*Tiny Vent Session* Ok, it's taken me months to figure this out.... I need a great pediatric neuropsychologist to help me sort my kiddo out. She needs someone that can test her memory, IQ, processing speed, etc, while also being able to give us suggestions when the test is finished...not like here are your numbers good luck...but more like this is the way she processes things, how her memory is working, and what you should do next. I need someone that will actually do the test themselves, and has amazing patient rapport, because if my daughter feels at all rushed or feels like the test administrator does not approve of her, she will lock up and shut down. I've interviewed about four places, been through the chain of college professors trying to help, and I am still not locked in on an appointment calendar. The scary thing is I feel like I have found a possible neuropsych, but then they end up not being board certified, or are not taking referrals, or are only a psychologist, or they have terrible reviews. I don't just want her IQ tested so she will get approved for stuff, I want someone to help me figure out this little adorable puzzle!! *vent over* Our education therapist has kind of freaked me out over this- she says I need to put in the time and interview the doctors to find the exact fit, "which could mean I have to go to California to find the right one, or across the country". Does anyone have any advice for me? What was your experience like? My doctor has absolutely no ideas either. Traveling to Portland or Seattle would be ideal for us, as we live in North Idaho, but we will go anywhere to find the best doctor. I feel like maybe it would be easier if I just got my doctorate in neuropsychology at this point. ;) Thank you for your time!

Wow, good job mama for pulling her from a school that told you that! And great job homeschooling! I just pulled my 9 yold out; it's encouraging to hear from mama's that have walked this road. I'm used to dealing with young adults, so I'm in a new phase helping my daughter. If she can write fiction, she definitely should be in college. Kids with dyslexia often become amazing writers, if they have not been punished too badly for their writing. I bet she will find a professor that can help build her confidence and steer her in the right direction. Best of luck!

Hello, As a education liaison, helping students with mental health or learning disabilities, I would strongly suggest you do not tell her she would not succeed at college and should look for something else. From my experience, this day in age, almost anyone can succeed at college with the correct supports in place. I would first set up an appointment with disability services at the college to ask what they have available to their students with disabilities (they have so many options now with technology). Start her off with some classes she would enjoy, that speak to her strengths. I started a 17 year old taking classes prior to graduating HS because I wanted him to get used to being on campus and to get acquainted with dss etc. As a mother of a LD child, I know it's so difficult, we want to protect them! But our voices will be the ones in their minds, battling the negative. Keep filling her mind with 'she can do anything she works hard for'! Good job and best of luck!

So many great ideas! Thank you for taking time to write this down. It sounds like my dau has similar writing disabilities. The typing would be so good for her. I just copied all of you suggestions. Thank you!

Great advice on the writing and typing!! We will continue with the neuro for sure. I have read a few books and I'm always looking! I just finished The Dyslexic Advantage- so good. Thank you for your ideas!!! It's nice to know, and frustrating to know, that this is what most folks struggle with- putting the pieces together on their own. At least I know I'm not missing something and I can just keep working on it. Thank you so much!!!

Thank you for your response, you are always so helpful! The therapist is a wilson OG therapist- she has her own business and has helped me well outside what she helps her normal clients. She noticed early on that my daughter was not retaining the information that most usually do. For example, she will give her three word sounds and then ask her to write them down and switch out one sound and she would have already forgot the sounds. So she has helped me slow down a bit and stick with teaching her the words and sounds that she needs to grasp to make sure she has mastered those before moving on. We are building up from the beginning, hoping to build a strong foundation of understanding. But she has not dealt much with kiddos that have what appears to be a more global issue going on. She explained the benefits of neurotesting and has helped me understand why it's important to find someone very qualified to give my dau the W test. I love that I get to have the one on one time with my daughter at home, she is already doing so much better with her memory, eagerness to learn etc. I just want to be doing everything I possibly can to help her get over the hurdles, and from what I have read, building up her brain muscles seems to be the ticket. If the neuropsych doesn't know how to do that, who would know? I feel like occupational therapy is good, but not 100% on the money on what she is going to need- does that make sense? I need a holistic approach, or someone that knows about processing, memory, dyslexia, kinisthetic, rote memory, spacial memory, and even nutrition. It's frustrating for parents I think because we know someone out there has been through this or knows the best step and it just takes us digging through all of the other stuff to pin-point it! But I do think she is improving, I just want to make sure Im doing everything possible to give her the tools she needs. She truly is an amazing inventor, artist, and loves learning about history or stories, etc. We have been using MathU See and she does so well with that, I think it will be our ticket for sure. We use the audio book or read to me on Epic, which is great because most of them have a question time at the end of the books. Her interest in books is highly advanced for her age, but she cannot read. I would say writing her thoughts on paper is worse than her reading. She will have well-developed thoughts and sentences that come out on paper very confusing because of the misspelled words- words that I know she knows if I ask her how to spell them outloud, but when she goes to write them, without assistance, she spells them different every time almost. She has about 100 sight words down, but she is in 3rd grade. So we are slowly just going to memorize the s words and rules. The more I read, the more confidence I am gaining about understanding we are on the right path, but I still need a lot of confirmation that this is exactly what she needs. Thankyou for the suggestions! If you have any other ideas, I'd love to hear them! Thank you for taking time to help all of us!:)

Thank you for your responses!! For some reason, I could not find these and I did not receive any notifications!!! Thank you for your posts. We tried the montessori, it did not work! I was frustrated they made it sound so amazing! Thank you!!

