How is your child doing academically? | Autism PDD
Donny is 10 1/2. He can read at grade level (grade 5). Comprehension
of what he reads is much lower, although hard to guage. On tests, when
he's supposed to show his comprehension verbally, he bombs. However,
when he gets a new video game or toy, he reads the instruction manual,
and then does what it says, so he obviously understands some things...
For math, Don can count to 30, and backwards from 10. He can match
numbers to items up to around 20.
Because of his major language delay/disorder (Don's only semi-verbal),
he's way below grade level in subjects like social studies and science.
He seems bright enough - he's great at problem solving when there's no
verbal component. He's very skilled with computers, video games,
anything mechanical. He has excellent spatial skills - does all sorts of
cool things with lego ;) His memory for both visual and auditory stuff is
incredibly - he memorizes dialogue from movies, and seems to have a
photographic memory.
The short version of all of that is that Donny's IQ is 53. He reads
(decodes) at grade level, which is considered a savante skill, given his IQ.
All other academic skills are at a Kindergarten/First Grade level.
ormomoftwo - have hope! Don didn't know anything, really, at 6 1/2 - he
couldn't even tell people his name (nor did he respond to it). Now, he's
certainly still delayed, but, if it weren't for his language delay, he'd have
enough reading and writing to get by in a supported employment job
and/or semi-independent living situation.
I have hope for that. Ds vacillates between wanting to go to college and not wanting to go (yes, he's 6 - it's one of those OCD things, I think, to some extent). This actually doesn't come from us (mostly) - he had heard that you have to go to college for most jobs. So, he often asks me does he have to go to college if he wants to do research (like daddy) or if he wants to be a policeman. I reinforce that you will get a better job if you go to college and that college actually is a lot of fun (okay, I had fun in college - but I did graduate cum laude as well - I wasn't a TOTAL partier!). There are colleges that are already getting programs into place for kids with Asperger's and HFA to help them in going to college. I am confident that by the time ds goes that those will be pretty common - given the rising increase in diagnoses! If not, we'll just have him go to one that has a program like that - that is, if he wants to go. We tell him that we just want him to be happy. We also tell him that certain types of jobs require him to go to college (like an astronaut) but some don't. We also tell him that typically, you get more money for your job if you have a college degree.
We have actually had conversations at Target where ds is worried about whether or not he should go to college. People look at us and either laugh or give us a strange look. My response to him is that he has a few years before he needs to start worrying about that!
Ds is too young right now to know how things will go. He just started kindergarten. We are worried about how reading will go, since he was diagnosed with some vision tracking problems - but we are waiting to see what happens in kindergarten and if it is such an issue that warrants therapy (it's really expensive and controversial as well).
He had homework on Friday where he had to find and cut out things that began with the letter "M" then paste them on a sheet. We went through a magazine together and I'd ask him if something began with m. He would identify the object and pretty much immediately tell me if it began with m or not. Then, he cut them out (there were 8 pictures) and I helped him put the glue on. He put them on the paper himself. For his first homework assignment, it went pretty well! He wanted me to play Captain Hook with him, so I told him after he completed one sheet in his packet that I would. He complained a few times about how tired he was and were we almost done yet. But, we did it! Hurray!
Okay, now that I've gone completely off-topic here - I think ds will be able to go to college, if he wants. A lot of the issues are executive functioning skills - like organization. That is a huge issue for a lot of kids and hurts them in being able to go to college and/or have a good job. We've been working on those already with ds and trying to make him think about what he needs to do in order to accomplish a task. I figure the earlier we start, the better off we'll be. For instance, I read him the directions from his homework assignment and then asked him to tell me what he needed to do. He was able to do that and then I asked him what kinds of things we needed to accomplish that task. He was able to tell me most things. Then I asked him what we should do first, next, etc. It's all about making him think rather than just rush in and do something (like my dh often does!).
Start young - some kids will get this better than others, but it doesn't hurt to start now! Academically, well that is an individual thing. Tutoring can help, but if the child has a learning disability as well - you have to work with what you have. But never give up - I think these kids can do a lot more than we think!
My son so far does pretty well academically. He just started Kindergarten sotime will tell. I have been trying to get the Fast Forward program going for
him but we are waiting for his SP to get recertified in that program. I feel
that he has some auditory processing issues so that program should
address that. After that, we will start Lindemund Bell as well. I am hopeful
that my son will finish high school with a diploma and go off to college.
