What sort of issues do you have with your toddlers? I have a 3yo son who at 14 to 16 mos learned the alphabet, colors and shapes. Although he doesn't like to read books anymore and does not like being read to, he still managed to teach himself how to read and write at 2 1/2. He can now count in 4 languages, do a little addition and subtraction, knows his phone number and address and is quite proficient with the computer, often having 2 or 3 windows working at the same time. He can read, spell, write and type his first and last name.
However, after 10 minutes in a very unfriendly environment with a psychologist, he was diagnosed as very high functioning autistic because he doesn't like to play with children his age and can throw a tantrum when he gets frustrated or feels "helpless". It seemed odd to me when I was told that he will never be a "people person" because he is very friendly but only to older children and adults. He would often introduce himself and his family to the parents and older siblings in parties or in the playground.
After reading Misdiagnosis, I learned that these are issues common among gifted children, where their atypical behaviors significantly changes when the situations change like they behave differently in school with peers compared to at home or with adults or other gifted children. I find it very sad that there are very few professionals who can help our children. While these behaviors still need to be corrected, I think dealing with them should be completely different from the behaviors of children with typical disorder.
