Re: Re: Gifted and asperger?

[Guest guest]

I agree. If he requires supports, he requires supports. It doesn't matter which classroom he is in when he requires supports.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

Hmmm, I just don't see why he can't have an aide in the gifted class if that is what he needs and it's helped him be successful in ways he wouldn't without an aide. Just me, but it shouldn't matter where in the school the student is, if he/she needs it to succeed or aid with disability, etc., then should have it; location/class shouldn't matter. But that's a quick thought here, I might be forgetting some situations, etc.

>

> By support I meant 1:1 aide to keep him on task.

>

> He won't have an aide with him anymore if he goes to gifted classroom all day. As far as accomodation goes, he gets a behavior plan attached to his IEP. Mostly it involves token system to encourage appropriate behavior.

>

> He was moved up to 2nd grade because of his math and reading.

> When I said spelling I did not mean that he could not handle spelling and the vocabulary in 2nd grade, I meant that he was

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[Guest guest]

Even more, I think many people incorrectly assume that being gifted equals being gifted in all areas. So if you are scoring really high in math, for instance, you automatically are organized and can write well and speak well and on and on. There is this idea that to be gifted or really smart, you are also a well rounded person. My own ds is gifted and yet, he's autistic. He had speech delay and echolalia. He couldn't answer questions except to repeat a phrase he'd learned. So while he could outscore most people on testing, ask him if he wants a drink and he would repeat a phrase to answer. Ask him what he thinks or likes, and he would not know what to say and many times, he would say, "Yeeeeaaaah!" to everything people asked him of a opinion nature. "How was school today?" A: "Yeaaaaaaah." lol.

It was many years before he started to get things plugged in. But anyway, most people could not understand how someone could be "that smart" and not be able to use his language skills at a higher level as well. They all assume that if one is smart in one area, it connects to all areas. I think this was the biggest hurdle we always met with.

And it was almost universal regarding educators - to not understand how this works. Only after working with him did people get that "Oh, I get it!" look. But I always felt that they thought he was "the only kid like this" in the world instead of understanding how it can work. I mean, I can't explain myself that well here but it seemed like instead of people understanding that this is very possible and understanding how the brain is working or in this case, not working, people just felt that my kid was "special" this way and did not really grasp him as a good example of someone who is twice exceptional. His gifts were so obvious that people could not dismiss him. But if you have kids who are 2E who do not excel as easily, I can see how they would be dismissed or not included because people could not seem to understand that one thing didn't equal the other. I think I explained that all wrong but I hope it made some sense.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

>

> Hmmm, I just don't see why he can't have an aide in the gifted class if that is what he needs and it's helped him be successful in ways he wouldn't without an aide. Just me, but it shouldn't matter where in the school the student is, if he/she needs it to succeed or aid with disability, etc., then should have it; location/class shouldn't matter. But that's a quick thought here, I might be forgetting some situations, etc.

It is because most of the teachers/administrators of gifted have attitudes. They see the gifted classes as a "reward" for good students. They don't understand giftedness very well. They don't understand gifted students simply "are" and are not made that way. They think the gifted kids have worked hard in school to get where they are at (it is often the opposite!). And they think a child needs an aid because of "behaviors". They think said child must have an aid because he/she is not working very hard. Therefore, they don't think the child should be "rewarded" with being in the gifted class.

At least that is my take on it--with the teachers who have problems. Obviously, I don't want to generalize. There are some great teachers of the gifted out there. But I have two kids who qualified as gifted in all 4 subject areas, so I've seen a lot of this. It is very frustrating as a parent.

Ruth

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[Guest guest]

Roxanna – I certainly understand you!  And, I have to

admit (and to this day feel quite guilty about it) that until we got a

diagnosis for Tyler (age 15) I fell into the group that didn’t

understand.  I remember thinking, and probably even said it at times, “How

can he be so smart and not understand this?!!!” – “this”

could be any number of things from academics to behavior. 

But, bless his heart, he turned 19 yesterday and graduated from

high school today.  He will attend a local community college this fall.

 

From:

[mailto: ] On

Behalf Of Roxanna

Sent: May 22, 2009 09:09 AM

Subject: Re: ( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

Even more, I think many people incorrectly assume that being

gifted equals being gifted in all areas. So if you are scoring really

high in math, for instance, you automatically are organized and can write well and speak well and on and

on. There is this idea

that to be gifted or really smart, you are also a well rounded person. My

own ds is gifted and yet, he's autistic. He had speech delay and

echolalia. He couldn't answer questions except to repeat a phrase he'd

learned. So while he could outscore most people on testing, ask him if he

wants a drink and he would repeat a phrase to answer. Ask him what he

thinks or likes, and he would not know what to say and many times, he would

say, " Yeeeeaaaah! " to everything people asked him of a opinion

nature. " How was school today? " A: " Yeaaaaaaah. "

lol.

It was many years before he started to get things plugged in. But anyway,

most people could not understand how someone could be " that smart "

and not be able to use his language skills at a higher level as well.

