Hi all. I wanted to introduce myself and my son and also get some feedback. My son is almost 4, and we've known from a very young age that he is different. Last year he memorized the United States in alphabetical order. He is already adding (which I learned pretty much by accident). He's also a very emotionally intense kid. We had him evaluated recently, and they diagnosed him with SPD and anxiety, but we also confirmed his IQ is within the gifted range (and the psych said he expected it to be higher once he had more crystallized processes and better executive functioning).
We had him at a Montessori school, but he freaked out every day and told us he didn't like school. We decided to move him this year to a school with more structure and choice for play. He is much happier there, and it's only been a couple of weeks. It's a pre-k through 12 school, and they are known for academics.
The teacher knew he was having an eval done, and the day after when I told her very prelim info, she said something to the effect of having a learning disability. Once I was able to talk to her more after we got the results, she acted like the IQ thing was ridiculous. My son doesn't participate much so she doesn't see the advanced skillset. To be fair, I have discovered most of it by accident - I learned he knew how to add when he was counting his poop. Anyhow, today I was in his class, and his teacher gave him an informal assessment as soon as he got to school. I could tell he didn't understand directions, and when I approached to ask him what he was doing, she said, "It's just a little assessment to see if he understands quantity. He doesn't." Oy vey. I'm really at a loss of how to proceed with her. He is getting a lot out of his class, so maybe I just leave it, though I do know her opinion will weigh heavily on placement decisions for next year (his birthday is after sept 1 cutoff but not by much). I feel like she is discounting his intelligence, and I worry about that hindering his growth.
I've just started reading Living with Intensity and am hopeful there are strategies in there that might help. But I also wanted to see if you had any that you've tried or some perspective!
