s/o What are thoughts on a sub-forum where we can openly discuss

[rafiki]

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[Guest]

Thanks, Michele. I was going to cross-post here and on the accelerated forum this morning but hadn't gotten to it yet. Let's talk later about responses and whether/how to approach the moderators.

[EKS]

I would love this!

[LittleIzumi]

Voting yes on this board, too :lol:.

[peacefully]

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[myboyluvsdinos]

That would definitely be nice. I find myself mainly visiting the special needs board, and neglecting the accelerated board. It would be nice to have a package deal! :)

 

Carolyn

[Misty]

Yes yes yes!!

[Jennifer-72]

I would be very interested.

[Mergath]

I would love to see something like that. It probably won't be really useful for me personally for a couple more years, but dd is so far ahead in some things and behind in others, so I'm guessing we're headed down that road.

[Dandelion]

That would definitely be nice. I find myself mainly visiting the special needs board, and neglecting the accelerated board. It would be nice to have a package deal! :)

 

Carolyn

 

:iagree:

 

I was just thinking about this a few days ago and made a mental note to start visiting the accelerated boards more. So this would be perfect! :)

[Finnella]

I think I would find that very useful. We only started homeschooling last year, and I needed to focus on what ps hadn't bothered to teach. I don't want the rest of his school experience to be focused on his LDs without appropriate focus on his gifts.

[Barbara H]

Great idea!

[RamonaQ]

Sure. The 2e thing was indeed quite confusing for me after ds was diagnosed.

 

I think it would be best placed in accelerated learners

Edited August 13, 2011 by RamonaQ
Thought

[IanSebast]

Is 2e twice exceptional? Ds has ADHD and is gifted, is that what we're referring to? If so, definitely YES!!!!

Edited August 13, 2011 by IanSebast

[HollyM]

Yes, I can see where that would be useful too.

[Verity]

I think it's a great idea. I haven't had anyone dx my oldest with Asperger's as 2E, but I think that he would fit the bill. He is very intelligent, really unusual abilities and ideas that I am still just starting to see where his potential is. A subforum would be very welcome.

[elise1mds]

I might visit. I don't know. It would depend on the tenor of the threads. DS most likely fits into the category of 2E, but honestly I tend to downplay his giftedness because it makes so many people uncomfortable and I have a hard time not feeling like I'm bragging when so many others are having such a struggle... but I've been through the struggle, too, KWIM?? So either the board would be just what I need or I would feel really out of place.

 

Either way, I won't know if it doesn't happen :)

[rafiki]

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[Terabith]

Would be helpful to me, too.

[peacefully]

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[onaclairadeluna]

The more I thought about the OP, I kept going back to the ideal thing would be to have a "Non-Neurotypical Learner" main board, which includes any situation in which traditional materials don't work, then having "Special Needs" and "Accelerated" both as sub-forums of that board.

 

:iagree:

[Laurie]

 

The more I thought about the OP, I kept going back to the ideal thing would be to have a "Non-Neurotypical Learner" main board, which includes any situation in which traditional materials don't work, then having "Special Needs" and "Accelerated" both as sub-forums of that board.

 

.

 

Maybe this would be ideal for some, but maybe others would prefer to have things stay just as they are. :001_smile:

 

Is it really so difficult to go between two boards here? :confused:

[rafiki]

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[Laurie]

For some of us our children's needs aren't black and white. When they are both gifted AND special needs, their needs are different from those who are "just" accelerated or special needs.

 

Well, I would love to be in that "gray" area, and I'm sure I would be able to manage asking questions/participating on more than one board.

 

Isn't it enough to be able to come to these forums and be grateful that there's space provided for free even if you would arrange it differently if you were the host?

[momma aimee]

I agree i am pretty lost with my 2e kindy boy --

 

PhD called him "Scarey smart" but his maturity is below that of a common 3 yo

[onaclairadeluna]

Well, I would love to be in that "gray" area

 

Our kids are in no way "gray". Most of the time giftedness does not make an LD easier to handle and LDs do not make the giftedness less of an issue either. I often feel as if I am juggling flaming cats.

 

Flaming cat #1 is the gifted kid and flaming cat #2 is the LD kid. If I stop for a second to try to look at one of the cats, the other comes down and hits me on the head.

[Laurie]

Our kids are in no way "gray". Most of the time giftedness does not make an LD easier to handle and LDs do not make the giftedness less of an issue either. I often feel as if I am juggling flaming cats.

 

Flaming cat #1 is the gifted kid and flaming cat #2 is the LD kid. If I stop for a second to try to look at one of the cats, the other comes down and hits me on the head.

 

So, how will creating a new board arrangement here that caters to the 2e group and "subboard"inates the rest of us actually make your day to day challenges easier? I don't see why this is necessary. People can use the tag feature to help with searches, and anyone who is here long enough will recognize people who share something in common with them. How hard can it be to watch for the people you connect with on both the accelerated and special needs board? I think it might require more effort to find these people IRL, but here we've been able to connect with other parents freely for years. Why bite the hand that feeds you?

