Hello,
I am hoping those with SN experience can point me in the right direction.
DS aged 10 and about to start his final year at primary school. Here are the issues:
- EP confirmed he is 2 years behind in maths. He was in the 10th percentile or lower for all maths tests she did. No diagnosis as she wants to do further tests. Only maths tests have been done to date as that was identified as the main issue. We are waiting tor speak to the school about what to do next.
- OT (we paid for this assessment) said he has sensory issues which I have to admit I don't fully understand but my own observations are the following : fussy eater. He doesn't like the taste of many food and very reluctant to try but starting to improve, will only wear long sleeve tops (even during the heat wave
) as he says he doesn't like the feeling of air on his arms, constantly putting things in his mouth, will sleep without the duvet when hot but only if there is a towel on top as he liked the weight.
- His teacher suspects he has processing difficulties. She says he behaves well in class but very easily distracted and will look like he is listening but then not have a clue when they come to do the actual work. She also says he can't retain knowledge and transfer it, for example when learning something in maths he gets befuddled when the numbers change even if the actual technique remains the same.
- When doing homework he takes ages, rushes through without reading properly and makes really silly mistakes. I am currently working on year 3 maths books and even that is a struggle.
. He can't focus on anything for long enough or with enough depth.
- He needs lots explaining to him where I would expect it to be obvious. Eg, during films etc. He can't follow sequential instructions easily and loses forms for school, forgets his PE kit etc.
- His main issue is maths. He struggles with even the most basic arithmetic as he jumps numbers. Eg, yesterday he said 6+4=9 and didn't bat an eyelid until I asked him to look again. He struggles to remember his times tables despite the fact we have gone over them loads. His working memory appears pretty bad to my untrained eyes.
- He reads well but only with a reading ruler. Without it he can't seem to keep on the line and jumps words. His spelling is OK but his handwriting is appalling. But he works very well with a computer.
- Socially he is very good. Lots of friends and spends his days playing. He doesn't like computers so tends to play outside.
- He talks constantly and most of it is nonsense. It's very testing.
- When we are out he is well behaved in places like cafes but if we are in a line waiting he won't just stand next to me. He's constantly moving about and saying he's bored. Thanks goodness for pokemon on my phone! When walking down the road he had to climb on very wall and plays games where he can't touch the crack of the paving stone.
- Emotionally he is OK at the moment but often has periods of being tearful and saying he's stupid.
10. On a brighter note, he likes writing stories on the computer (but not handwriting), he loves lego and will spend hours putting complex models together and he will happily watch films (superhero only) and quote scenes months later.
He just seems a bit contrary. He struggles with maths and appears to have slow processing and a poor working memory but yet when he likes something (lego) he is fine.
I am reading a book about slow processing and they say about 2/3rds of kids with slow processing have some other issue. I am wondering if he had Adhd although I wouldn't say he's that hyperactive. Does any of this ring a bell with any of you?