GG,
Your son�s story sounds like something my daughter would tell. The gasping for air issue also sounds familiar. I have always described her as having some difficulty in sequencing a story. She also sounds a bit ditsy sometimes (think valley girl �very excited and animated). I had never considered this as anything more than personality. When she was evaluated for the other issues, the testers came back with a term I had never heard regarding her oral expressive language, �cluttering�.
Two years ago, she was seen at a university Psych Ed. dept. to narrow down the 2E issues that I have described in other posts. We met with the department head for the debrief (approx. 2 hours). I told her that I usually explained to our daughter�s teachers that she has a �subtle learning difference� to with she responded �there is nothing subtle about your daughter�s learning disability�. I found that statement both validating (because our entire public district thought I was nuts) and frightening at the same time. I mentioned before that she has extremely low phonological distinction ability which was consistent with their findings, the U also suspects auditory processing deficits and regarding her speech, a condition called cluttering. She recommended a follow up with an audiologist and speech therapist. She suggested that we get very selective and look for professionals who understand that a gifted child might present differently than an average child.
We have chosen not to get the follow-ups because our daughter is such a successful student. As long as that holds, we intend to focus on her strengths rather then relative weakness. That being said, I do discuss with her that she may need to watch a teacher speak and other compensation strategies. I do believe that having a self awareness of areas of difficulty can help. Of course, if her grades declined, we would revisit this issue.
As far a reading aloud, my kids were not great at this until around 10. My daughter�s first K teacher (private school) gave me a very good explanation for this. Essentially, it is the sight word versus phonological reader difference. She said that kids who read by sight often have higher comprehension of what they read. Phonological readers may sound like professors in their pronunciation, but might not have a clear understanding of the meaning of what they read. Sight readers often substitute words while they read because they are anticipating what will come next. Since I believe the purpose of reading is to understand information, I never worried too much about this (although I did consider it a clue in determining their learning styles). With age, it is no longer an issue.
Well, between this and Fite�s info, I guess you will be doing some research. Good luck!
