Advice on secondary school options for a twice exceptional child?

[dadmumplus10]

Has anyone had experience of 2e? Twice exceptional?

We feel our son is pointing to this; advanced reading age, strong in maths, excellent memory, musical abilities.. And yet has signs of inattentive ADHD, slow processing and social/emotional masking.. fatigue after school.

We are starting to think of secondary schools and what may suit best? State or private? We would love his strengths catered to. We would look in London, Sussex or Kent.

Any advice or tips on what to look for! We do not yet have an EHCP but are looking into starting the process with help of an Ed Psyc.

Thanks

You could look at Thames Christian, St James’, Hampton Court, Frensham Heights. None of them are the most academic schools around, but they have a fair few DC with SEN.

I would request an EHCNA ASAP. You don’t need an EP assessment before requesting an EHCNA.

I work in education and also advise families on school choice, including children with quite uneven profiles. I’d be wary of starting with “state or private” though, I think the bigger question is whether the individual school can genuinely cater for both sides of his profile.

A very academic school can be brilliant for a 2e child if they understand that high ability and additional needs can coexist, but quite difficult if the expectation is simply that a bright child should cope.

When you visit schools, I’d ask how they support a child who needs real stretch in some areas but help with processing speed, organisation or written output in others, and how well SEND, pastoral and academic staff actually work together.

An Ed Psych assessment could also be really useful before you make decisions, particularly if it gives you a clearer picture of his strengths and difficulties rather than just another label.