They all assume that if one is smart in one area, it connects to all

areas. I think this was the biggest hurdle we always met with.

And it was almost universal regarding educators - to not understand how

this works. Only after working with him did people get that " Oh, I

get it! " look. But I always felt that they thought he was " the

only kid like this " in the world instead of understanding how it can

work. I mean, I can't explain myself that well here but it seemed like

instead of people understanding that this is very possible and understanding

how the brain is working or in this case, not working, people just felt that my

kid was " special " this way and did not really grasp him as a good

example of someone who is twice exceptional. His gifts were so obvious

that people could not dismiss him. But if you have kids who are 2E who do

not excel as easily, I can see how they would be dismissed or not included

because people could not seem to understand that one thing didn't equal the

other. I think I explained that all wrong but I hope it made some

sense.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

>

> Hmmm, I just don't see why he can't have an aide in the gifted class if

that is what he needs and it's helped him be successful in ways he wouldn't

without an aide. Just me, but it shouldn't matter where in the school the

student is, if he/she needs it to succeed or aid with disability, etc., then

should have it; location/class shouldn't matter. But that's a quick thought

here, I might be forgetting some situations, etc.

It is because most of the teachers/administrators of gifted have attitudes.

They see the gifted classes as a " reward " for good students. They

don't understand giftedness very well. They don't understand gifted students

simply " are " and are not made that way. They think the gifted kids

have worked hard in school to get where they are at (it is often the

opposite!). And they think a child needs an aid because of

" behaviors " . They think said child must have an aid because he/she is

not working very hard. Therefore, they don't think the child should be

" rewarded " with being in the gifted class.

At least that is my take on it--with the teachers who have problems. Obviously,

I don't want to generalize. There are some great teachers of the gifted out

there. But I have two kids who qualified as gifted in all 4 subject areas, so

I've seen a lot of this. It is very frustrating as a parent.

Ruth

We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner.

What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

[Guest guest]

I'm glad it made some sense. lol. There were a lot of things I didn't know in life until I had these kids. A lot of things I wouldn't have to know in life without them. lol. But here we are, learning new things whether we want to or not.

Congrats on the graduation!! What excitement! My ds is finished with his computer course and we still have not figured out where to go next. He wants to go to college next but he did not plan it in advance and we had no clue he was doing so well at this stuff that he might want to continue into college. So we'll have to see. At least we are not bored in life.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

>

> Hmmm, I just don't see why he can't have an aide in the gifted class if

that is what he needs and it's helped him be successful in ways he wouldn't

without an aide. Just me, but it shouldn't matter where in the school the

student is, if he/she needs it to succeed or aid with disability, etc., then

should have it; location/class shouldn't matter. But that's a quick thought

here, I might be forgetting some situations, etc.

It is because most of the teachers/administrators of gifted have attitudes.

They see the gifted classes as a "reward" for good students. They

don't understand giftedness very well. They don't understand gifted students

simply "are" and are not made that way. They think the gifted kids

have worked hard in school to get where they are at (it is often the

opposite!). And they think a child needs an aid because of

"behaviors". They think said child must have an aid because he/she is

not working very hard. Therefore, they don't think the child should be

"rewarded" with being in the gifted class.

At least that is my take on it--with the teachers who have problems. Obviously,

I don't want to generalize. There are some great teachers of the gifted out

there. But I have two kids who qualified as gifted in all 4 subject areas, so

I've seen a lot of this. It is very frustrating as a parent.

Ruth

We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner.

What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore WhereItsAt.com.

[Guest guest]

Oh, I meant to add that I think it's natural at first to say, "How can this be?" It does defy logic at times. I remember being amazed the first time they tested my ds and he scored so high. Well, obviously we knew he was smart but we also knew he couldn't have a simple conversation to save his life. lol. So the scores were a big shock in comparison to the problems he had.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

>

> Hmmm, I just don't see why he can't have an aide in the gifted class if

that is what he needs and it's helped him be successful in ways he wouldn't

without an aide. Just me, but it shouldn't matter where in the school the

student is, if he/she needs it to succeed or aid with disability, etc., then

should have it; location/class shouldn't matter. But that's a quick thought

here, I might be forgetting some situations, etc.

It is because most of the teachers/administrators of gifted have attitudes.

They see the gifted classes as a "reward" for good students. They

don't understand giftedness very well. They don't understand gifted students

simply "are" and are not made that way. They think the gifted kids

have worked hard in school to get where they are at (it is often the

opposite!). And they think a child needs an aid because of

"behaviors". They think said child must have an aid because he/she is

not working very hard. Therefore, they don't think the child should be

"rewarded" with being in the gifted class.

At least that is my take on it--with the teachers who have problems. Obviously,

I don't want to generalize. There are some great teachers of the gifted out

there. But I have two kids who qualified as gifted in all 4 subject areas, so

I've seen a lot of this. It is very frustrating as a parent.

Ruth

We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner.

What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore WhereItsAt.com.

