Supporting a bright ADHD child with writing difficulties starting secondary school

[dogoncouch]

DGS (i parent him) is starting secondary in September. He is llate summer born and is medicated for ADHD. He had an ed psych assessment in Y2 which showed good scores in verbal and non verbal reasoning and working memory (upper 80s centile) bur a bit of a spikey profile.

He's had an ok journey through primary though school have never really got him and didn't really expect much from him due to his poor handwriting and spelling. Y6 though has been awful - absolutely no work done the whole year - books he brought home the other day evidence this. He's also been really reluctant to go to school, He;s usually got there but its been a struggle.

Anyway he brought home his sat results and he achieved scaled score of 110 in reading, 108 in maths - falling short of higher standard due to his arithmetic paper, he scored very highly on the reasoning paper, but 99 on spag - this because of the 5 he got in spelling - and working towards in writing - so a highly spikey profile.

I took him to his leavers prom the other evening and discovered to my surprise that he is very popular with the other children, he;s never been unpopular but never quite had the social intelligence to be recipricol in friendships, It seems this may have changed this year. The reason I mention this is because if high school doesn't work out I had intended to home ed.

To go back to his terrible Y6 - his teacher says he will not engage in learning. I hadn't considered that this may be because he;s completely burnt out from trying to navigate recording tasks constantly.

He was screened for dyslexia in Y3 but didn't meet the threshold because his sight reading was above average. He learnt to read by remembering words rather than by phonics.

I am worried about high school and how he will cope. He refused to do any homework in Y6 and is very demand avoidant generally. He's already saying he wont wear the school standard shoes - only black trainers.

I guess what I am asking is how I can make high school work for this bright, ADHD child with specific deficits in writing.

Anyone been here?

Does DGS have an EHCP?

What support has DGS had at primary school? What have they tried that hasn’t worked?

Does DGS use a laptop and assistive technology?

Have you had a meeting with the SENCO at the secondary school to discuss support?

Having two pencil cases will help. One for DGS’s school bag. One for home. The school bag pencil case never comes out at home. Having two calculators is one step further some do.

Above average sight reading doesn’t mean someone can’t be dyslexic.

Has there been a meeting with the SENCO at secondary school or an enhanced transition?
At the very least it sounds like a one page profile would be helpful to share information for his new teachers.

Lots of secondary schools are extremely strict about uniform so unless there are any sensory needs requiring reasonable adjustments/ best endeavours he will need to get used to some school shoes.

It sounds like they may have stopped trying in Y6. Secondary can be a fresh start.
There’s software available that can support with writing e.g. Dragon which types when he speaks or Clicker Sentences Crick Software, there’s a secondary version.

Do you use PDA strategies for his avoidant behaviour ?
You could look at applying for an EHCNA.

Nope - he's just going up as a regular child. He is going to a flagship school for inclusion - I don't know whether that is worth the paper it's written on and its not the reason I chose it. I chose it because its literally 200m down the road and getting up in the morning is a huge trigger.

He has no diagnosis of PDA but we do have a low demand household which works well during school holiday time but I cannot do low demand at 7.30am on a school morning which is generally awful 3 mornings out of 5. I did give his teacher some low demand strategies for him...like take him out of the reading booster group, he doesn't need the pressure (and then he pulls off a scaled score of 110 which I knew he was capable of) and let him learn from good working walls rather than direct teaching. But generally the school have been pretty awful with him from the start - a nice twee C of E primary with lots of clever kids. I've learnt form that mistake - his high school is a run of the mill average comprehensive.

I'm a teacher myself and I've wondered about dysgraphia rather than dyslexia for him which apparently goes hand in hand with ADHD...but wonder whether dyslexia might be a more useful diagnosis given it's more widely recognised. I'm sure there is massive overlap between the two.

I have never thought about an EHCP because he doesn't fall in the bottom 2 or 3% on any metric. The elvanse enables him to behave ok in class. He hasn't been in a sanctioned fight in the playground since Y3. The lack of work in Y6 has affected only him and he was still able to pull off results that put him in the top third academically He's a summer born boy and 50% of them don't get to expected in writing... But without more help I do fear he will not survive the first year at high school.

Thanks for the heads up about the writing software - that is exactly what he needs. I'm going to book an appointment with the senco in the first week back.

You don’t mention medication, which would usually be worth considering in a child who is bright but struggling with focus. It’s a good time to look at this if you haven’t already. It’s not uncommon for DC with ADHD who cope, and often thrive, in a primary environment to struggle significantly once the additional executive demands of secondary start to become a burden.

yes he's been on medication for 3.5 years and recently switched from methylphenidate to elvanse. It does help with impulsivity but hasn't overridden his demand avoidance or burn out from his writing issues.

If you know the SENCO’s email address, email the SENCO now. Waiting until the first week to make contact is too late. DGS needs staff to be aware and support in place from the off.

I would request an EHCNA yourself. It is irrelevant DGS isn’t in the bottom 2 or 3% on any metric. Although without comprehensive assessment, you can’t be certain of that.