Marguerite
Active Member
We're finally getting some useful answers for difficult child 3.
He is now in Year 10 - it's the year of the first important public exams in the state. After Year 10, there are another 2 years of high school education before the final exams (again, state-based public). Because difficult child 3 is struggling to complete the workload in the given time, we are taking the option of studying at half rate. That means he will take two years to complete each of the next three years schooling. However, he may also begin to do some tertiary study once he has finished this year's schooling.
School is now getting more abstract, requiring more executive skills. However due to the delay in his development of these executive skills because of his autism, we needed to get help. We needed to know exactly where he needs support, what sort of support he needs and what asort of support can be given. The school is willing to help but they need a guide book. Last year's English teacher was a very kind person but just didn't get it. I tried to explain, she didn't understand. There was another teacher who also set the bar too high, I felt.
So we finally got a neuropsychologist assessment. Because he's already had an IQ test done (about five years ago) this was not repeated, however enough testing was done to see where he is now, what his strengths are and what his weaknesses are.
We got the results yesterday (Monday). The general outcome - difficult child 3 is in the top 1% to 5% of the population as far as IQ goes, but is in the bottom few percent for executive skills. He is seriously delayed here and needs a lot of support in certain tasks. Our decision to delay his Year 10 English exam for a year, now seems thoroughly justified. We also now have some highly specific instructions which the school can now use to direct his work more effectively. A lot of what we're already doing, is also now validated. The psychologist who did the work is also discussing the results with difficult child 3's other therapists as well as the school SpEd.
And today - difficult child 3 had his typing test/handwriting test with the Occupational Therapist at the local hospital clinic today. We need this report in the application to allow difficult child 3 to use a computer to write his answers in this year's exams. He'll REALLY need it next year when his subjects will include English, History & Geography. Because some of Sydney's private schools have been exposed as having students whose parents have paid for therapists to fill in false reports to support special provisions applications, now the Board of Studies has clamped down so ridiculously, that kids who really need provisions aren't getting them. A friend of difficult child 3's last year was refused use of computer, even though he also has problsm with his hands. Instead he was told he could use a scribe - but when you have autism (a communication disorder) it makes use of a scribe much more difficult. No chance to practice with your scribe either, which frankly would be needed.
The Occupational Therapist (OT) today made particular note of difficult child 3's bad stammer. "With that speech dysfluency," she said, "how can he be expected to use a scribe?"
He's also had a history of being assessed at this clinic by their OTs, since he was 5 years old. It's a multidisciplinary clinic, he was first seen by them at 3 years old (Speech Pathologists). So if difficult child 3 can't get these special provisions, then I'm really going to make a lot of very loud noises.
The Occupational Therapist (OT) did say that of all the kids they did reports for last year, none were granted use of computer. They are horrified at this clamp-down, kids with real needs are now being badly disadvantaged because in the past other kids got away with rorting the system. It's not fair at all.
Getting back to the neuropsychologist report - we've been given a clear roadmap of what to do. Basically, difficult child 3 needs to be given instruction so he can learn how to learn. He needs to have work presented as the big picture, and from there, the work broken up into manageable bites. However, a miniature of the big picture needs to always be available, side by side.
He needs help in learning to read between the lines and will need to practice this, to learn new skills in subtle interpretation. This is going to be a tough call for a kid who refuses to watch movies or read books. He has an amazing vocabulary and is a brilliant reader, but finds the story concept too distressing. We can't let him slide on this any more.
We need to role-play vartious social interactions. I need to do this with difficult child 1 at the moment too, to help him practice how to apply for jobs.
We need to teach relaxation techniques (the Wii Fit Zazen can help here) and she also recommended certain computer games to help develop his executive function areas of his brain which currently are badly lagging behind his peers. ALthough we thought he had outgrown them, Zoombinis is highly recommended. "Go play as much of it as you can," she told him. There is apparently a newer version of these three games now packaged in one bundle, but we've not been able to find it. We do have copies of all three Zoombinis games but they won't run on our newst computer. From what we can find out, there aren't any later versions. I'm hoping this is wrong.
So if any of you know of more modern versions of Zoombinis, or any other similar software, please let us know. If you have something tat has worked well for your kids, please let us know. All ideas welcome!
We have a few more days of school holiday, then school goes back. But just as school goes back, we're going to have to head north for most of the first week of term in order to help get ready for easy child's wedding. Of course difficult child 3's schoolwork will have to come too. We're in for a busy time.