[Guest guest]

It is possible but it is a different kind of giftedness and sometimes it is not a good thing to be in those programs. My AS d was in the gifted program for some yrs in elem. school, at the end she was bored and stopped doing the work, she did not do homework or forgot to turn it in, absences, etc at the end I pulled her out of public school. She is 18 now and just finished freshman year in College. The emotional part is a constant struggle, fortunately she is doing excellent in the academic part with a 3.9 GPA. It is so difficult to deal with AS and I feel very lost sometimes. Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeedFrom: Roxanna Date: Sat, 23 May 2009 09:16:12 -0400< >Subject: Re: ( ) Re: Gifted and asperger? Oh, I meant to add that I think it's natural at first to say, "How can this be?" It does defy logic at times. I remember being amazed the first time they tested my ds and he scored so high. Well, obviously we knew he was smart but we also knew he couldn't have a simple conversation to save his life. lol. So the scores were a big shock in comparison to the problems he had. Roxanna Autism Happens ( ) Re: Gifted and asperger? > > Hmmm, I just don't see why he can't have an aide in the gifted class if that is what he needs and it's helped him be successful in ways he wouldn't without an aide. Just me, but it shouldn't matter where in the school the student is, if he/she needs it to succeed or aid with disability, etc., then should have it; location/class shouldn't matter. But that's a quick thought here, I might be forgetting some situations, etc. It is because most of the teachers/administrators of gifted have attitudes. They see the gifted classes as a "reward" for good students. They don't understand giftedness very well. They don't understand gifted students simply "are" and are not made that way. They think the gifted kids have worked hard in school to get where they are at (it is often the opposite!). And they think a child needs an aid because of "behaviors". They think said child must have an aid because he/she is not working very hard. Therefore, they don't think the child should be "rewarded" with being in the gifted class. At least that is my take on it--with the teachers who have problems. Obviously, I don't want to generalize. There are some great teachers of the gifted out there. But I have two kids who qualified as gifted in all 4 subject areas, so I've seen a lot of this. It is very frustrating as a parent. Ruth We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? ExploreWhereItsAt.com. We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore WhereItsAt.com.

[Guest guest]

Do you have a community college near you so he can continue to

live at home?  Tyler certainly is not ready to live away from home but we are

hoping that will happen someday!  The organization that he has done “social

understanding†groups with for the past three years started a program this year

where they work 1:1 with kids who are in college to help them be successful. 

The program is individualized to each student’s needs.  Tyler will go for an

assessment the first week of June and they will then make a recommendation as

to his needs and amount of time needed weekly.  This program sounds very

similar to the CLE program (College Living Experience) that was discussed on

this group several weeks ago but student doesn’t “live†anywhere specific and

so it is not nearly as expensive.  They also work with them on learning independent

living skills like the CLE program does.  I am hopeful that this program will

be beneficial. 

From:

[mailto: ] On

Behalf Of Roxanna

Sent: May 23, 2009 08:12 AM

Subject: Re: ( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

I'm glad it

made some sense. lol. There were a lot of things I didn't know in

life until I had these kids. A lot of things I wouldn't have to know in

life without them. lol. But here we are, learning new things

whether we want to or not.

Congrats on the graduation!! What excitement! My ds is finished

with his computer course and we still have not figured out where to go

next. He wants to go to college next but he did not plan it in advance

and we had no clue he was doing so well at this stuff that he might want to

continue into college. So we'll have to see. At least we are not

bored in life.

Roxanna

Autism Happens

( ) Re: Gifted and asperger?

>

> Hmmm, I just don't see why he can't have an aide in the gifted class if

that is what he needs and it's helped him be successful in ways he wouldn't

without an aide. Just me, but it shouldn't matter where in the school the

student is, if he/she needs it to succeed or aid with disability, etc., then

should have it; location/class shouldn't matter. But that's a quick thought

here, I might be forgetting some situations, etc.

It is because most of the teachers/administrators of gifted have attitudes.

They see the gifted classes as a " reward " for good students. They

don't understand giftedness very well. They don't understand gifted students

simply " are " and are not made that way. They think the gifted kids

have worked hard in school to get where they are at (it is often the

opposite!). And they think a child needs an aid because of

" behaviors " . They think said child must have an aid because he/she is

not working very hard. Therefore, they don't think the child should be

" rewarded " with being in the gifted class.

At least that is my take on it--with the teachers who have problems. Obviously,

I don't want to generalize. There are some great teachers of the gifted out

there. But I have two kids who qualified as gifted in all 4 subject areas, so

I've seen a lot of this. It is very frustrating as a parent.

Ruth

We found the real

'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner.

What will you find? Explore

WhereItsAt.com.

[Guest guest]

Congrats to your son on his graduation. Mine is graduating in a few weeks. Exciting times! Pam We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore WhereItsAt.com.

[Guest guest]

My son will also attend a local community college in the fall. He did get accepted to a few other colleges, but we decided as a group that a year of community college would be a better plan for now. He also received a $500 scholarship from the Teachers' Union. Pam We found the real 'Hotel California' and the 'Seinfeld' diner. What will you find? Explore WhereItsAt.com.