Hi Amielynn,

We were so in your shoes several years ago. It's awesome you are getting input on this early.

We never went through our school system- only because I've become cynical and suspicious and wanted to digest information before I gave it to the schools. But based on input from preschools, we followed most of the same ideas that have been suggested to you. We (privately) did some sensory OT and also (privately) had WPPSI administered along with screening for autism/Asperger's.

The sensory OT didn't hurt, but neither did it help that much to be honest. Maybe a little. I never felt that the OT was getting to the heart of the matter. It probably gave our DS (4 years old at the time) some coping skills, but it didn't alleviate the problem in any meaningful way.

The ASD/Asperger's screenings were negative. The WPPSI showed we likely had a bright little boy on our hands, who had a lot of anxiety about chaotic, loud, crowded places (read: "school").

When DS went to K, his struggles really ramped, and we decided to get a full neuropsychological evaluation. It was very, very expensive. And very, very worth it for us. Instead of getting little snippets of information from one specialist or another, we got a comprehensive picture that really helped us understand (1) strengths and how to foster them and (2) weaknesses and how to help them. The assessment came with an educational plan that included practical suggestions for easing his struggles in school and allowing him to enjoy school a little.

We have an upcoming meeting with the school, and I have no expectation that it will be happy-happy-joy-joy from here on out. But on the other hand, we have hard data, a solid plan and backup from a well-regarded neuropsychologist if we need it. So, I'm a little hopeful that these meetings will be more fruitful than the head-banging meetings we had last year.

So - I think your son might be a little young yet for this kind of assessment. But maybe not. More knowledgeable folks can weigh in on that, I hope.

But - I know for a fact that our school district would never have done an assessment that was broad enough to give the picture we have now. And narrower assessment would likely have just facilitated them putting in the box they had targeted for him. So instead of - "he is profoundly gifted but needs accommodation for dyslexia/dysgraphia" we would be facing "well he's performing almost at grade level, so there's really nothing we can do for him."

To be fair, the schools do have limited resources. We can pound on the desk and they are obligated to give our kids what they need to "access the curriculum." But in my cynical/pragmatic view - if they can shut that door after a cursory assessment, they darned well will. They have too many cases where kids don't show grade-level performance on a cursory screen. And for some weird reason, it's just easier/more fun/more rewarding/more praise-generating/more self-aggrandizing [sorry - cynicism alert] or something for the schools to help those kids rather than ours.

Best of luck to you,
Sue