We were watching Ace of Cakes on the Food Network last night and a Sylvan Learning Center commercial came on.
Jack turned to me at the end and said, that's what I need.
Bless his heart. If only it was that easy.
On Monday, Jack will start sessions with a learning specialist. She will concentrate on reading and writing with him. She said, a child comes to me with a tool belt and it's my job to fill it up with tools.
Shira... although she doesn't look like a Shira - more like a Cindy... was wonderful to talk to. So knowledgeable, helpful, and passionate about what she does and the children that need her help. She met with Jack for 1/2 hour, then spent an hour with me. We talked about Jack and his testing results, about what it means to be Twice Exceptional, and the challenges these children face... in school, with peers, and within themselves.
Jack had a 31pt discrepancy within his Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) testing results. She said the newest trend on the street is that discrepancies are not an indicator of learning disabilities. Then she added, don't be fooled - a 31pt discrepancy is significant. She warned that if an educator saw this scores and was not surprised by them, they likely didn't have a good understanding on how to intercept the tests and I should look else where for support. His most recent results on another test, where he scored in the 84 percentile in vocabulary and the 7 percentile in his ability to differentiate small word sounds, she said, only confirms his predicament.
We went through all the recommended accommodations from both the GDC and Able Kids. I have an agreement with the school for most of them, although I need to ask about taking tests in a quiet room. Interesting enough she was concerned with some of the recommendations because they single out children in the classroom and draws attention to their deficits. Often other children will take advantage of these situations, or the children themselves just feel different and distance themselves from the others. Luckily, those - like wearing headphones during class - weren't on my list... and I explicitly told his teachers that accommodations were to help Jack when he was struggling and to make his classroom experience better. They are a tool for the teacher to use to help Jack, not a mandatory course of action that must be done at all costs.
Shira smiled when I told her that.
Our discussion was really nice for me... because books don't answer specific questions.
Books don't reassure me what I am doing for Jack is the right thing... the best thing for him.
Towards the end of the session, I got the nerve up to ask what my expectations should be. I have come to realize that this is what weighs heavily on me - I have no idea what tomorrow will look like.
I asked if we can expect, with weekly tutoring and therapy, for Jack to be reading and writing at grade level by next year.... in a couple of years? Will he arrive at a place where he can attend and excel in a normal classroom by middle school? High school?
She paused just a moment. Her face was full of compassion... I didn't need to hear what she said.
Yet while it was sad, it was also comforting.
Given the large discrepancies in Jack's results, Jack will likely always struggle in a traditional school setting. He may never read at his academic level and will likely need accommodations in the classroom to reach his full learning potential. Tutoring will always be a great resource for him and non-traditional learning environments that allow him to learn based on his strengths should be strongly considered.
I can see what tomorrow may look like.
The future is still bright.
