Gifted Bulletin Board

Welcome to the Gifted Issues Discussion Forum.

We invite you to share your experiences and to post information about advocacy, research and other gifted education issues on this free public discussion forum.
CLICK HERE to Log In. Click here for the Board Rules.

Links


Learn about Davidson Academy Online - for profoundly gifted students living anywhere in the U.S. & Canada.

The Davidson Institute is a national nonprofit dedicated to supporting profoundly gifted students through the following programs:

  • Fellows Scholarship
  • Young Scholars
  • Davidson Academy
  • THINK Summer Institute

  • Subscribe to the Davidson Institute's eNews-Update Newsletter >

    Free Gifted Resources & Guides >

    Who's Online Now
    0 members (), 54 guests, and 103 robots.
    Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
    Newest Members
    FionaFox, assistantb, throwelder, manedwolf, Tiny0121
    11,900 Registered Users
    February
    S M T W T F S
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7
    8 9 10 11 12 13 14
    15 16 17 18 19 20 21
    22 23 24 25 26 27 28
    Previous Thread
    Next Thread
    Print Thread
    Joined: Feb 2026
    Posts: 1
    N
    NT2018 Offline OP
    New Member
    OP Offline
    New Member
    N
    Joined: Feb 2026
    Posts: 1
    Hi,

    Newbie here and based in England where structured gifted and talented programmes are essentially nonexistent so thank goodness that I have stumbled upon this amazing forum!

    I’m hoping for some pointers on what I should be expecting from an elementary school as a minimum.

    My son is 7, summer born, youngest in his year. Currently in second grade. He’s seen as age-appropriate.

    He has been struggling with the physical work and organisation of writing for a couple of years. I took him for assessment as the delta between his verbal abilities and written work was outrageous.

    WISC V was highly superior in all domains except processing speed which was average. It’s currently looking like he’s dyspraxic but we’re waiting on final paeds sign-off.

    His school have seen the Ed Pysch report and have just shrugged their shoulders. They seem to think that you can only be gifted if you are able to demonstrate it academically in very traditional modes - exams, essays etc - and currently my son isn’t able to perform in written tests under time pressure.

    Consequently, he can’t get into the enrichment streams that are reserved for kids seen as high ability with the top test scores.

    He’s happy at school and super social. It’s his main reason to go to school I’d say.

    We do lots of projects and trips out of school that follow his interests but I’m worried that he needs more from the expert educationalists as he approaches third grade and they currently overlook him as having any cognitive talent.

    Is home-led enrichment enough around an average education or is it now time to start pushing for more from a school to unlock his potential?

    I’ll be so grateful for your views.

    Joined: Apr 2014
    Posts: 4,092
    Likes: 10
    A
    aeh Offline
    Member
    Offline
    Member
    A
    Joined: Apr 2014
    Posts: 4,092
    Likes: 10
    Welcome, NT!

    We also have a child who found it very challenging to display cognition and academic achievement through written work at this age. At the time, we were homeschooling, so I simply scribed all of the work except for handwriting itself, and worked on physical writing through short, focused activities (less than 20 minutes a day). As soon as speech to text software was reasonably accurate (at the time, it was not always able to pick up children's voices as easily), we switched to STT for written expression, and continued to scribe or assess orally in other content areas (e.g., math, science, history). Once we had enough manuscript and cursive skill to meet my minimum expectations (write a two-sentence thank you note, fill a form, sign your name), we transitioned to typing instead of handwriting.

    For your child, much depends on whether and how he is developing as a whole person. It sounds like many aspects of development are currently satisfactory, but not writing. Are other areas also concerns? He is happy at school, which is the most critical, but possibly not learning much academically, and being given misleading messaging regarding his academic potential especially in writing. Be particularly alert to any negative self-perceptions he might be absorbing from his school experience. Afterschooling or enrichment can be sufficient to maintain a child for a little while if it addresses the areas of greatest intellectual thirst. What does he thrive in?

    Secondly, the question of any unaddressed second exceptionalities should not be overlooked. Whether the school acknowledges either intellectual giftedness or dyspraxia, he will--as you've noted--increasingly be aware of them, and it would be best to stay ahead of the narrative for his sake, lest he internalize his challenge areas as the ceiling of his ability. If and when a dyspraxia diagnosis is offered, pay close attention to any recommendations emerging, and ask thoughtful questions about remediation both through professional therapies and supportive home activities. The earlier his challenges are addressed, the less they are likely to impact his access to his strengths over the long term. Our family practice has always been transparency with our children, especially when it is about themselves. Consider how you and your team can most effectively explain to your child what the nature of his learning profile is, and how his diverse abilities affect his daily experience. It is almost certain that he already has some sense that he learns differently from others (on either tail of the bell curve); this will simply give a name to it.


    ...pronounced like the long vowel and first letter of the alphabet...

    Moderated by  M-Moderator, Mark D. 

    Link Copied to Clipboard
    Recent Posts
    PhD in physics, average IQ?
    by aeh - 02/25/26 02:45 PM
    Online calculus
    by FrameistElite - 02/23/26 01:25 AM
    Should We Advocate Further?
    by Alaricc - 02/12/26 01:12 AM
    How to get child to actually "study"
    by Faylie - 02/11/26 11:32 PM
    Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5