6 year old yr1 concerns

[Stennercrossing]

He's just turned 6, and is a happy, confident and articulate little bless. He's got a great imagination and loves making up stories and plays. However, he's only just about right handed and regularly swaps hands. His grip is quite weak and when he tries to write it's very light and spidery. He can just about write his own name, can recognise maybe half the phonemes and can't decode. With numbers he can just about do very simple sums on his fingers, and can only recognise about half the numbers.
His hearing and eyesight are ok. He seems MILES behind at school despite being clearly bright in other ways. School are Keelung an eye on him, the SENCO isn't focussing on dyslexia etc until he's older.
I've got an older child with much more complex needs and everything has been about them, so I feel guilty that I've taken my eye off the ball here.
What do I do? Relax and hope he'll catch up in his own time?

I also suspect some dyspraxia. He struggles doing activities that cross the midline, or following physical instructions.

I was instantly thinking dyspraxia as me and my Dd have it.
BTW if he turns the paper 45degrees makes writing lots easier.

I didn't know that! I've always done that but I didn't know it was dyspraxia related!

Ok so what do I do now? We saw a paed who said he didn't think there was any question of autism although I do see some aspergers traits.
He sits W legged sometimes too.

Ask your GP for a paediatric occupational therapist referral.

We did, and the local service rejected the referral as on the face of it, his functionality in three areas isn't affected. They class functionality I think as things like being able to get dressed and use the toilet. Poor grip is only classed as one area. (Sigh)

Anyone?

Try https://m.facebook.com/Tree-Tops-Childrens-Occupational-Therapy-194609837241169/

Thankyou - you think this is something purely for OTs, or should school be doing something? Am out of my depth here!

No but I think OT assessment should be the starting point

Sorry had to rush off to Christmas fair.
The OT assessment is how to get dyspraxia diagnosed and because it's on the autism spectrum often similar symptoms.

If the OT referral has been knocked back, I would try and get a referral to a development paediatrician (or the equivalent in your area). He has enough areas of concerns to warrant at least a once over by a paediatrician and that may open OT up for you that way.

Thank you. We saw a paed at the community communication disorders clinic and he said he thought he was "odd" but lovely. And he said he would come and see him in school in the new year but we've heard no more about that, and it wasn't mentioned in his follow up letter. I'm not sure how to chase it up.

Assuming that the paed DOES diagnose dyspraxia, then what? What does that actually mean in practical terms? Could that account for his problems with literacy and numbers at school? Please keep talking to me! I'm scared!

Can you call the clinic and ask when he is next down to be reviewed? Particularly as the letter doesn't reference a follow up, I would be making sure your DS's file hasn't accidentally gone into limbo. (I've had that happen).

My DS1 has ASD so I am not as familiar with dyspraxia, but understanding is some people with dyspraxia can have difficulties with processing and memory as well as the more physical issues.

I would hope a DX would mean full OT assessment outlining the difficulties and the strategies to help. Whether DS would get any direct follow OT I wouldn't like to say, it is is an area known to be stretched (sorry). School should be offering extra support without a dx, but I would expect one that may not to have enough experience or need extra resources to ask for Ed Psych advice/assessment.

"Assuming that the paed DOES diagnose dyspraxia, then what? What does that actually mean in practical terms?" The diagnosis isn't really important what is are ways to support the individual child. The OT will usually offer therapy and provide school and parents with a program of activities tailored to the child's needs.

In the meantime if you have any spare time there are activities that can help with grip and so on (although obv prof help and diagnosis v important but might take a while); things like using clothes pegs, lots of time on playground equipment/ soft play/ trampoline to strengthen arms and core, play-doh, throwing and catching a large soft ball- that kind of thing.

You probably do these already if he is bright and articulate, but share lots of stories, lots of games that involve a bit of maths- snakes and ladders with 2 dice, simple card games if he can manage them, things like pop to the shops.

Don't feel bad or guilty that you have had to spend time on your other DC, your little one sounds lovely!