Hello! We tried a montessori this year and it did not work for my dau with dyslexia/processing issues (long story). I just pulled my 9 year old dau, 7 year old son, and 4 year old son out and quit my full time job..... My daughter struggles to learn unless she experiences what she is learning, so I'm searching for a curriculum that is specific to 'experiential learning'. My first grader is advanced, and my 3rd grader is behind, so I'm thinking about doing a second grade curriculum and modifying it as needed for each individual student. What do you use? Any suggestions? I started to do the online public school but it was so stuffy and boring, with too many rules. If there is already a thread about this (I've searched), would you direct me to it? I'm also searching for experiences people have had with neuropsychologist for testing their kiddos for processing issues, memory issues, etc. Something beyond dyslexia is going on and I just wish it was easier to find it out- I'm researching like a crazy woman but I feel like I'm reinventing the wheel when some parent out there may be able to point me in the right direction. Our dyslexia remediation therapist is helping us find someone to test, but it's taking a while and then what do we do with the results? I wish there were somewhere we could type in all of her symptoms and then it gave us an answer about what is wrong, how to help strengthen her brain, if it is something that can even be remediated, and where we should seek help? Has anyone done Brain Balancing for their processing disorders? Thank you!!!!!!! I'm so needy at this phase and the professionals in my community don't seem to get it or have any ideas for me.

Hello! I love this board and am kind of addicted to coming here for help haha. We have been going to an educational therapist doing the Wilson Program for my 9 year old daughter with dyslexia and executive functioning issues. Needless to say, it's been an expensive summer. Due to my work schedule coming up, homeschooling is not an option unless I quit and do homeschool full time. We found a great Montessori school that is about 40 minutes away. They seem to have worked with kids with EF issues and I love that their program is strength-based and focused on experiential learning. All words I have never heard at public school (which I took her out of last year after all of you wonderful folks gave me great advice). My concern is she will be in a class with 3-5th graders....which seems like a pretty distracting situation. Has anyone else had their dyslexic child in montessori? Any words of advice? How about grants for Elementary Private School for kids with learning disabilities? I just sent out a bunch of emails today to our state government education and other services, asking questions. Thank you for your ideas and good luck to all of those whom are starting school next month! How did summer go so quickly?!

We need more teachers with your kind of expertise!! Im excited about the therapist I found as she sound similar to you. I have been doing my own research, studying as well- so much to learn and so interesting! I am sad for the kids who can't afford remediation therapy. I work with troubled youth and young adults in the education field, helping them get plugged into college resources and help with learning disabilities. So often I find a young adult who had a learning disability their entire lives and only thought they were just stupid, or treated as such. Their worth is often defined by the grading scale and the only positive impact that could have happened in their lives was at school. I would give one of my legs for there to be a foundation that helps pay for dyslexia or learning disability support outside of the public schools. It's so frustrating and sad to see. Anyways, Im sure we all have a bunch to say about this so Ill stop haha. Thanks again for your input and cheers to you for going after this- YOU ARE NEEDED!

Love the summer camp stuff! I am always finding ways for my kiddos to gain more independence. I'm going to find some camp ideas for my boys. My dau has ed therapy every day at 2:30 so its kind of rough getting her there from a camp. I'm looking into becoming a Ed Therapist as well. I have a BA in Psychology . What school/training did you go through? There are zero resources up where I live for families with dyslexia. Do you know of any government funding for kids to receive education therapy? There are so many low income families here that Im not sure anyone could afford it (which we can barely afford it). I have my hat in a million things right now though and Im trying to calm down so I can be a good parent haha. Thanks!!!

Recover mode!! YEs! Its so hard to cut back on work for me and transition to driving everyday to a city haha. I'm the kind that likes to hibernate in the mountains when the sun comes out. That is way too hot!!! It's been in the 60's in north idaho the last week, but it's headed to the 90s and I am afraid.;) Thanks for the comment! Good luck!

Th Thank you for your response! I am a total night owl and I hate schedules lol. She had her evals done this last school year so we are just getting started. We've been doing barton for about five months but I have her with an ed therapist that does executive f and memory stuff. I know once we get going more on it they will give me ideas too. I originally was excited to have summer break so that I didn't have to do the ridged schedule with her, because she is a free-flowing creative little human, but I think I will need to be more organized, etc. Good ideas about the alarms! Thank you!!