In my area, there seems to be two tracks for kids with autism. Those that do
get a diploma and those who get a certificate of completion. There is also a
big difference in what is being taught in the special education classroom and
a general ed classroom.
I agree KathyK! The ASD teacher didn't realize that she was pulling ds out for the "switch-out" time - which they vary between social studies and science. She thought he was just missing rest time. When I pointed this out, she talked to the teacher and we came up with a different solution, which I hope works. I don't want him missing academics and his teacher totally agreed. My goal is to keep him in the mainstream classroom for as long as he can handle. I want the resource room to be a safe place he can go if he needs a short break, but I want him to graduate with a diploma if possible!
I know I'm sounding anal - especially since ds is in kindergarten. But, I don't want to start out with him being pulled out more than necessary. The ASD teacher agreed and is in full support of him staying in the classroom for almost all of the day. He needs a couple of short breaks and needs to finish his lunch during the class' rest time - that is it for now. We will adjust as academics get harder and the pressures increase. But, I want him doing as much as he is capable of in the mainstream classroom as much as possible.
My sons school is our small neighborhood school and so they do not have aspecial education classroom. They do have a resource teacher and a speech
teacher who is there three days a week. I have asked that my child does not
get any pull outs at this time because I do not want him to miss any work
that is being done within the classroom. I will however ask that for any
major tests (1st grade on, should he need it, that he will be able to take it in
the resource rooom) One of things that I noticed early on in my district. It
is hard to be in special education and get mainstreamed for a few things.
The mainstream teacher never has any ownership of the special education
student and that student is always a guest in the classroom.KathyK - I think that's the case in most places. If a child gets pulled out frequently - s/he never really feels like s/he belongs in the mainstream classroom. That's why ds only misses during rest time right now - which is great because he HATES that and doesn't feel like he can stay quiet for it. And, he gets to finish his lunch during that time as well. They will be pulling NT kids along with ds and one or two other kids with autism for "playgroups" as well. This is done during non-academic time as well. All the kids in the class will participate at some point, unless parents say no. They work on social skills for all the kids using RDI. The ASD teacher tells me that the NT kids LOVE coming down and often vie to see who can go! They're a lot more about inclusion here than I've seen in most places, thankfully!
Connor does extremely well academically. He is in the 8th grade, and on track to graduate with a full diploma and go to college. Choosing the right college that supports special ed and IEP's will be the key. Community colleges tend to be the most accomodating and supportive, but more and more four year colleges are getting on board now. My Asperger's niece is a senior in high school, and is applying to Eastern Illinois University, which seems to have an excellent program.
As for Connor, he is fully mainstreamed, with an aide, and takes honors math and honors science. He gets all A's and B's, with the exception of P.E., which he always gets a C in
- Word Analysis and Vocabulary Development 82%
- Reading Comprehension 67%
- Literary Response and Analysis 69%
- Written Conventions 88%
- Writing Strategies 82%
- Writing Applications 50%
So as you can see, there are still a few areas where he needs significant support and improvement, which will need to be addressed in an upcoming IEP as we begin to plan for his transition to high school. I won't even get into the breakdown of the math scores, because he is basically off the charts there
Our local Cal. State university has programs in place for college students with learning disabilities and those who need assistive technology. Maybe there are other colleges and universities out there doing the same.
Speaking of school, and some of your kids who are visual learners I use 2 websites, they are subscription, but they are great.
www.cosmeo.com published by discovery channel has zillions of video clips, ect to support school curriculum. Ages k-college.
www.unitedstreaming.com basically the same. Used by many school districts.
[QUOTE=hpcmagic]Our local Cal. State university has programs in place for college students with learning disabilities and those who need assistive technology. Maybe there are other colleges and universities out there doing the same.
[/QUOTE]
Where are you in California? I live about 2 miles from Cal State Northridge, and I have been wondering if they would have an appropriate program for Connor, especially since it is so close to home. I don't know how he feels yet about going away to college or staying close to home. To soon to tell right now, but I want to be aware of my options. I know my sister is freaking out a bit that my niece seems to have chosen a school that is 2000 miles away. It's hard enough to see your 18 year old leave the nest, but when you have one that needs special ed support, and they will be totally on their own, yikes!
Daddy -- Not every child in the world will or can benefit from college. I believe if you post a survey on this very site, you will find plenty of adults who either didn't go to college at all or who dropped out before they finished. Also, there are tons of kids with autism who go to college, do well academically, and then can never hold a job because their social skills are SO awful, they keep getting fired. I know a man who is in his 30's now, is a graduate of Princeton and has never been able to keep a paying job. He lives in a group home now with 3 other men exactly like him.
