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    Joined: May 2007
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    Originally Posted by passthepotatoes
    The ACT requires bubbling 215 answers over about a three hour period and it includes breaks. The essay is optional (a few colleges require it, but most don't).

    Lori - you have described your son as being able to write in class essays by hand and to type online for hours with friends. Most kids who are capable of those thing would certainly have enough muscle tone to be able to bubble in 215 bubbles over a three hour period. ACT prep books including sample tests are readily available free from the public library. He could take a sample test on a day when he's feeling well and you could see how he does before you refuse to let him take the test.

    He does have an ACT prep book. I have always let him circle answers instead of filling in bubbles because I always thought the correct answer to the question was the important thing, not the ability to color in lines of little bubbles. He enjoyed the Nintendo DS SAT prep game a few years ago. He used to enjoy taking tests like this at home before he started getting frequent migraines and back pain.

    Even if my son didn't have a migraine the day of the test the three hours it takes to do the test would be a problem for my son, even with short breaks. His brace causes pain when he has to sit for a long period of time. I think chronic pain is his biggest learning disability, but when allowed to work around the pain he does very well. His writing comp class is one hour, once a week, and he is very tired by the end of the class. He makes A+ on most of his assignments but if it were a three hour class it would be very difficult for him. His musical theater class is three hours. He had to miss an entire rehearsal last week and the week before that he could only make it through about a third of the rehearsal because of migraines and back pain. He only had back pain yesterday so he was able to stay the entire time but had to sit out and watch the class as they were learning the new dance. He always learns it in time for the performance. Somehow in the last few years he learned how to remember the dance routines even though he is sitting out and watching some of the time and is actually getting less practice than the other kids, something I didn't think he would be able to do with motor dyspraxia. Since he was able to figure out how to learn quickly in an area of weakness on his own I think this learning disability will not be that much of a problem for him in later life. Pain is the real problem. At home he takes a lot of breaks, often lying down when his back hurts. His iPad and netbook allow him to keep learning even if he has to lie down for a while. There is no testing accommodation for pain. When he is sixteen he might be able to stop wearing the brace and hopefully he will have learned how to manage the migraines. Maybe then he will take the tests, or maybe not.

    I refuse to take him out of piano and musical theater so I can afford therapy so he might be able to color in the lines of little bubbles faster. If coloring in bubbles were some very important life skill it might be different. I think he has learned much more important life skills in musical theater, where his friends are much more like him and it is safe to talk about what they are reading without being labeled a geek. One of his friends is studying Shakespeare on his own just for fun and they talked about that yesterday. Focusing on a disability that I don't believe OT or PT can change that much does not make sense to me. Musical theater, friends, music, improvisation, singing, dance, working as part of a team to make a good show, this is what he needs, not the ability to color in lines.

    I do believe that OT and PT would have been helpful when he was younger, when it would have made more of a difference.

    His handwriting is sloppy, especially if he has to write quickly, but it is legible. He can and does write neatly if there is enough time.


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    aculady Offline OP
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    Originally Posted by Lori H.
    Pain is the real problem. At home he takes a lot of breaks, often lying down when his back hurts...There is no testing accommodation for pain.

    Lori,

    Since your son has formally diagnosed disabling conditions that include both a significant pain component that is worse with prolonged sitting and a fatigue component, he may actually be eligible for the accommodation of taking the test in short sessions over the course of several days. It sounds like that would be really helpful for him.

    When the time comes, it would certainly be worth a try to send in what you have in terms of medical documentation.




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    Certainly you should apply for accommodations for him Lori. The process can take a while so start early. It seems unwise to me to totally just assume he won't be able to do this. He's bright kid who has shown you that he can exceed your expectations. It seems a shame to cut him off from this possibilities that may allow him to use his considerably intelligence in ways that may help open up future possibilities for him.

    One thing I'd keep in mind is that this is a one time thing. It isn't like he'd have to maintain that level of energy day after day. Adrenaline can be quite a powerful thing to overcome some of these challenges for a short period of time. Also, hopefully solutions will be identified that help him manage his pain. If he's never tried to practice bubbling I would not assume he's incapable of learning to do it. Some kids who struggle with handwriting or fine motor strength are still able to bubble.

    I've said it before and I'll say it again, improvements in strength are a HUGE help with hypotonia. It is not too late for him to make improvements that will help him live a healthier life. PT is not just for little kids. Pain management and relaxation strategies aren't just for little kids. Some kids actually make more progress after puberty. I hope that turns out to be the case for your son. He's got a lot to offer the world.

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    aculady Offline OP
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    Just wanted to update anyone who was interested on the outcome of the College Board decision. They approved a keyboard on the writing section (who hoo!!) and also 100% extended time on writing and math, small group testing, large block answer sheet (no bubbles) and extra breaks.

    On the down side, they say we don't have enough recent documentation of his visual disabilities for him to get a 14 pt testing booklet, and they denied 200% extended time on the math section. I don't think they are thinking clearly about how much writing goes into doing math at this level. Using a calculator doesn't do anything for helping you write out equations, and it is his writing that is really the bottleneck.

    I hope it will be enough for him to get by. We'll keep working on getting better documentation of his visual processing deficits, but for this year, this is going to be as good as it gets - deadline to register for the last test of the year is next week.

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    Very interesting! glad he is getting some accommodation.
    We might well be in a similar position for time accommodations in the math arena eventually, I will keep in mind your point about getting/keeping up with documentation on this.

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    Good news Aculady, and hopefully it's good enough news.

    I can't believe that they are dragging their heals on the visual disability, but nothing should surprise me now.

    Are calculators that print allowed? Not as good as writing down equations, but perhaps for some of the easier problems???

    Hugs,
    Grinity


    Coaching available, at SchoolSuccessSolutions.com
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    We're keeping our fingers crossed that it will be "good enough".

    Unfortunately, printing calculators are specifically prohibited. frown


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    I'm extremely interested in the low muscle tone, how to show what you know in a bubble question.

    One of the best accommodations I've heard is to give the child a chance to verbally answer any questions they've written incorrectly.

    I have observed a great deal of school OT and PT, and I love them but my overall reaction as a parent is I'll just have my kids do gymnastics! Or wrestling! The therapists I see at work cite core strength as a huge need for students.

    Regarding hypotonia, I understand this is a soft neurological sign and I think essential fatty acids can't hurt.

    Two therapies I see as very promising are Masgutova - sp? - my OT friend says kids *lose diagoses* - and Kinetic Konnections.

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    Mostly good news there aculady. It seems totally crazy to me that they'd deny anyone access to larger type. Unless you've got the disability there is no possible way you could benefit from that (unlike extended time which certainly could be of unfair advantage to someone without a disability).

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    aculady Offline OP
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    LinCO,

    Thanks for bringing these therapies up.

    One of my son's OTs was very well-versed in Masgutova method, and we certainly saw gains and improvements with this, although we didn't get full reintegration of his numerous retained reflexes. I'd absolutely recommend it for children who have retained infantile reflexes.

    Essential fatty acids are rarely a bad idea, but we didn't see any dramatic improvement in hypotonia from using the supplements (although there were other things that did improve.)

    I'm pretty sure gymnastics or wrestling would have been 1) incredibly dangerous and 2) impossible for my son, whose disabilities also seriously impair his depth perception and his proprioception, so I am grateful that we had the excellent private OTs and PTs who managed to help us get him to where he is today. He wasn't in school once he was diagnosed, so we never dealt with school OT and PT, which I understand can be very different from what you find in private practice.

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