Ask Me Help Desk - Learning disabilities

Hi,
My son,age 9 years old seems to have problem doing his schoolwork ,it seems he does not want to study .though he plays around well in computer games .he is of shy nature and does not open up easily.he lacks concentration also .anyone who can help me?
v:confused:

There is a pretty decent website on learning disabilities - SchwabLearning.org - A Parent's Guide to Helping Kids With Learning Difficulties
That site has all kinds of information you can go through. Also there is a LD/ADHD Newsletter available from Parenting advice, child development and family reference - FamilyEducation.com (you register and sign up for the newsletter).

Also see:
Classroom Strategies For Special Education

Special Education Resources from ParentPals.com

P/NW BOCES SETRC Newsletters

Wizdom Education Newsletters

TN Department of Education:K-12

Rhyming Words, Sight Words, Word Families

CLAS. Special Collections. Newsletters

Wrightslaw Special Education Law and Advocacy

Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) - Home Page

http://www.ndpass.com

Also know that it is well within your rights as a parent to request an evaluation of your son by the school. Bring your concerns to his teacher(s) and ask them for such an eval. Document examples of your son's problems and ask why this is happening. You can request that a school counselor be brought in and address his shyness, lack of concentration, etc.

It would help you to keep a journal and include dates and times and people you have talked to and everything you can think of that may help you and your son.

I would try talking to his teacher(s) first and if you do not get any satisfaction from that avenue, keep on pursuing this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vijita

hi,
my son,age 9 years old seems to have problem doing his schoolwork ,it seems he does not want to study .though he plays around well in computer games .he is of shy nature and does not open up easily.he lacks concentration also .anyone who can help me?
v:confused:

You provide far too little information to really offer a succinct set of suggestions. However, I would not dive into a referral for testing. All states must now try to maintain students in the Least Restrictive Environment before moving students into special education. There is a general education initiative called "Intervention and Referral Service" (which may be called something different where you live) that brings all of your child's teachers together along with a representative of the child study team, an administrator and a school counselor to come up with a comprehensive plan to support your child and keep him in general education. Good luck!

Quote:

Originally Posted by vijita

hi,
my son,age 9 years old seems to have problem doing his schoolwork ,it seems he does not want to study .though he plays around well in computer games .he is of shy nature and does not open up easily.he lacks concentration also .anyone who can help me?
v:confused:

You can request for him to be tested (free in America) and if you do not want him to have the label when the Case Conference is held to review the testing data take that info and deny sp ed services.

It would be a mistake to deny eligibility after testing just to avoid a label. The label serves as an entre to a wide array of services for your son which might range from supplementary aids and services to more intensive instruction. If you choose to put your son through what might be 4 or 5 hours of testing and then not accept services you are wasting his and the professionals' time who assessed him. The label is confidential and cannot be listed on any documentation that might go to, for example, a college unless you choose to release the information. These days, many colleges actually provide additional support for learning disabled students. If you choose to deny eligibility and placement, the records are sealed and cannot be released to the general education teachers working with your son without your consent. So if you do take the poor aforementioned advice, at least make sure to request and sign a release so that your son's general education teachers can benefit from any instructional modifications, accommodations and strategies that comes out of the testing process.

Actually they are not sealed in all states and a label will follow the student throughout their education because some course are coded as special. Getting the tested done will show what areas are defict and how to address them.

I must disagree. State law is superseded in all cases by IDEIA 2004 which specifies parameters for confidentiality including the sealing of records if a student is not found eligible for special education and related services. While transcripts may contain coding regarding the degree of difficulty of courses, there may be no mention of the student being classified, nor can the classification be listed. While the testing is helpful in defining student strengths and concerns, you want special education teachers who are conversant with multi-sensory instruction and differentiation to operationalize the data. The data by itself is not of much use unless your child benefits from remediation.

The states of 4 states that all have special ed marked on current transcripts because I personally saw them this year. I know that the special supervisors encourage the testing of children and are willing to work with parents to do what is best by the student including expalining how the label is can cause a stigma for the child and other options for the child. Lake of motivation is not a factor in special ed and perhaps if you look at the origninal question that is the major problem.