How an autistic student does, academically, has a lot to do with his IQ, his language ability and whether or not he has other issues (like dyslexia, for example). But even those kids with autism who DO do well academically quite often fail to succeed in any other way due to lack of social skills. The bottom line is that no one wants to be around them. We loving call these things "quirks," but the world is not so loving about our kids' oddity. For parents who want their kids to live their lives successfully in the neurotypical world, they are better off paying a lot of attention to getting their children neurotypical-like social skills than to worry solely about academics. Of course, not everyautistic kid can ever "pass" as NT. Just as not every autistic kid learns to read or speak. MR is often co-morbid, tho not always. As you can see, there are VERY complex reasons (plural) for why a child on the spectrum may or may not "do well."
[QUOTE=tzoya]
For parents who want their kids to live their lives successfully in the neurotypical world, they are better off paying a lot of attention to getting their children neurotypical-like social skills than to worry solely about academics.
[/QUOTE]
Could you be more specific about how can I help my son improve his social skills? He is only 3 BTW and goes to a regular daycare (NT peers) accompanied by an aide/therapist. But we do not know how to define the aide's responsibilitis. She mostly work with him to participate in the group activities and generalize the skills he has already mastered in ABA at hom.
Daddy
[QUOTE=Daddy][QUOTE=tzoya]
For parents who want their kids to live their lives successfully in the neurotypical world, they are better off paying a lot of attention to getting their children neurotypical-like social skills than to worry solely about academics.
[/QUOTE]
Could you be more specific about how can I help my son improve his social skills? He is only 3 BTW and goes to a regular daycare (NT peers) accompanied by an aide/therapist. But we do not know how to define the aide's responsibilitis. She mostly work with him to participate in the group activities and generalize the skills he has already mastered in ABA at hom.
Daddy
[/QUOTE]
Your son is too young now, but when he starts kindergarten, you need to find a social skills group for him. Some schools offer social skills groups, but you should search out for a good group in your area. Talk to whoever diagnosed your child about where to find a good group. And also be aware that you want to find a group where the kids are at his functioning level or higher. Extra curricular activities, such as scouts and sports are also good social skills reinforcers, but you need to find something that your child is comfortable with so they can blossom, and this isn't always easy
So far, from what we can see, he is able to keep up with grade level work, with supports. It's only 1st grade so it's still early to tell. An interesting thing with C is when he gets something - he realy gets it. Sometimes it's a challenge to figure out the best way to teach him something, and sometimes he struggles to get the concept, but once the switch clicks on and he gets it, it's locked in.
Academics is my biggest worry for C. I know he is capable of doing grade level work and I want to make sure that this is happening in his special education class. I monitor this closely. I feel that once he is better able to control sensory issues he will eventually be able to function in a mainstream classroom without supports. We'll see how it goes.
As of this moment in time, Anthony is ahead of typically developing peers in academics. Keep in mind that Anthony is turning 5 within the next week so he was not able to start kindergarten this year. He is still in pre-school.
Also, in his home ABA program, Anthony was taught loads of academics so he can already sight read, knows his numbers to 100, can categorize/sort, write his name (and "Mom") and a lot of other kindergarten type skills. So, this 1:1 teaching really put him ahead.
My concern is 1st grade when he's learning new concepts. He already ready for kindergarten but will he be able to learn in a mainstream environment? I know he can learn 1:1 but will he be able to do it in a group.
So, while I'm happy with his progress and that he ahead of his typcially developing peers, I'm cautiously optimistic about his future academics.
ETA: they've stopped working on academics in his home ABA program so we don't put him too far ahead. They're really focusing on theory of mind, conversation skills, supervised playdates and all things social in ABA now.
It's more the abstract stuff that she has hard time. For example, picture walks and "What" questions are hard for her. ie: "What do you think will happen next?"
I can't wait until her report card comes out in November to see how she progresses in this area.
I think dd is going to be fine in K. I worry more as things become more abstract when she gets older.
Sabrys, your son sounds a lot like mine, both academically, and his lack of interest in sports. Mine isn't afraid of sports (he loves to shoot hoops in our backyard), but he detests most organized sports, hates to run, etc. To put it in his own words, "I'm a mathlete, not an athlete".
Daddy,
For a 3 year old, social skills are such a nebulous concept. However, here a few things to keep in mind. In order for a child to learn to play with other kids, they first need to know how to play, period. Once a child learns how to play, they can engage in cooperative play with another child. The keys to "cooperative play" are joint attention and turn taking.