It's summer! I'm excited, as I'm sure most of you are. But is anyone else kind of pulling their hair out? I ended up homeschooling my daughter so it's not that I'm not used to being around the kids, it is just anytime there is a shift in schedules or routines, my dau (8yrs, dyslexia, executive functioning issues) struggles to rally. I'm trying to be patient as possible because I know I can't get frustrated with her. I've realized today I need to cut back my work schedule, stop some other things that are taking up my mind and making us hurry to places.... What do you do with your executive functioning kiddos in the summer to get them on the right track? I want to enjoy this time, be encouraging, and not nagging all summer. If I were answering my own questions i would say- chore chart, reward system, signs on the doors, start a new routine schedule, calendar on the wall with whats happening.... Anyone else have magic tricks? :) Thank you for this forum- it has helped me so much even though I have mostly been reading and I haven't had much time to interact. You folks are a blessing! And I started my daughter with an educational therapist this week- means driving 45 min to appointment, 4 days a week, but it seems like it will really help! Yikes, motherhood is a lot of work but I love seeing my little girl smile! My two boys think it's pretty fun going to town too- we've been hunting for pollywogs every day near her appointment;) Cheers to you, :driving: great moms!

Thank you, Mamamoose! I took her out last Friday. The school was fine, a bit awkward as expected. We decided to bring her to school on Fridays for an hour to participate in Music. Just as everyone has predicted, I'm feeling so relieved that the decision is done and I know that what I am doing is giving her the best chance. We are cruising through Barton and doing a bunch of executive functioning work, art work, and just actually enjoying time together so far. I know it will change as we start to do harder material. Thank you for your support and encouragement! Now comes the questions of, am I doing enough? haha. I can already see that what we will be doing at home will help her fix the holes she has in her reading puzzle. It's amazing how worn out she gets after about a half hour of learning. Im so glad to have the flexibility to give her a rest and make it more fun/ less intimidating. I'm not sure I would have gone on with it without the support from all of the ladies commenting. THANK YOU!!!!!!

Thank you OneStepAtATime mama! I so appreciate all of your feedback and all you do for this forum, etc. Thanks for taking time for us newbies!! Bless you!

Thanks, Pen! Great suggestions. I know its going to take some time to figure this all out. Her last day of public school is Friday! Im feeling relieved the decision is made and now we can really focus on what she needs. This whole forum is so awesome and I am soooo thankful for all of you ladies whom have answered my questions!

Thanks, Pen. My DD is 8 yrs old, in the 2nd grade. It's amazing how well you know your son and what works for him! Barton is so far going well, but she is sometimes looking at me like, 'why are we doing this'. She is a big picture thinker and always wants to know how the steps connect. I'm going to work through it though because we have already learned that she struggles with a few of the specific sounds of the words. We found out today that she needs bigger letters, and she reads better with a off color background vs white. I am guessing the clutter on the page will not work for her because she is easily distracted. I'm trying to figure out what her best learning styles are- she is very creative and musical. When you say 'audio learning', are you just using the read Ipad apps for reading or what types of programs do you use? We just borrowed an Ipad today with several apps on it for reading and writing. Thanks for taking time to add your info! I'll check out that book for sure.

I will find out about what it entails at our meeting this week, re: about losing an IEP, etc. I found out we have a grant in Idaho that helps students with disabilities have access to technology. I am meeting a guy out of the University of Idaho tomorrow who is going to assess her needs and give her a few I-pad designs to try, along with apps specific to dyslexia. I'm interested to learn more about this. Im also reading a great book, called,The Dyslexic Advantage, by Brock Eide, M.D., M.A. and Fernette F. Eide, M.D. It is a great read, highlighting the strengths of Dyslexics and describing how their brains use the right and left hemispheres, etc. I like that it is focused on their strengths and the amazing things these kids can do when they grow up if they are applied and encouraged. Any other great books you recommend for a new homeschooler? Thanks, ladies!

Good to know! Interesting. Thank you!

Thank you for the ideas everyone! That sounds like a very interesting idea. I am going to check it out. I also need to find out if I take her out, will she lose her IEP standing? There is a great art school with a special ed program I want to check out next year.

Thank you all! Great advice and things to think about. I checked in today about having her in school part time, but the teacher said since she has an IEP, she has to be in school pretty much all or nothing...I'm going to talk to the principal friday. That seems weird to me, especially since an IEP can be modified. I so appreciate your ideas!! More the merrier! Thanks!

Thank you so much, One Step at A Time mama! Good info. I will continue to research this!

What would a neuro-psych evaluation give me? I feel like the data from the school didn't really tell me more than I already knew about her. She was diagnosed dyslexic through a test outside of the school. I would be interested in a neuropsych test to learn more about the best ways to teach her, etc. Did they give you great suggestions for where to go from there?

Very solid advice and measure... I hope your little does so much better without the stress and anxiety. Learning should be a little bit fun at least, right?! Thanks for weighing in!