Report Cards

[dancinvixen]

Ohhh, Yesterday, my kindergartener brought home her very first ever report card. I swear, I was so proud of her. She is only having trouble with her letters and numbers<a small part of class> but other than that, her daddy and I were surprised to see how many S+ and O's there were on her report card. See, Khrystahl has ADHD/ODD<attention defecit hyperactivity disorder/ oppositional defiance disorder> So we were afraid that she would be misbehaving in school. But her teacher has just been saying how thankful she is that we got her diagnosed when she was 4 and put on medication. <sigh> Ohhh it does my heart good to see my baby doing so well in school. Plus, she loves school, she keeps asking how come she can't go to school 7 days a week. <g>

 

[Bobtoad777]

congrats

 

[dancinvixen]

Thank you. But most of the congrats goes to my daughter. <g> She's been working really hard to try and get better and writing and saying her letters, and writing her numbers. <I believe that she may have a touch of dyslexia, but hopefully they can do something to help that.> At times she gets really frustrated, but at other times, she loves it. Ahhh well, such is the life of a child. <g>

 

[Guest]

 

[Bobtoad777]

but you as a parent deserve congrats as well for having the patience and the love to help her otu, i know so many kids in the same position, whose parents do not care. thus its is good to see a parent who is making a difference.

I wasnt diagnosed until grade 11 with ADD and dislexia and discalcia{sp}.

 

[Ambrosious]

Yay!-for Mini Vixen!

 

[Sparky Kronkite]

Hey there..... maybe watch out a bit...

ADD is not always and in my opinion rarely indicative of behavioral problems. My boys - both ADD - are excellent listeners and always in behavioral control.

Also: ADD is still a mystifying thing for the Doc's. Symptoms vary widely from person to person.

Here's one thing to watch out for: My doctor diagnosed my older boy with ADD - in our state we needed his teacher's, by majority to concur for full insurance coverage. Fact: If you kid is getting too good of grades - for whatever reason, even because of positive effects of an ADD drug, prescribed the your doctor of course - certain teachers might not vote "in favor" of your child. They will call your child "simply lazy." If the lobby their point of view and win the majority of teachers over - you can loose your insurance coverage.

At least that's the way it is in our state.

 

[pandora]

My best friend's daughter was diagnosed with ADHD in the second grade. She is now in the ninth. Consider yourself lucky, some kids, this one included, try to play off of this disorder, and I do agree with Toad, you have a lot to do with how your daughter is. Sounds to me like there are two people doing a good job of parenting.
Oh by the way, when she gets to be a teenager, as stated before , you'll want her in school 7 days a week and it'll be you she comes to probably instead of dad, saying " but Mom, you know Dad will get mad if I make a C. You just sign it and tell him that the teacher lost mine". Good luck, you sound like you have a wonderful daughter.

 

[dancinvixen]

Re: Hey there..... maybe watch out a bit...

ADD is not always and in my opinion rarely indicative of behavioral problems. My boys - both ADD - are excellent listeners and always in behavioral control.

Also: ADD is still a mystifying thing for the Doc's. Symptoms vary widely from person to person.

Here's one thing to watch out for: My doctor diagnosed my older boy with ADD - in our state we needed his teacher's, by majority to concur for full insurance coverage. Fact: If you kid is getting too good of grades - for whatever reason, even because of positive effects of an ADD drug, prescribed the your doctor of course - certain teachers might not vote "in favor" of your child. They will call your child "simply lazy." If the lobby their point of view and win the majority of teachers over - you can loose your insurance coverage.

At least that's the way it is in our state.

Thanks Sparky. I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was a child also. There is a difference between ADD and ADHD. ADD is simply an attention problem. Short attention span, zoning out. ADHD, is ADD only with severe hyperactivity. ADHD children are harder to handle then ADD children because along with the hyperactivity comes the frustration of not being able to control themselves, hence the ODD.

 

[RonG]

I wasnt diagnosed until grade 11 with ADD and dislexia and discalcia{sp}.

I am sorta sorry for this, but there is a pretty funny joke buried in here. Discalced (pronounced discalst)means being without shoes, particularly as part of a religious order. That is probably not what you meant but maybe it is what you meant. It comes originally from Latin so maybe there is a Discalcia?

Congratulations to the little one on a good report card! Maybe she can learn this word for her SATs in ten years.

 

[Expertise]

Cogratulations Vixen i'm happy for you and your little one.

Of note.

Most honest mental health care providers will readily admit that ADD and ADHD are the two most commonly misdiagnosed and over diagnosed conditions that exist today.