[onaclairadeluna]

So, how will creating a new board arrangement here that caters to the 2e group and "subboard"inates the rest of us actually make your day to day challenges easier?

 

Ack. It's my fault. I can't help but look at these threads. I am not trying to advocate for a separate board. Sorry for the confusion. IRL it is hard sometimes to convince people that 2e kids have a real problem. This is one of the challenges of raising a 2e kid. You would think that the giftedness masking the disability would be great and perhaps there is something good in it. I think people often misunderstand how difficult the GT parts of 2e are. Sometimes I think that aspect of my child is more difficult. But usually it is hard to tell where things are coming from.

 

Anyhow just to be clear I am not posting this in any way to say this conversation should be had in a separate forum. It is perfectly ok to have these conversations on the special needs forum or on the accelerated learner forum or really anywhere. I have found this type of dialogue and this "you are not alone" feeling to be extraordinarily helpful in the day to day raising of my child. It certainly doesn't matter where the conversation takes place.

 

Anyhow apologies for having it on THIS thread. It probably should be on a thread with no mention of "sub forum" in the title.

 

I almost didn't post back but I didn't want to ignore your question. I don't see any harm in leaving things the way they are.

[PeterPan]

Maybe this would be ideal for some, but maybe others would prefer to have things stay just as they are. :001_smile:

 

Is it really so difficult to go between two boards here? :confused:

 

Well, I would love to be in that "gray" area, and I'm sure I would be able to manage asking questions/participating on more than one board.

 

Isn't it enough to be able to come to these forums and be grateful that there's space provided for free even if you would arrange it differently if you were the host?

 

Ok, I was trying to figure this out, because clearly you've posted quite a bit on the SN boards and have challenging situations yourself. All I can figure is either your kids aren't 2E, or you haven't yet been on the boards long enough to have the pleasant experience of having your child SLAMMED for his disability because you posted on one of the other boards. And slammed is the nicest and mildest thing that can happen. Sometimes it will be condescension or the attitude that it's all *your* fault as the parent that your child is being xyz, blah blah. I personally got told that I should just make my dd everything the other kids do, have her be a C student, and GET OVER IT.

 

I actually agree with you that there is some logic to leaving things alone and no neat solution even if, at some point, they wanted to make one. But that doesn't change the fact that if you hang out on the other boards long enough and go looking for help in an honest, open way, you're walking into a minefield of potential criticism or worse.

[Crimson Wife]

Ok, I was trying to figure this out, because clearly you've posted quite a bit on the SN boards and have challenging situations yourself. All I can figure is either your kids aren't 2E, or you haven't yet been on the boards long enough to have the pleasant experience of having your child SLAMMED for his disability because you posted on one of the other boards. And slammed is the nicest and mildest thing that can happen. Sometimes it will be condescension or the attitude that it's all *your* fault as the parent that your child is being xyz, blah blah. I personally got told that I should just make my dd everything the other kids do, have her be a C student, and GET OVER IT.

 

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

I think 2E kids are the most overlooked group because so often the giftedness masks the disability or vice versa.

 

My cousin was a "stealth dyslexic" and wasn't diagnosed until college. My poor aunt spent many frustrating years being told that "reading just isn't ____'s thing." :banghead:

[Leonor]

 

The more I thought about the OP, I kept going back to the ideal thing would be to have a "Non-Neurotypical Learner" main board.

 

:iagree:but would recommend it to be divided into K-8 and High School.

 

I believe there are a lot more posters than we think with high school age students that would relate to such a forum.

 

Many of the threads get sidetracked on the high school forum.

[Laurie]

 

I actually agree with you that there is some logic to leaving things alone and no neat solution even if, at some point, they wanted to make one. But that doesn't change the fact that if you hang out on the other boards long enough and go looking for help in an honest, open way, you're walking into a minefield of potential criticism or worse.

 

That's life. But don't you also find that there are people who are willing to offer advice that turns out to be helpful? My dc are older than yours and at this point I'm not looking for much advice about a certain curriculum, etc. but I can't imagine that everyone on a message board is going to agree about everything. If you feel that someone has slammed you, put them on ignore...everyone can't understand your unique circumstances and there will never be consensus on a message board. If you only want answers from other 2e parents, let the title of your post reflect that.

 

I still don't think it's fair to expect the forums to be rearranged when there's already an accelerated board and a special needs board. Or is it really a problem of people not wanting to have the stigma of participating on the special needs board? :confused:

[Corraleno]

Isn't it enough to be able to come to these forums and be grateful that there's space provided for free even if you would arrange it differently if you were the host?

... here we've been able to connect with other parents freely for years. Why bite the hand that feeds you?

