Hi everyone:

How wonderful to find this "community within a community." I am a Californian married to an Aussie, and we are raising our two kids in beautiful Sydney. Per my subject line, our 4.5 year old daughter is both HG and has PDD-NOS.

We have spent most of our energy over the past 2 years addressing her needs on the ASD side through ABA and some wonderful social group therapy, but now that she is getting ready to head to school, we are increasingly concerned about nurturing her gifts as well. We think (and HOPE) that we have found a great school in our area that truly "gets" the unique challenges and gifts of twice exceptional kids. Fingers crossed!

Look forward to getting to know the people in this group better. I am involved in a number of Australian-based ASD communities and a gifted families forum, but this is my first venture into the twice expectional on-line community.

Cheers from Oz,

Kristen

Kristen, We are in a similar situation with our son (HG with an ASD.) He is now 7, and up til this past year we had addressed only his ASD with ABA, etc! We found a great school for next year that will (so they say) focus on his gifts while accommodating the ASD instead of vice versa. You are lucky to start focusing on her gifts at age 4.5...it took us just a little longer to realize that we needed to do that. (It was actually DS himself who dragged us into realization!) Happy to see you, Nan

Hi Kristen! Welcome to the forum! I came here for the HG support and now DS has a new PDD-NOS diagnosis. So, this is a fabulous group with great experience and knowledge for those of us trying to wade through it all. Best wishes for your child in her new environment!

Nice to meet you, Kristen!

Girls on the spectrum are a sub-category of their own. I've found over the years that about 70% of what my cohorts with boys say makes the gender transition, but that other 30% is a whole new world.
Throw in HG and you're raising a child that teachers may simply not recognize as anything they've seen before. That can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on the teacher. Overall, I found that the gifted label saved N from being relegated to the depths of what passes for exceptional ed around here more than once.
Anyway, welcome to what may as well be titled "the care and feeding of magical creatures", with apologies to Rowling.

hi kristen
just wanted to say welcome, i'm in the US in new york area and raising two HG kids, DD5 and DS8. DS8 is also PDD-NOS and like you we spent the early years doing all the ABA and now his needs are changing and we have to also nurture the gifted side. Luckily the teacher he has now recognizes his strengths. One of the big challenges is that its so easy for even professionals to fall into stereotypical thinking about kids on the spectrum. So if he reads really well he must not be comprehending (not true!!). And he must love math (which he does not!!).. i could go on and on. But all in all we are so glad to see this other side of him emerge and hope that it will save him in some way as an adult. I do feel that exceptionally bright people are given some "waivers" and allowed to be a bit eccentric (my father for one)..

Thanks so much for the warm welcome! I appreciate that every child's/family's story is a different, but it is comforting to "meet" people who really understand what we are going through. Our goal is to raise a daughter who feels comfortable in her own quirky skin...on some days, I feel quite excited about what her future holds, and then on others, I think "OMG! We haven't even hit the kindergarten years yet!" I know I will learn a lot from those of you who have travelled a little further down the road than I.

In the meantime, if anyone wants a shipment of Vegemite, just say the word...

Kristen

I go to a school that supports children with behavioral disorders, emotional problames, LD's, and even people who are twice-exceptional. My teacher realizes that I am 3 grades above my reading level and that I'm a great writer, my math teacher realizes that I am a bit above average in mathematics (just a bit!), and yet that I have trouble controlling my emotions. I think your daughter would thrive in a similar school, because they also help people with Autistic Spectrum Disorders, as they have degrees in special eduaction, and even the psychologist is professional, yet not well known (and he also recognizes that I'm gifted). They work with their children exstensively, and I think your daughter's gifts would be supported.

Welcome! I have a daughter who is 2E with confirmed ADHD and has also been suggested as exhibiting symptoms of Asperger's Syndrome by her school. This is a very good forum to feel that there are others out there that share your experiences.

Eldertree, your reference to the "Care and Feeding of Magical Creatures" brought tears to my eyes, because my daughter is, indeed, a magical creature, and that is such a positive way to see our kids in a world that sees so much in the negative of "deficits" and "disorders." THANK YOU!

-- Sky

Oddly enough, although Asperger's Disorder seems to be treated well for boys, the girls with Asperger's and PDD-NOS seem to either be misdiagnosed as that, or go rather undiagnosed. A lot of independent girls may be seen as "developmentally disabled" where I live, so that may either PDD or just people being sexist.