I am convinced that for the vast majority of these unfortunate kids it is far easier to prescribe them a chemical cocktail and label them with one of those two tags than to place blame where it really belongs.

Poor parenting and ineffective school systems.

Are there kids out there with this conditon? Absolutely.
Are there as many as are being diagnosed ... ask your health care provider.

 

[dancinvixen]

Cogratulations Vixen i'm happy for you and your little one.

Of note.

Most honest mental health care providers will readily admit that ADD and ADHD are the two most commonly misdiagnosed and over diagnosed conditions that exist today.

I am convinced that for the vast majority of these unfortunate kids it is far easier to prescribe them a chemical cocktail and label them with one of those two tags than to place blame where it really belongs.

Poor parenting and ineffective school systems.

Are there kids out there with this conditon? Absolutely.
Are there as many as are being diagnosed ... ask your health care provider.

This is very true. We opted to have her not put on medications. This way we know how to handle her behavior as does the teacher and my daughter doesn't walk around looking like a zombie.

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

<I believe that she may have a touch of dyslexia, but hopefully they can do something to help that.>

Don't worry about that. It's common, and expected, for kindergartners to write certain letters and numbers backwards (usually "Ee", "Ff" "3", "9", "6", "Dd", "Bb" and "Pp", but they'll do it with any symbol.)

 

[dancinvixen]

<I believe that she may have a touch of dyslexia, but hopefully they can do something to help that.>

Don't worry about that. It's common, and expected, for kindergartners to write certain letters and numbers backwards (usually "Ee", "Ff" "3", "9", "6", "Dd", "Bb" and "Pp", but they'll do it with any symbol.)

LOL, I would love think that. But the real problem is, that she cannot write her numbers above 1 <she cannot understand them>, and her letterS????? Well, pronunciation wise, it's D, B, T, U, V, Z, M, and N. Other than that, writing them, she write's he s's backwards, her t's upsidedown. Other things like that. They had to get her an in-class tutor to help her. It's working, but not that much, so she still gets very frustrated. I'm just worried that when she gets to 2nd or 3rd grade, if this keeps up, the other kids will make fun of her for it. I really don't want that to happen

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

They all catch up to each other eventually.


[Edited by Dixon Carter Lee on 11-21-2000 at 06:15 PM]

 

[Bobtoad777]

I wasnt diagnosed until grade 11 with ADD and dislexia and discalcia{sp}.

I am sorta sorry for this, but there is a pretty funny joke buried in here. Discalced (pronounced discalst)means being without shoes, particularly as part of a religious order. That is probably not what you meant but maybe it is what you meant. It comes originally from Latin so maybe there is a Discalcia?

Congratulations to the little one on a good report card! Maybe she can learn this word for her SATs in ten years.

i may of spelled it wrong, as dislexia is to letters and words the other is to do with numbers and math.

 

[Whispersecret]

Long-Assed Post Warning!

I taught kindergarten for three years, first grade for three also, so I know of what I speak.

DCL is doing a great job of reinforcing at home. I wish all parents were like that. Good job, man. Don't stop reading to the little ones once they learn how to read themselves. Get books above their reading level and read those. If your kid is in first grade, choose a simple chapter book to read aloud. As books get harder, the sentence structure, vocabulary, and ideas get more complex. Reading those books aloud is an excellent way to flex their mental muscles, especially when you discuss the stories as you go with your child and explain the more difficult words.

DV, reversals of letters and numbers is common in kids up to the age of about 8. If your second grader is still reversing, that's the time to start worrying. Otherwise, it's like learning to walk. Sometimes kids just need a little longer than other kids. (The academic term for this is "developmental.") The fact is that there is a while there where a b and a d look exactly the same to a kid. The wires in their little brains haven't connected all the way for them to be able to distinguish visually between them.

Writing the numbers and letters: Most likely this is a matter of practice. If she entered kindergarten having hardly ever picked up a pencil or crayon, it will take a while before she's developed the small motor control to make her letters/numbers accurately. Here are some suggestions:

--Never write her name for her. It always drove me crazy when a parent would write their child's name on their homework for them, especially in kindergarten, when they're trying to learn to write!
--Have her sign all birthday cards, Valentines, etc. herself.
--On that note, make sure she's writing capital K, with the rest of the letters lower case (hrystahl). Your first grade teacher will appreciate that when it comes time to teach about capitalization. I know it's tempting to let her use all caps, because they have more straight lines, but don't.
--Color with her and have a good time! Coloring is an excellent "work out."
--Cutting with scissors is probably a challenge too. If you cut coupons, you can have her help you. She can help cut the wrapping paper for gifts this holiday season too.

