school...

[BUD]

My 5 year old daughter was diagnosed with a mild case of mental disability. The teacher says her test scores a below average. She is doing better in class. Is there any advise on how to help her? thanks

[Skywatch_NC]

Bud,

When I was in pre-school I was diagnosed as learning disabled...particularly in the area of mathematics. My folks helped me out with flash cards in part on teaching me in my early grade school years...when I wasn't in the classroom. I also had alot of help with special ed specialists during that time of my life!

I wish you, your wife and daughter the VERY best!

Eric

[BUD]

I think they said it is the way her brain takes information in. If you ask her anything you have to go slow. So many things they want her to learn. Including her birthday and her address.

[Stephanie]

I think that the school should also have information, suggestions and even people to see about helping your daughter.

Good luck!

[BUD]

Getting a tudor for the summer.

[Miss Mary]

My youngest daughter, 15 now and entering 10th Grade in August, has always struggled. Looking back, I think she needed 3 full years of pre-school, the third being a pre-K, 4 half day program. But she began K with 2 years of pre-school, and was 5 and 3 months old. Within 1 year's time, I realized over 50% of her classmates were a full year older than she was. I thought a First Grade girl who was breezing thru a 4th Grade level book was gifted but the teacher sighed and said - no, she's just a year older than your daughter. Laura has never been in danger of repeating a grade, she's just been in school with these older students who were usually a step ahead of her. She struggled in reading, every single year. She qualified for Reading Recovery Grades 1-4. Receiving lots of help. By 3rd Grade, LD testing was gently suggested to us. Since at the time we didn't want to medicate her, or so I thought the school district would push for that, we opted to work harder with her. By 6th Grade it was clearly apparent - LD testing was needed. She was discovered to have mild ADD. Since she's not hyper, she's never been disruptive to her classmates. She'd just zone out sometimes. Or take longer with tests. Laura works at her own pace - with everything - cleaning her room, getting ready for school/church, etc. We call it Laura-mode. She is VERY bright however. Most ADD/ADHD kids are. They just have troubling concentrating. And since most teachers are teaching to those older students - so many are now 6 entering K, not 5, as I pointed out, the kids with special needs in the classroom require extra attention.

We were lucky to live in a great school district. Consistently within the Top 5, in the Cincinnati area. LD testing was done within the school day, over an 8 week period. Once the school finished their paperwork, suggesting it was ADD, the next step was to take this paperwork to our Pediatrician. He looked it over and said - your daughter exhibits classic ADD behavior. Because she always squeeked thru with C's and was not a bother to anyone, daydreaming in her own world, she got thru each grade this way. But by 6th, it was clear we had to do something. We began her on ADD meds. The first time I filled that Rx, my hand shook. This was not like filling an Rx for antiobiotics, this was a controlled substance. Our Ped. knew how we felt - that we'd try this if it worked. If not, we'd work harder with her. Well, it did work - she was like a completely different student. Took Concerta only on school days, never on weekends, breaks or summers. She bounced from Concerta to Adderal to Strattera. Even though all of these meds 'clear the fog', similar to having a cup of coffee in the morning, she hates the overall way they make her feel. She feels less social with her peers. This summer, she wants to give Strattera another try.

I would highly recommend working within your school district. I know of one family that didn't. They had testing done at our Children's Hospital but by having it done themselves, they opposed the teacher's recommendations, constantly. You do not want to be on opposite sides of the teachers/administration. Unless of course they are not meeting the needs of your child. We got lucky. All of us were on the same page - let's help Laura. She has gone back to her old Elem. volunteering one day a week, for 3 years now. They love having her back, since they worked so hard to help her. She is volunteering this summer, for 5 weeks, with 1st-5th Graders, her niche in life I say. Maybe she'll end being a teacher. She just wants to give back and loves tutoring special needs children.

Finally, since your child is 5, if this was her K year this past year, she could always do another year of K. I gently suggest to anyone on the fence about starting K at age 5 for their child, to wait until 6. Another year never hurts. And IMO can only help. My oldest daughter just graduated from HS and turns 18 later this month. All of her friends have turned 19 and many turned 18, months ago. Kids starting at age 5, is almost a thing of the past.

Mary

PS - didn't mean to write so much, but the words just flowed. Hope I've helped a little.

[Pebbles]

My 12 year old is highly gifted and also classified as learning disabled because she has ADHD. Learning disabilities come in all different ways and honestly have found the label 'learning disabled' to be VERY inaccurate. It can be a comprehension retention problem, vision, hearing, or something else.

