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It sometimes matters, as some issues with a certain test may indicate potential further issues to explore. She does not need to have significant impairment in multiple settings as that was a DSM-IV requirement. The DSM-V and TR version simply states there is "clear evidence" of impairment or interference, and the impairment does not need to be significant.

To be clear, are you referring to issues as in impairment or issues as in symptoms?

Developmentally gifted kids may be ahead so they should be assessed against developmental age, not chronological age.

However there are many other issues that could cause forgetfulness so be sure to go to physical doctors too and other professionals as necessary.

Can anyone recommend a psychologist who specializes in gifted kids CT or NY?
We are on the CT/NY border. Thanks.

It’s true — there are very few resources for gifted adults, and many people feel that gap after aging out of DYS.

They used the wisc 5 or something like that. All of her categories ranged from 96 to 98 percentile. Her profile wasn't spikey. (Not.sure if that matters)
She doesn't have an expressive language delay. She is capable of giving more answers, but just doesn't. Or says she doesn't remember.
We really don't have many issues at home. I think that is why they are hesitant to diagnose. They said she has to have significant impairment in two settings.
She can focus at home. But she can be forgetful sometimes. Deep down, I feel she has it. But I read online that gifted children can appear inattentive at school if they're bored.

Why did they not diagnose your daughter? Did something else explain the symptoms or not? It may also be because of learning disabilities or expressive language delays.

How did they observe your daughter?

You can PM me about the processes and instruments and I can give you my viewpoint.

But sometimes ADHD in gifted can be underdiagnosed due to compensation and milder presentation.

Welcome, wmom!

Sometimes ADHD (especially primarily inattentive) is more subtle in higher cognitive kiddos, because they're a lot better at masking, or at using compensatory strategies to power their way through some of the tests used. But it's also possible that something else is in play. We don't have much to work with in terms of data at this moment, but what you describe could also result from an auditory processing disorder, especially with difficulty following multistep directions and comprehending oral language. One-sentence answers also raise questions regarding expressive language delays. It can be hard to tease out all the possible factors, especially depending on the nature of the evaluation data you obtained.

There are also other executive dysfunctions that don't meet ADHD diagnostic criteria. But just because they don't meet criteria doesn't mean they don't affect one. If you feel comfortable posting, what instruments did they use? (If not publicly, you can pm me; just let me know you did so, or ask me to pm you, as my inbox is kind of full!)

Welcome, Dwayne! It takes a minute for new posters to show up in the feed, so sorry no one replied earlier.

We also had a relatively young first grader (a few years back!) who was wiggly and impulsive. On the whole, ours would have had even more difficulty with self-regulation if given less intellectual stimulation--which even the school staff acknowledged by the end of the school year.

With yours, repeating her due to nonresponsive staff seems, TBH, like forcing the child to take the consequences for adult failings. The data on retentions has been very consistent for decades, and finds that it is, at best, nonimpactful, and at worst, deleterious. There is usually a short-term bump in performance, followed by diminishing benefits until somewhere in the middle grades, concluding with losses compared to comparison peers by the end of high school.

Now obviously, group data do not determine individual outcomes, so for any given student-family-school combination, it is possible that repeating has good outcomes. But fwiw, the numbers do not favor retention.

In your position, I think I would let the OT have an opportunity to work with her on sensory processing strategies and accommodations. Even if the staff are not enthused, once they see the benefits to them (in reduced demands on staff for management), they may be more cooperative. Lukewarm staff, in my experience, respond better to concrete tools than to strategies. For example, many sensory kids do well with elastic bands across the front legs of their chairs as a kind of gross motor fidget (nice thing to bounce on instead of tipping the chair or tapping one's feet). Also it gives some body-in-space feedback. You can also try teaching her to wrap her feet around the front two legs of the chair, which stabilizes her in the seat, and gives some of that sensory feedback.

Your what-if question is fair, but also water under the bridge at this point! But as an academic point of discussion, really it's a question of which skill would have experienced developmental mismatch this year, and what would have been of more value for her and your family holistically. At least one of them would have--it just would have been different ones. You can speculate on that, but no one can say in hind-sight how it would have played out, nor could you have predicted it a year ago. As parents, we just make the best decisions we can based on the information and conditions we have available at the time.

Hi! Did you ever find a school that worked. Our son is 7 and sounds like we are following your journey.

Thank you so much! Great new!

My daughter's teacher two years ago noticed my daughter didn't comprehend as well as she could read. Would only give one sentence answer etc. also noticed she wasn't great at following multiple steps directions and would have to ask the teacher what she was to be doing. We decided to have an psycho educational assessment on her. She didn't qualify for an ADHD diagnosis, but they found out her IQ is 130.
These issues are still apparent now two years later, so I decided to get a second ADHD opinion. She still doesn't quality. Mostly because we don't notice symptoms at home and they say she isn't significantly impaired.
I am at a loss of what to do. Anyone else's gifted childs teacher think they had ADHD but they don't?

Hi! We are going through the same with our 2nd grader. Did you end up finding a school or better resources to help your child?

It’s interesting how those little clues only make sense in hindsight. At the time it just feels like “this is our kid, this is normal,” especially when you’re already in a nerdy or curious household. What you described doesn’t sound forced at all — just a kid who was naturally drawn to information and wanted to understand the world around him.

It’s funny how strangers sometimes notice things before we do. And honestly, there’s nothing “crazy” about letting a child follow their curiosity, even if it looks unusual to others. Sounds like you handled it exactly right.

Seems like navigating that can be a real brain-bender. Academic challenge, you say? Well, that’s a loaded term these days. Finding true intellectual peers must feel like searching for a unicorn.