New here and needing help in getting ADD first grader to finish school work

[gail35]

Hi,

My name is Gail and I have two boys with ADHD. My difficult child 2 is 6 and is very smart. The problem is he wont do his work in school. He is currently on the patch (Dextrana) 15 mg. I had him boosted up last fall and his teacher complained so I put him back on 15 mg. He started making good grades and everything was fine, then she emailed me and told me he isnt where is should be and maybe he should be held back for another year of first grade. I am currently setting up a meeting with the school counsler and the teacher to discuss what to do. I know he probably isnt as mature as alot of other first graders and that may be the problem but I plan on insisting he be tested for Learning Disability (LD) before I let them fail him. I may even go ahead and boost up his medication. I just so frustrated. We go over his spelling words every night, take practice tests. We are doing the timed math sheets and he will get 40 problems completed in 5 minutes then at school he'll only get 7 done in 5 minutes and make a 68 on his spelling. The teacher nor I can sit with him all day long and make sure he does his work. What is wrong?

Thanks

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Gail

 

[Sheila]

Hi gail

The school environment is very different from the home environment -- there are just so many things at school that distract ADHD kids -- a buzzing light, rustling paper, someone walking down the hall.

I wouldn't "talk" to anyone at school, I'd send a letter requesting an evaluation in accordance with IDEA regs.

It's very important to send the letter via Certified Mail. The CM provides you and difficult child some legal protections as well as starts the clock ticking pertinent to the timeline the sd has to complete the evaluation process.

https://web.archive.org/web/2006123...ng.org/pdfs/2200_7-barktran.pdf?date=11-14-00 is a "must read" for all parents with ADHD children in my opinion.

Welcome to the forum.

 

[gail35]

Fabulous aritcle Sheila, thank you.

 

[Sheila]

You're welcome.

by the way, there is a Getting Started thread in the Sp Ed 101 Archives that will help you get a general overview of your's and difficult child's rights regarding the process and IEPs.