If you haven't yet... get a very detailed picture of what is actually causing a problem. Many times children are not correctly diagnosed because they haven't been tested enough. Make sure vision is checked for dyslexia or other problems and hearing is checked. Then I would recommend you see a pediatric specialist (not your child's regular doctor, usually this is some type of psychologist that will do a full evaluation on your child) that deals with learning disabilities to get to the root of the problem. Then ... get a second opinion. Most health insurances and/or medicaid will cover this, double check

(On a side note if anyone says ADD/ADHD you still want to know the ROOT CAUSE. That title is a broad classification of attention problems that can have MANY causes. My daughter has attention problems due to hyperactivity. She is not bad. Her body is overstimulated and thus she 'fidgets' nonstop without coping techniques, which makes it difficult for her to concentrate on and finish school work. Once we knew the real problem and were able to help her they went from thinking she needed to be in a 'learning disabled' program to actually what they call a profoundly gifted school... go figure! I can't stress enough to make a complete evaluation with a second opinion.)

Once the problem is figured out, you can work between the doctor/s, and school to come up with the best approach to help your child. I would also recommend you find some kind of support group either in your neighborhood or through Internet email/message boards. I've found other parents that have children with similar problems know of options I would of never known about. This sounds like allot, I know. And it seems overwhelming. But once it is set up and there is a 'plan'. Usually things get much smoother.

If you have any questions feel free to PM me.


Christine
I smile because i have no idea what's going on!
2005 guess: 15/10/6
<----- Feel free to Rub the cute LUCKY Pebbles belly!

[BUD]

Thankyou Mary, She is going to Kindergarten in the fall at the public school. They say she will be with the special ed teacher and the speech clinition 60 percent of the time. Her teacher that she had for child development says her speech is bad. I guess her prossesing skills are slower than some other children. Also not sure if we would qualify for state help. Except for she can not get medicaid. What you said helps!!

[Pebbles]

Wow Mary! We have such similar stories LOL I did do testing through both the school and a children's hospital. I've never had problems working with the schools. But, we are also lucky to have a fantastic school councilor who works with our family and the docs.

Putting my daughter on medication was the hardest thing I ever did too. Unfortunately, the media has made medicating kids 'evil' even for the ones who really benefit from it until they can learn coping techniques. Mine only takes it during school hours and a minimal dose.

Thankfully she is a very respectful and well behaved child. Well ...out of the house *giggles* she is almost a teen now. Her biggest problem is trying to keep her organized *rolls eyes* but you can't help but luv them.

Christine
I smile because i have no idea what's going on!
2005 guess: 15/10/6
<----- Feel free to Rub the cute LUCKY Pebbles belly!

[Pebbles]

Thankyou Mary, She is going to Kindergarten in the fall at the public school. They say she will be with the special ed teacher and the speech clinition 60 percent of the time. Her teacher that she had for child development says her speech is bad. I guess her prossesing skills are slower than some other children. Also not sure if we would qualify for state help. Except for she can not get medicaid. What you said helps!!

Oh school speech therapy has been a godsend for both my children! (my 5 year daughter goes too cause she has a small birthmark on her lip so they have been helping her too) I think you will you will be please once she starts that.

Christine
I smile because i have no idea what's going on!
2005 guess: 15/10/6
<----- Feel free to Rub the cute LUCKY Pebbles belly!

[BUD]

Thanks for the advise they said it is the way she takes the information in. Her scores for everything she was tested on were below average. According to schools in the county where we live should be between 89-110. Her scores were in the 40s -60s.

[drudd1]

My 5 year old daughter was diagnosed with a mild case of mental disability. The teacher says her test scores a below average. She is doing better in class. Is there any advise on how to help her? thanks

You didn't mention if your daughter was diagnosed by the school or a private doctor. If it is the school that made the diagnosis, seek an outside diagnosis from a specialist. While the school system and you need to work together, it is imperative that an accurate diagnosis is made. Not to mention a second or third opinion just makes good sense.

Pebbles gave some good advice. Many different causes can be the root of the same symptoms. What may seem like an obvious diagnosis on the surface may turn out to be totally wrong. Irregardless, best of luck to you both!

[BUD]

Diagnosted through school.

[drudd1]

I have had personal experience in this area and I strongly urge you to set up an appointment with a specialist. They will rule out all the possibilities. While the school is frequently right, they do not have the resources to dedicate as much time as is sometimes needed to arrive at a proper diagnosis. They tend to become creatures of habit, i.e., every other time we have seen this it's been ADHD, or whatever, so it's gotta be now. Unfortunately, some children have been misdiagnosed in the process, and suffered because of it.