I just pulled out the binder with my old IEPs for C. Here is a goal from C's 3 year IEP: C will play in parallel fashion (near a peer) independently 3/5 trials with 2 prompts and engage in adult structured simple games with peers. That year we rewrote the IEP halfway through the year because he'd met all his goals. The next social goal was: C will engage in cooperative play activities with peers during playtime without teacher assistance 4/5 trials. The next year, for preschool when he was 4, he had an IEP goal of: C will play simple board games with peers without teacher assistance.
At 3, you can start working with your child on simple activities involving turn taking. You give your child a pile of blue blocks and you take a pile of red blocks. You put a block in the center, you say "your turn" and using hand over hand help your child put his block on top. They you say "my turn" and put your block on. This helps turn taking, and having 2 different color blocks is a visual reinforcer of the turn taking. Once your child undertands the concepts of my turn and your turn, you can start to play simple games. Once your child can play a simple game with an adult, then you have the child play with a peer with you helping. Eventually the child will be able to play with a peer independently.
(We still struggle with unsupervised board games at home. C does great with peers at school but home is a nightmare because my NT son had a tendency to cheat, and then C gets pissed off, and then there is a brawl!)
Jason test scores ranged from 7.5-8 year levels academically, cognitively, and verbally the last time he was tested (at 4 years 4 months). Academics are his strong point! How he'll do in school though I don't know... there's a lot more going on then just the book learning there. He'll have to learn to sit still, pay attention, and atually do his work in order to get those good grades you'd exepct based on his test scores.
Even at 4.5 he talks about going to college... he wants to go to Ohio State and become a teacher. I am sure he doesn't really grasp what that means at this point... but its cute to hear his dreams!!
Academically my son does ok. We just got mid-term grades sent home on Friday. Math was 95% (A), Reading 85% (B), Social Studies 81% (B-), Science 76% (C), Writing Application 87% (B+), Language 91% (A-), Technology 100% (A+) and Spelling 100% (A+). He's HF and in the 5th grade, middle school, here.
What saves him on grades is his homework, in subjects like Science, Social Studies and Reading. He scores horribly on tests in these subjects. The above grades are pretty much on par with previous years.
He does great when it comes to memorizing things, but anything to do with abstract thinking is a problem, as is his reading comprehension.
He's mainstreamed 99% of the time and receives pull out for speech on Thursday's for 20 minutes and only goes to the resource room if he's really struggling with something and needs extra help in that area. We are in an extremely small district. Countywide there are three grade schools, three middle schools and three high schools. It's divided up by where you live in the county. There are the eastern schools, western schools and the town seat schools. He attends Eastern. One thing that I really like about his school is, it's not only kids with an IEP that get resource room pull out. Any child struggling with an area of study gets resource room time, so no stigma is attatched with the resource room.
The small school system is a double edged sword, though. It has it's good points, but there is a downside. There have been times when problems arose and a larger system may have had better ways to handle the problem. Thankfully, we have been lucky so far and have not had too many problems working together and coming up with solutions.
The main source of contention is with getting social skills help. There are no social skills groups nearby and we've had to mainly depend on the school and ourselves to help him in this area. They feel like they address the issue just fine in the classroom. I don't agree. We tried Scouts, he just wasn't interested. Of course, I wasn't too impressed with the way things were handled. Meetings were more along the lines of a parent gab fest than anything to do with the kids. My husband even tried being Den Leader, but he got fed up with the other parents and when my son decided he didn't want to be in Scouts any longer, he gladly gave up his position. The pack quickly disolved after that. The parents just didn't want the reponsibility. Sports are out for our son also. He's convinced that any sport will result in a horrific injury or death. Football = death (he happened to see a reporton the news about a teen that had an undiagnosed heart problem and died at practice). Basketball means getting hit in the head with the ball. The Cross Country team runs along the edge of the road and that means getting hit by a car. Track means breaking an ankle (this happened to a friends son) and so on. So, social skills have been a struggle.
I don't know about everywhere, but in Indiana, there are three types of diplomas. There's a basic diploma that won't get you into a college, the Core 40 diploma, which is the one you must have if you want to attend college and then there's the Honors diploma, which is what they really want you to have for college admittance. You can also receive a certificate of completion, but that's not the same as a diploma. You can't go on to college with it and if a job requires a diploma, it doesn't count. You also have to pass the ISTEP+ test in the 10th grade to graduate. A student with an IEP can get out of this requirement, but only with written statements from every teacher in highschool and only if they meet certain requirements. This does worry me to some extent, but that's a few years off. If he can get the diploma he needs at graduation, I see no problem with college academically, with the proper aide in place.