As for the pronunciation of the letters, is it the sounds she can't make or is it that she can't think of the sound when presented with the letter? If she can't physically produce the sound, I'd think about having her checked out by the speech pathologist, if your teacher hasn't recommended that already. Speech development comes at different rates for kids too, but there are certain sounds that come later for most kids (Rs and Ls usually.) The sounds your daughter is having trouble with are sounds she should have mastered by kindergarten age.

If she just hasn't matched the letters with their sounds yet, give her time. That's the main thrust of kindergarten--learning the sounds and maybe blending them together.

For everything else, just look at every instant as a teachable moment. It can be a hard habit to get into, but worth the effort. If you're driving in the car, grocery shopping, waiting at the doctor's office, etc., ask if she can find the letter N, or whatever letter she's working on that week. Spontaneously ask her what sound "b" makes. Ask her to count how many steps it takes to get from the car to the classroom. Take that little bag of m&ms she got for Halloween and have her sort them by color and count how many reds, greens, etc. If she's having cookies for dessert, tell her she can have x-number, but she has to count them out. There's nothing like motivation. (I play the "Three more bites of meat and you can be done" game with my kids at meal time. You could have her count her bites too. )

If you do nothing else, READ TO HER EVERY NIGHT. If your teacher sends home those book orders from Trumpet or Scholastic or Troll, ORDER BOOKS AND READ THEM TO HER. (The prices are very reasonable, compared to the bookstore.) Library books are just as good if you can't afford to buy books.

I hope this is helpful.


[Edited by whispersecret on 11-21-2000 at 05:52 PM]

 

[RonG]

Disability in Math is discalculia and it is more than just not being good at it. It is more of a spatial/memory type thing. The site below has an extensive list of symptoms.

http://www.shianet.org/~reneenew/calc.html

However, I defy anyone to not have at least some of these symptoms. I have a masters in Math and hit about ten of them. My favorite is poor dancing ability. Now when I think of great dancers, Mathematical Ph.D's leap to mind. Their graceful arcs as they solve nonlinear equations, the flourish of their graphical calculators strapped to their belts, their poorly trimmed mustaches just reek of terpsichorean excellence.

 

[Bobtoad777]

RonG I hit all them to the Nth degree, but thatnks to {unfortunately late} recognition of the problem I have been taking steps to correct the problem, as I was told at the time it is not cureable but it is able to be dealt with effectively if the right step are taken. I have bookmarked that site to hopefully learn more about it that I may not already know. thank you for finding the site.

 

[dancinvixen]

Re: Long-Assed Post Warning!

I taught kindergarten for three years, first grade for three also, so I know of what I speak.

DCL is doing a great job of reinforcing at home. I wish all parents were like that. Good job, man. Don't stop reading to the little ones once they learn how to read themselves. Get books above their reading level and read those. If your kid is in first grade, choose a simple chapter book to read aloud. As books get harder, the sentence structure, vocabulary, and ideas get more complex. Reading those books aloud is an excellent way to flex their mental muscles, especially when you discuss the stories as you go with your child and explain the more difficult words.

DV, reversals of letters and numbers is common in kids up to the age of about 8. If your second grader is still reversing, that's the time to start worrying. Otherwise, it's like learning to walk. Sometimes kids just need a little longer than other kids. (The academic term for this is "developmental.") The fact is that there is a while there where a b and a d look exactly the same to a kid. The wires in their little brains haven't connected all the way for them to be able to distinguish visually between them.

Writing the numbers and letters: Most likely this is a matter of practice. If she entered kindergarten having hardly ever picked up a pencil or crayon, it will take a while before she's developed the small motor control to make her letters/numbers accurately. Here are some suggestions:

--Never write her name for her. It always drove me crazy when a parent would write their child's name on their homework for them, especially in kindergarten, when they're trying to learn to write!
--Have her sign all birthday cards, Valentines, etc. herself.
--On that note, make sure she's writing capital K, with the rest of the letters lower case (hrystahl). Your first grade teacher will appreciate that when it comes time to teach about capitalization. I know it's tempting to let her use all caps, because they have more straight lines, but don't.
--Color with her and have a good time! Coloring is an excellent "work out."
--Cutting with scissors is probably a challenge too. If you cut coupons, you can have her help you. She can help cut the wrapping paper for gifts this holiday season too.