I still don't think it's fair to expect the forums to be rearranged when there's already an accelerated board and a special needs board.

So.. when parents of logic stage kids asked for a logic board, were they "biting the hand that feeds them? :confused: Did you post your objections when two new boards were created just for writing? The HS writing subforum has a grand total of about 300 posts — I could probably point to half a dozen threads on 2e/VSL/nontraditional learners that each have vastly more posts than that, just in a single thread. What's the point of an entirely separate bilingual board for a tiny subset of WTMers — probably a much smaller subset than 2e/VSL/nontraditional learners? Why have separate boards for accelerated and SN kids — after all, giftedness is a special need, too. Why not just have one big "non-NT" board? Heck, why not just have a curriculum board for each of the three "stages" and then a General board to talk about everything else? After all, parents of SN kids could just ask about curriculum on the curriculum boards, and diagnoses/therapy/etc., on the General board. It's not that hard to look for parents with similar needs and interests, right?

 

It seems like most of the people who object to the idea of a separate board do so because the existing set-up already meets their needs. If the Special Needs board didn't exist, and parents were asking for one, would you be telling people to just be grateful for what they have and stop biting the hand that feeds them?

 

Jackie

[RamonaQ]

I still don't think it's fair to expect the forums to be rearranged when there's already an accelerated board and a special needs board. Or is it really a problem of people not wanting to have the stigma of participating on the special needs board? :confused:

 

In my case, it is the opposite. I really don't participate on AL although both my kids are, in their own ways, well, depending on how accelerated is defined. That is part of the crux and, honestly, part of what I see as very contentious. So I stay here. Truly, my son's dyslexia makes him the brilliant, creative, divergent thinker that he is. So, no stigma for me to post on special needs-- none whatsoever.

 

As I said in that other thread on AL, voices likely are being lost though. If I remember correctly, KarenAnne has taught at the university level. I have also (at an Ivy League, no less). There are many others with advanced degrees and experiences who have insights of what accelerated learning looks like. And, they appear to be getting worn down by the current configurations of boards.

Edited August 21, 2011 by RamonaQ

[oliveview]

I would be interested in a 2E board as well.

[momma aimee]

I might visit. I don't know. It would depend on the tenor of the threads. DS most likely fits into the category of 2E, but honestly I tend to downplay his giftedness because it makes so many people uncomfortable and I have a hard time not feeling like I'm bragging when so many others are having such a struggle... but I've been through the struggle, too, KWIM?? So either the board would be just what I need or I would feel really out of place.

 

Either way, I won't know if it doesn't happen :)

 

:lol:

 

That is sweet of you, but ..............

 

My son is 2e and i feel his struggles, LOL more than out-weigh his "gifts" -- so if i get a chance to be proud of him for academics, or to 'brag' becuase for ONCE he is on par with his peers or , gash, ahead of them, I am good with that.

 

He is so far behind, such an outcast most of the time; he he gets bragging rights once in a while it is all the swetter to me

 

kindly of course. :tongue_smilie:

 

Sorry just had to note that, i do not down play what he can do because there is so much he can't do.

 

it is not sitmga -- i am happy to admit he is SN -- but it is the not fitting. he IS sn but he is also head ...

[rafiki]

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[merry gardens]

..However there are many homeschoolers who do not want the labels for their child or stigma of participating on a SN's forum. .

Maybe some don't, but others may not recognize their struggles as special needs, perhaps especially in a child whose very bright in some areas. I remember the first time I wondered over to a special needs board and discovered people addressing reading problems. I had no idea that I'd find help there. I wonder if a 2E board could run into the same situation, that people might not know what it is and therefore not go there. Maybe a different title like "Bright But Struggling" or something. Only people who know about learning disabilities know what "2e" or "neurotypical" means.

 

I'm not sure still if I'd want the proposed board change. My son is probably a 2e, but it depends on the defintion of gifted. I usually stay off the accelerated learner board because I don't move him at an accelerate rate. I'm just happy that there's at least one area that I don't have to stress about teaching. I have other children with impressive test scores, but again I'm happy that they learn without all types of special efforts, but I mix and mingle the special ed materials and techniques with them too. (They are often hands on techniques or creative approaches recommended for gifted learners too.)

 

I like the discussions and support here on the special education board. I primarily discuss our learning struggles, not the successes that come easily. Would you all leave? :crying: Would I have to check out several boards to find what I find here now? Some of the boards here get so much traffic that discussions older than a day or even an hour get quickly buried.

Edited August 22, 2011 by merry gardens

[rafiki]

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[Just-a-mom]

Slight hijack, but I just wanted to say I learned a lot reading this discussion.

 

1) having a 2E (new term for me) family member is a possibility. I am not going crazy. :-)

 

2) there are tests for executive function.

 

3) people with dyslexia (and maybe other problems) can be creative. Again, I'm not going crazy. This extra creativity could really happen.

 

Carry on!