I like to know how do autistic kids do at the school academically? What is the reason that many autistic kids when grow up do not go to college when they grow up ? Is it because they are not able to be admitted or there is other reasons?
Thanks
Daddy
I don't think academics will be his issue with school - more likely his attention span, his difficulty with social skills and it will probably depend greatly on the teacher's style and ability to work with spectrum kids.
I'm hoping that he will attend college!
My oldest son will more than likely go on to college. He's an excellent student and has already asked me about it.
My youngest son is also bright, but he's still so small. Who knows what he'll want to be when he grows up.
Here is a thread about going to college which you might fight interresting.
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=18547&am p;KW=college
Liam is awesome with academic things. He is too smart for his own good actually. They don't have anything to teach him yet because he knows everything in the curriculum already. He usually do 1:1 things with him while the NT kids learn what he already knows.To quote Ty's kindergarten teacher, "Did Tyler go to a preschool?". My wife responded,"Yes, the LEAP school in Sharpsburg." Teacher responded, "That must be one great preschool, as I have not taught your son one thing yet that he hasn't already mastered."
He is gifted in academics, but he has a hard time focusing in class. He has an aid. He is getting better since they have challenged him with 5th grade reading, and 4th grade math.
This kid will go to college even if I have to go with him myself to make sure that he stays on course.
Logan just started K and he's not doing well at all. He hasn't gotten any help yet but we are working on it.He can't even count to 10 and can't read and can barely write. Yet he is brilliant. He has a unbelievable memory.
His tests scores are extremely low because he can't adjust to his surroundings and won't sit still to do his work.
Hi.
Graham is in his 2nd year of preschool. He is still learning how to count to 10 and recognized the numbers, ABC's and their sounds, does pretty good on shapes but only recognizes 4 colors. He will sing the ABC's song-ABCDEFG MNOPUVWXYZ and count numbers 123458910.
I am pretty sure he can attend college if he wants to. Graham's Mom -Graham 5 possible HFA/Aspergers & Austin NT 2
This has certainly been a GREAT THREAD thus far !!!
Yet let us also exercise CAUTION in the face of OPTIMISM. We KNOW our autistic kids have THAT particular talent... sometimes we are still on the road of discovery... some of us have reached there and are sharpening those talents... yet are some are still grappling in the dark.
Academic abilities MUST NEVER be a MAIN CRITERIA in evaluatng how well our child has or has not progressed. He or she may not not do well academically but may be wonderful in other non-academic areas... like care, concern and ability to express love and feelings... NOW THIS is something that we, as parents TREASURE MOST when we get take a peek inside our child.
Yet, the ways of this world, this NT-world, dictates that success is measured, more often than not, by the grades our child gets, what marks of excellence he/she gets, what prizes he/she earns...
If not, how else can you conclude when here in Malaysia, mothers of NT kids can talk about ... "Wow! Your son got 100 for English, my son only 98. Ah! And his maths 97, so bad this boy, cannot even get 100..."
And this is table talk at the canteen after the test results are out in Grade 1. Elementary School, Yr 1, or what we call here as Standard 1 or Primary 1.
WHATEVER !!!
There's still at least 10 years of school life to go !!!! Start enjoying it. See the JOY and SPARKLE in our kid's eyes when they interact with the other kids... COMMUNICATING with them. NOW THAT IS ONE 'ACADEMIC' ACHIEVEMENT THAT IS BEYOND COMPARE !!! My son is older, fifteen. He has an above average IQ and did ok until fourth grade. Then he started having trouble in classes that require abstract/critical thinking so he got an aide. He is in high school and we are thinking he may be able to go to a two year tech college with an aide. He won't be able to do all the work himself. There is no way on earth. And, even if he completes a course, we don't know how he'd fit in a regular work environment, so we'll see. I have a friend with a bright Aspergers son who can't hold a job, although he has gone to college. He always gets fired because he is inappropriate in so many ways, although bright. I have no idea how my Mark will do once he's an adult. I think it's best to take each day as it comes. DD tests above average in most subjects- except reading comprehension. She has quite a few accomadations when it comes to testing (they will cut long tests into physical pieces because the length of the test stresses her out and she will only get one or two problems done) She hates to write, and we allow a certain percentage of her work to be dictated to someone else. Her math skills are great- I suck at math, and the way she analyzes math problems amazes me- and her teachers. Her issues lie with social skills, "liking" school, and attention span. Who knows if she will go to college.... right now I just worry about her beng a functioning member of society. ...she is prone to major meltdowns right now and aggression.