Marg
He is now in Year 10 - it's the year of the first important public exams in the state. After Year 10, there are another 2 years of high school education before the final exams (again, state-based public). Because difficult child 3 is struggling to complete the workload in the given time, we are taking the option of studying at half rate. That means he will take two years to complete each of the next three years schooling. However, he may also begin to do some tertiary study once he has finished this year's schooling.
School is now getting more abstract, requiring more executive skills. However due to the delay in his development of these executive skills because of his autism, we needed to get help. We needed to know exactly where he needs support, what sort of support he needs and what asort of support can be given. The school is willing to help but they need a guide book. Last year's English teacher was a very kind person but just didn't get it. I tried to explain, she didn't understand. There was another teacher who also set the bar too high, I felt.
So we finally got a neuropsychologist assessment. Because he's already had an IQ test done (about five years ago) this was not repeated, however enough testing was done to see where he is now, what his strengths are and what his weaknesses are.
We got the results yesterday (Monday). The general outcome - difficult child 3 is in the top 1% to 5% of the population as far as IQ goes, but is in the bottom few percent for executive skills. He is seriously delayed here and needs a lot of support in certain tasks. Our decision to delay his Year 10 English exam for a year, now seems thoroughly justified. We also now have some highly specific instructions which the school can now use to direct his work more effectively. A lot of what we're already doing, is also now validated. The psychologist who did the work is also discussing the results with difficult child 3's other therapists as well as the school SpEd.
And today - difficult child 3 had his typing test/handwriting test with the Occupational Therapist at the local hospital clinic today. We need this report in the application to allow difficult child 3 to use a computer to write his answers in this year's exams. He'll REALLY need it next year when his subjects will include English, History & Geography. Because some of Sydney's private schools have been exposed as having students whose parents have paid for therapists to fill in false reports to support special provisions applications, now the Board of Studies has clamped down so ridiculously, that kids who really need provisions aren't getting them. A friend of difficult child 3's last year was refused use of computer, even though he also has problsm with his hands. Instead he was told he could use a scribe - but when you have autism (a communication disorder) it makes use of a scribe much more difficult. No chance to practice with your scribe either, which frankly would be needed.
The Occupational Therapist (OT) today made particular note of difficult child 3's bad stammer. "With that speech dysfluency," she said, "how can he be expected to use a scribe?"
He's also had a history of being assessed at this clinic by their OTs, since he was 5 years old. It's a multidisciplinary clinic, he was first seen by them at 3 years old (Speech Pathologists). So if difficult child 3 can't get these special provisions, then I'm really going to make a lot of very loud noises.
The Occupational Therapist (OT) did say that of all the kids they did reports for last year, none were granted use of computer. They are horrified at this clamp-down, kids with real needs are now being badly disadvantaged because in the past other kids got away with rorting the system. It's not fair at all.
Getting back to the neuropsychologist report - we've been given a clear roadmap of what to do. Basically, difficult child 3 needs to be given instruction so he can learn how to learn. He needs to have work presented as the big picture, and from there, the work broken up into manageable bites. However, a miniature of the big picture needs to always be available, side by side.
He needs help in learning to read between the lines and will need to practice this, to learn new skills in subtle interpretation. This is going to be a tough call for a kid who refuses to watch movies or read books. He has an amazing vocabulary and is a brilliant reader, but finds the story concept too distressing. We can't let him slide on this any more.
We need to role-play vartious social interactions. I need to do this with difficult child 1 at the moment too, to help him practice how to apply for jobs.
We need to teach relaxation techniques (the Wii Fit Zazen can help here) and she also recommended certain computer games to help develop his executive function areas of his brain which currently are badly lagging behind his peers. ALthough we thought he had outgrown them, Zoombinis is highly recommended. "Go play as much of it as you can," she told him. There is apparently a newer version of these three games now packaged in one bundle, but we've not been able to find it. We do have copies of all three Zoombinis games but they won't run on our newst computer. From what we can find out, there aren't any later versions. I'm hoping this is wrong.
So if any of you know of more modern versions of Zoombinis, or any other similar software, please let us know. If you have something tat has worked well for your kids, please let us know. All ideas welcome!
We have a few more days of school holiday, then school goes back. But just as school goes back, we're going to have to head north for most of the first week of term in order to help get ready for easy child's wedding. Of course difficult child 3's schoolwork will have to come too. We're in for a busy time.
Marg