[Pebbles]

You said they are saying she is having problems in the way she takes the information in. Did they get any more specific then that? Is it because she have problems comprehending numbers? Or because she has problems lining things up correctly in her head? Is it because she may becomes easily distracted by things in her environment?

Many different things can cause retention problems. It's the root cause that needs to be discovered to best deal with the problem. Get them to peg exactly what is causing it. Really there are many many things that cause 'retention problems' and they are each dealt with differently. For example... reading and math use different parts of the brain. So many times a child may excel at math but can't read... Read college level but can't spell. Can do all that but have horrible small motor control so have horrible handwriting. Or even remember things the first time it sang to them but it takes 10 times if spoken.

Speech problems are very very common whenever there is any type of retention problem and even without any problems at all.

Christine
I smile because i have no idea what's going on!
2005 guess: 15/10/6
<----- Feel free to Rub the cute LUCKY Pebbles belly!

[BUD]

I have heard from other relatives that there is a suppliment disability check that you can apply for extra money every month. Have any of you heard about this??? If so would you know how to apply and where??? Thanks

[Miss Mary]

Christine - I had to smile at your child's main problem is trying to stay organized. Another thing your daughter and mine have in common. Laura's room is never picked up. Of course to qualify for her weekly allowance she has to clean it. But her idea of cleaning it to push everything to the outer walls. So there is room to walk in there. Change the sheets maybe, dust this or that, not the entire room. Put dirty laundry in the hamper and she's done. I walk in there and say, huh? LOL I promised her a room makeover this summer. If only she'd meet me halfway - I'll paint if she'll begin the poster take down phase. She's waiting until I have the paint and trays ready to take them all down. Sure, that will work. So we go round and round about this. I've tried telling her any room has prep involved. I may need to patch the drywall for pete's sake! She doesn't see any of that. Meanwhile, her walls are boring-white. I really should just say I have paint for my LR/DR and that will spur her on (another area to be repainted this summer).

Bud - my child's school district couldn't legally make the diagnosis. That would have to come from the Pediatrician. That is why he was consulted. And he is the one that needs to write the Rx. Not that we were strongly pushed in this direction. Laura has received lots of extra help - prompts, tutoring, one on one time with an LD teacher. It wasn't as if they said medicate your child and we're done here. On the contrary, she qualified for a 504 Plan, it's still in effect. It's updated near the end of every school year for the next year. There are certain requirements in place on it - extra test time, tutoring if needed, etc. When she takes the ACT/SAT tests, she will be other ADD/ADHD/LD students. So she can take lots of time to complete it. At first I was worried she'd be labeled a special needs student. But quite honestly it's been to her benefit that she has the 504 Plan. Working with our district/teachers has paid off for us.

One of my parenting regrets though, is still sending her to K at age 5. If I could go back, I know I'd send her at age 6. Without a doubt. Not just for academics but social skills as well. Since her peers are a full year older many times, she's not interested in things they are. She's drawn more to younger kids, for friendships. When she would be on a grade-combined sports team, she always made friends with the younger kids. Just something I've noticed over the years.

Mary

[BUD]

The school psychologist said, they asked her alot of questions. Like when do you go to sleep. She said she goes to sleep in the bed. So if you ask her questions she can have them backwards. Who do you live with? She said a sister. Not with Mom and Dad. She knows her letters but not all her numbers. That is some of the problems she has. If you give her directions to do something she sometimes does not know the order of it. Also thankyou for all the advice.

[MomH]

Having worked in school systems for several years, I have a few pieces of advice.

Have her eyes tested, have her hearing tested and have her tested for dyslexia of both eyes and hearing by professionals.

Also, ask to be shown the test they used to determine her disability. My daughter was diagnosed as slow when she started K. After looking at her test, I discovered why. She was shown a group of pictures and asked which one was a sofa, a refridgerator, a spigot, an automobile, etc. She failed -- had she been asked which was the couch, the icebox, the faucet and the car she would have gotten them all right. Sometimes the problem is not a problem but only the enviornment in which a child grows.

Also, have a doctor test her range of tongue motion. My niece was eight before a dentist discovered the muscle under her tongue was not long enough. It was the cause of her poor speech, and most of the other physical problems she was having.

And last but most important -- trust in yourself. You know her better than anyone. God bless and good luck.

[BUD]

Her hearing is normal and only problem with her eyes is lazy eye.