+ child as well and his problems are all related to SI. He does OT such as your son and it has helped him some. It all takes time.

Mamabird - are you a member of MCGT, Minnesota Council of Gifted Talented? They have a yahoogroup that really might be able to help you with local resources. And the tone tends to be similar to this board. I do not have a 2E child, so I'm not help that way, but I've read many 2E issues discussed there.

http://www.mcgt.net/

Kristen - I agree that while it is daunting, it is also kind of a relief. We are so fortunate to have found this at such a young age, especially since he is so high functioning. The school psychologist that we have been working with said kids at his level normally are not identified until at least 2nd or 3rd grade.

DeeDee - THANK YOU! I will look into joining this group. I was hesitant to pay the membership fee without knowing if it were a good resource.

Katelyn'sMom - I am actually kind of concerned because this is all I am finding regarding our SD's gifted program
District Talent Development

I am not certain that they do testing outside of the district MAP testing, etc. I am looking into that further.

KimCK - I am in contact with the person in charge of the 2E group associated with MCGT. It is considered a group and not a chapter and there is not a chapter in my area, so I am trying to figure out what to indicate when I sign up.

Thank you all for your help and resources. Keep it coming if you have any more!

That's great mamabird - just wanted to make sure you know we have excellent local resources and support! When I first joined MCGT, I didn't have a local chapter either. Now we homeschool, so I'm in the homeschool chapter. It's ok not to have one.

mamabird, I am also in the Twin Cities suburbs with a 2E child (D15, Asperger's and a non-verbal learning diasability). Agree with kim, MCGT is a great local resource! Sorry I can't provide a specific name of someone for you (our testing has been sort of scattered, IQ testing by someone with experience with gifted kids, but the 2E part by someone else...), but I bet the MCGT Yahoo! group would have some recommendations for sure.

I don't actually belong to a chapter, never have although I have been an MCGT member for about 12 years. I just use the online resources, and have enjoyed their annual conference in the past (haven't been lately).

Many children who are academically advanced can show their abilities quite well with the MAP test that is designed for students 2nd grade and up. This test is taken on a computer, and the more questions a child answers correctly, the harder questions are asked. Therefore you can compare your child's achievement to that of children in higher grades quite easily. This can be a big help in Advocacy. Just be sure your child understands that unlike other tests, with the MAP, the more the child knows, the longer the test will go on. The teachers may occasionally encourage the children to intentionally get a few questions wrong after 3 or 4 hours just to end the test (and who can blame them since they may believe that once a child is at grade level that their learning is going well 'by definition', so who needs to know exactly how far above grade level they actually are?)

smiles,
Grinity