INTERESTING thread!
T is in SpEd for reading and math, first grade. She really seems not to have much difficulty with Math, but needs SpEd to keep her on task.
I am very concerned over her struggles with reading, but her Sped teacher is much less so! She seems unable to recognize sight works at school, that she has no trouble with at home. She seems to be decoding each word anew, each time she sees it. (I think I am an Aspie, reading was a snap for me, but everything else was a struggle! So it is hard for me to perceive her struggles, which are the opposite!)
Currently my son is at the top of his class academically, however, this isonly Kindergarten, so the jury's still out. We also did a lot of 1:1
academic work with him in his ABA program to prepare him for
Kindergarten, so he came into it knowing all his letters, a huge list of
sight words, counting to 100, telling time, etc. I am a bit concerned
about how he'll do once he gets into the higher grade levels and more
abstract concepts are presented. We haven't had his IQ tested yet, but my
guess is he's in the average range.
Will he go to college? Who knows at this point. I feel strongly that the
key to my son's success hinges 100% on his social skills. He's proved to
us he can learn. However, his ability to function in the NT world is
contingent on his ability to function in a NT environment. That is
currently where the bulk of my focus is with him right now.
Chris is 7 and is below grade average in all areas. I am very sad as he is very smart. He just won't sit still and focus. His mind goes all over the place unless it's something he's interested in doing. He has no pragmatic skills whatsoever. He will sit there with his work and not attempt it until he is assisted. Lord knows how he's going to go with SATs/FCAT these next two weeks.
This week I was mulling over if I should start the Florida Prepaid College Fund for Chris like we have for our daughter. I am wondering if he will ever lose the Learning Disabled title and what if any further education programs and scholarships are available for those who don't qualify for traditional packages.
Think I'm going to go ahead and enroll. Can always get my money back if he doesn't attend a Florida College.
My ds has above average IQ and is about 1 year behind academically - he
gets pull out (1-2 hours per day) or reading, writing and social skills. We
just moved to a new district and he is at a school that emphasizes social
skills for all students and seems to understand a bit better what to do
with him.
I agree with Tzoya - great academic achievement matters little
when your kid's lack of social skills leaves him functionally retarded. Sorry
if that sounds blunt, but it is my great fear for my son.
My ds has a good mind for math and I do hope he will find something in
that area - like accounting, computers, engineering...for those kind of
jobs he will probably need college or technical training.
But yes - I would be careful to have the school does too much
accomodating for social skills instead of teaching them. One program I
really like for social skills teaching (and some schools use it) is by
MichelleGarcia Winner (socialthinking.com).Wow -Micki -- your SD sounds GREAT! Ours emphasizes social skills well ... but I DO wish the entire dang country went to universal socia lskills education!Found this old topic that is very interesting to me. My son is pretty bad academically. He qualifies as LD for IEP purposes, without even considering his diagnosis. He has poor reading fluency, poor attention, and can barely work independently at all. He was speech / receptive and fine and gross motor delayed. He really fits HFA or PDDNOS category better than Aspergers in a lot of ways.My dd is 7 1/2 in 1st grade. She is at grade level in reading and above grade level in math and spelling. She is not hyperlexic and she is not a savant. The bad thing is that the other kids are catching up and passing her. She has made no progress in reading comprehension this year. Things are starting to get more abstract and she is getting left in the dust. Anything that takes abstract thought or inference..she just has a hard time understanding.Witha lot of accomodation, he is at his grade level in reading and spelling, slightly behind in math, horrible in social studies and science.
My boy is 9 yrs old. He's gone through 3 years of elementary school. Some of you have mentioned about the short attention span. You are certainly right because in th early years, he can be so switched at times that he can pass up a near blank exam paper. Another area of concern will be sitting down and following a lesson. If the teacher is not firm enough, Daniel can literally take a stroll in the class during lesson.
THANK GOD now he has improved.... Yet, academically, he struggles in the languages... stringing together sentences and eventually a short essay writing. He knows words, vocabulary but to put into a proper sentence structure, it's a different ball game altogether. He scored just 20/100 in his last test.
However, his Maths is brilliant. he can rake up scores of 80+ or even 90+.
Going to college ????? No idea whatsoever !!!
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