Anyone pursued a dysgraphia diagnosis?

[dogoncouch]

DGS (I parent him) is 10 and just about to go into Y6. His Y5 report was sparse, negative and wholly inaccurate. For context, he has ADHD for which he is medicated and has been since Y3. His end of Year 5 assessments gave scaled scores (not standardised scores) of 110 for reading and 112 for maths...so on target for greater depth in both next year - he has been consistently achieving these results since Y3. He is still 'working towards expectations' in writing and has been all his primary life. He has been set much lower targets by the FFT tracking system - reading 103 and maths 105 as a combination of the working towards in writing and the fact he is a late summer born boy. My main issue with the report was the pitifully low expectation the teacher had of him, partly due to the low FFT targets he has been set and partly due to the fact that his writing nowhere near reflects what he is capable of - she assessed him as 'working towards expectations' in most of the academic subjects. The teacher clearly views him as 'not very bright' rather than 'has a specific issue with writing'.

I am a teacher myself and for a long time have suspected he has dysgraphia which goes hand in hand with ADHD but haven't pursued a diagnosis but now I am wondering whether this might be beneficial to him as he approaches secondary school. Has anyone managed to get this diagnosis. Has it been useful? He already has extra time in assessments.

I can’t comment on the dyspraxia but my DD at that age was allowed to use a laptop / chrome book at school and became a fast typist. She has a similar profile to your DGS and will use a laptop for her GCSEs. We have also used voice to text software to help get down ideas faster which she then edits. If this is an option to help him progress.

Teach him to touch type over the summer (we used English Type Junior) and arrive at secondary with a laptop as normal way of working.

(iPad with generic keyboard case was cheaper, lighter and better for us than a laptop).

DD had a laptop from Y6 onwards and for all exams except maths. It was a complete game changer - she has dyslexia, ADHD and hypermobility,

I third trying a laptop and assistive technology.

What are DS’s motor skills in general like?

Request a meeting with the SENCO in the new school year.

Support in school is based on needs rather than diagnosis, so a diagnosis won’t automatically lead to more support.

I questioned dysgraphia with the school about my son, they have now looked through his work and given him a Chromebook to do all written work on

We have sort of been down the laptop route when he was in Y2 and Y3 but it was a half hearted attempt and short lived on the school's part. I didn't follow up because his handwriting by then had improved but he hadn't actually learnt how to type, so typing was effectively slowing him down. I'll see if i can persuade him to have another go learning how to type over the summer. I haven't actually been too bothered about his writing as I figure everything will be voice to text and AI by the time he finishes school but this school report has really bothered me. His Y3 and Y4 reports were so different - the teachers really got him and were able to see past the writing, not so this teacher which makes me wonder whether he will be assigned to bottom sets at high school on the strength of his writing. He is actually very clever (ed psych assessed on 88% percentile for verbal and non verbal reasoning) and LOVES all things geography which is the reason I was so irked with the 'working towards' - the teacher has clearly not got to know him at all this year.

His fine and gross motor skills are good - he is national level in his (fairly niche) sport and spent the last week making lots of loom bands very adeptly!

He definitely has a spikey cognitive profile - school assessed him for dyslexia and found no evidence - I agree with this and his reading scores back this up but his spelling and punctuation are atrocious. His handwriting is ok now but unless reminded frequently becomes very very tiny and illegible.

I would try a laptop/tablet and assistive technology again. Lots find KAZ neurodiverse typing tutor helpful. If typing doesn’t work for DS, there is speech to text software he could try.

A scribe for all lessons is unlikely without an EHCP, but if a scribe is necessary, an EHCP could provide that.

Yes, I pursued and got a dysgraphia diagnosis for my youngest child.

It was crystal clear from year one that her reading ability (always completely normal, just did SATs and got greater depth) was totally at odds with her lack of ability to write.

School discouraged me from seeking a diagnosis in year three (‘oh it’s been COVID, she will catch up with her writing’). Stupidly I believed the SALT rather than my instinct. In year five at a new school I paid privately and received the diagnosis. It helps greatly as it means she can be scribed for in exams, and it’s in her EHCP that all teachers need to know about this and teach accordingly (not ask her to copy things for example). Especially useful going into seniors where teachers otherwise would just think ‘what is this, she can’t write?!’ and grade her accordingly.

Good luck, I would strongly recommend going for it.

I would get an EP assessment focused on writing if it's consistently a problem. My DS has a dyspraxia diagnosis as well as dyslexia and ADHD (not formally diagnosed with ADHD as the school won't co-operate!). Use of a laptop is pretty much the only adjustment his secondary school are willing to make so I would keep trying with the typing and maybe try dictation for homework as well. At secondary it is very much hit and miss with most of his teachers not really getting him at all - he also breaks the school data system which just can't cope with a spiky profile, if you did really well in SATS you must achieve A/A* in GCSEs even if you left primary with writing 2 years behind age expected. At 14 he still wouldn't pass a year 6 spelling test and I don't think he ever will. In summary, trying to get any understanding or adjustments in secondary school is exhausting and frustrating, the more evidence you have the better but still be prepared to be very disappointed!