Sometimes it does take a few years to get a clear diagnosis. In my area schools and sometimes professionals don't seem interested until till they are 8.

Learning isn't linear I guess and professionals/schools like to wait it out a bit. Some children don't have SEN, yet aren't particulatly engaged or ready to learn in reception or year 1. Often these children make bigger educational leaps when they hit year 2/3/4 and are more engaged/ready to learn. The children who don't make these later leaps will need diagnosis/support.

You are doing all the right things by following up all your concerns now. At home can you do baking to help with fine motor skills and numbers.

Firstly dyspraxia is not on the autistic spectrum ... dyspraxia like autism is classified as being due to neurodiversity and so you do see an overlap in 'traits' sometimes .... same as other disabilities that have sensory/social/emotional difficulties can have traits that overlap with those identified with autism.

In regards to learning difficulty dyspraxia/dyslexia are found to have links, so this is a possibility.

The OT will look into the dyspraxia aspect the school and linked professionals the learning difficulty side. schools do not need labels to provide support, so they need to be ensuring a differentiated curriculum, provided extra phonics, word reading & writing support and carefully monitoring his progress, if after this they are still concerned he is not making sufficient progress then external agencies such educational psychologists can be brought in to offer further advice & if needed move forward with either an identification of dyslexia &/or an ehcp.

Also what are the school doing presently to support him?

He gets differentiated work apparently and goes off to a little phonics group. As far as I can see, that's it.

He's so creative, he recreated his favourite stalls from the Christmas Fayre (prizes included makeup he'd snaffled from my bedroom!) and loves doing his own little shows and games but they're on his terms, rather than playing with his other siblings.

He also has CORKING tantrums. Not meltdowns, he's in control of this and can switch it on and off but they can go on for ages, and are full of really awful graphic threats, which are hilarious in their horror! "I'm going to put worms in your teapot mummy, and you'll get worms in your mouth. I'm going to wee in your car and it'll be wet and stinky and I'll laugh" etc! It's very odd! He does a lot of dressing up/role play but it goes on for ages. He was a builder for weeks on end and wore a hard hat everywhere, ALL the time. Yet in school they don't see any of this bonkers stuff, just a kid who is way behind where he "should" be.

Thankyou, also, for the tips and guidance. I'm noting it carefully and compiling a list of things we can do.

He can dress himself but things are often on back to front, and he's recently started to manage doing his seatbelt. He can ride a bike with stabilisers but doesn't like to exert himself. His swim teacher says it's very slow going.
The other odd thing he does is takes things that he knows are important. Car keys, bank cards, the book I'm reading, his Dad's glasses etc, and stashes them in the same place in his bedroom along with any other half interesting bits he finds around the place. He's like a womble!

Forgive me if this is way off, but taking important things sounds like a cry for attention- a nicer one than the tantrums! How many siblings- I know you said one had significant Sen; do the others get enough time and attention (I know this may genuinely not be possible), could you possibly need some kind is respite care in order to focus on the others?

He has a real mix of strengths along with some under-developed skills - I think the term is a spiky profile. I think it can take some unravelling to get to the core difficulties iykwim. e.g. My DS1 with ASD used to have a very noticeable speech delay at 2 and is now an incredibly articulate 11 year old. But he very much still has difficulties with receptive language but that wasn't as apparent when his expressive speech was delayed but it was always there.

Also some children "hit" a few areas in different disorders but don't have quite the full amount for a specific dx. If you look at dyspraxia, autism, PDA, ADHD, hypermobility you may find some bits really resonate but others don't.

The most important thing is he gets support in the areas he needs and I think along with a paediatrician & OT assessment, if the school would consider getting the Ed Psych in, it may be beneficial to them and you.

Tanaqui, I think it's more about wanting to be the hero when we start looking for the missing item! What a monkey!

Frayed Hem, spikey profile is spot on.

Spurred on by this thread I rang the secretary for the paed who saw him, and she is arranging for his referral for OT assessment to be resubmitted, and has made another appointment with the paed for early January! So some progress at least! Thankyou ladies!