As for the pronunciation of the letters, is it the sounds she can't make or is it that she can't think of the sound when presented with the letter? If she can't physically produce the sound, I'd think about having her checked out by the speech pathologist, if your teacher hasn't recommended that already. Speech development comes at different rates for kids too, but there are certain sounds that come later for most kids (Rs and Ls usually.) The sounds your daughter is having trouble with are sounds she should have mastered by kindergarten age.

If she just hasn't matched the letters with their sounds yet, give her time. That's the main thrust of kindergarten--learning the sounds and maybe blending them together.

For everything else, just look at every instant as a teachable moment. It can be a hard habit to get into, but worth the effort. If you're driving in the car, grocery shopping, waiting at the doctor's office, etc., ask if she can find the letter N, or whatever letter she's working on that week. Spontaneously ask her what sound "b" makes. Ask her to count how many steps it takes to get from the car to the classroom. Take that little bag of m&ms she got for Halloween and have her sort them by color and count how many reds, greens, etc. If she's having cookies for dessert, tell her she can have x-number, but she has to count them out. There's nothing like motivation. (I play the "Three more bites of meat and you can be done" game with my kids at meal time. You could have her count her bites too. )

If you do nothing else, READ TO HER EVERY NIGHT. If your teacher sends home those book orders from Trumpet or Scholastic or Troll, ORDER BOOKS AND READ THEM TO HER. (The prices are very reasonable, compared to the bookstore.) Library books are just as good if you can't afford to buy books.

I hope this is helpful.


[Edited by whispersecret on 11-21-2000 at 05:52 PM]

Whisper, you know in dyslexia, that the numbers look backwards????? Well, in my daughter's case, when she talks it's kinda like that. <g> I know that sounds weird. But her t's sound like d's and her s's sound like c's. So on. I don't know what to do about it. As for practicing, every day she insists on pulling out paper and pen and practicing. And she loves it when I or her daddy show her how to write something, then let her do it. She thinks it's just the coolest thing.

 

[Ezzy]

Shoot me...

DV, reversals of letters and numbers is common in kids up to the age of about 8. If your second grader is still reversing, that's the time to start worrying. Otherwise, it's like learning to walk. Sometimes kids just need a little longer than other kids. (The academic term for this is "developmental.") The fact is that there is a while there where a b and a d look exactly the same to a kid. The wires in their little brains haven't connected all the way for them to be able to distinguish visually between them.

I still suffer from this, it was caught when I was in the equivalent of tenth grade. The catch for me was the letters Bb, Dd, Pp and Qq, though they did not even classify me as dyslexic, because my grasp of the language was better than kids of my age, due no doubt to the fact that I was and still am a voracious reader.


That is one of the reasons that some of my posts, (those I don’t type first into a word processor program), contain so many simple errors.


This is something that I can live with as long as everyone else can. LOL.

I just re-read Whispersecrets post quoted above and realised I must have a little brain still. LMAO well I hope it was all working ok. I wonder if this means I'm out of my tiny mind. LOL YUP.


EZ http://cgi.tripod.com/smilecwm/cgi-bin/s/cwm2/sleep.gif


[Edited by Ezzy on 11-22-2000 at 02:52 AM]

 

[Whispersecret]

Ezzy, I was in no way suggesting that dyslexic people have little brains. I hope you knew that.

DV, then I think you should consider inquiring at your school about having the speech pathologist check out your daughter. Most special ed people are adept at making their tests seem like a game, so the children don't feel self-conscious.

Best of luck.

 

[Earthmuffin]

Thanks y'all.

One of the munchy's has ADHD and isn't on meds now. She has been in the past, but only when her little world was spun so far out of control she wasn't even able to rest. It's good to see that other parents have the same concerns for development that I do.

Not to mention so many INFORMED rational adults. I missed being diagnosed until I was an adult. I swear if I never hear a teacher say: "She's a bright child BUT...." ever again it'll be too soon.

Yay for little DV!

 

[Samuari]

My eldest, who has a documented iq of 165, started out pronouceing "flowers" "lowerfs". That is one that suck in my mind, but there were many others. My point is that these kids are special, and frequently are smarter than the average bear. We have been ver blessed to be in a school district that spends the resources to find and deal with kids that have special chalenges. DV I know that it is difficult to find these educators that have the dedication that WS does, but OH MY it is worth it. My girl is now the leading person in her profesion in the area, and is recieving offers to move to larger markets.

Back to the oringal post...Shoot some fireworks off for her. She earned it!

 

[dancinvixen]

Thanks guys. Her daddy and I were so proud we took her out to eat at Red Lobster tonight. She loved it, but she's coming down with a stomach bug. I have already had her seen by a speech pathologist ,but of course, they say she's perfectly fine <yeah right>