<p>^ Interesting, as my younder kiddo was diagnosed with “slow processing” yet is diagnosed gifted…a deep thinker for sure, and the deep thinking makes getting things done a challenge…
Once kiddo spent tons of time thinking through and essay an then wrote a beautiful essay–in one draft…All planned…</p>
<p>We dont see the thinking and sometimes think its wasting time…
otoh…sometimes there is tons of dreaming/thinking going on and little getting done!</p>
<p>Rabbit trail-- unleaded $3.399 and mid grade $3.599 we hear it will spike again shortly.</p>
<p>Apollo - Thanks for the info I will look at this. S does have a high IQ, at least he did when tested previously for a gifted program. The tests he just took were the Weschler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT-III) and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-IV). S definitely is one who likes to think and will go off on tangents occasionally because he gets so wrapped up in that one thought. He has an appt with his pediatrician Friday to get a medical eval. Is your S getting any kind of help? (if you don’t mind me asking) The psychologist suggested my S get “academic counseling” to help him with thought processing and organization.</p>
<p>Good luck to all dealing with ADD issues. It was described to me (when my D was diagnosed) as watching tv while someone else holds the remote and is flipping channels like crazy. Hers is much less now that it was in grade school and middle school – partly because of learned coping skills. We had plenty of people tell us that she wasn’t <em>really</em> ADD – including a lot of teachers – but we knew that a bright kid who couldn’t carry on a conversation without a million subject changes, who had a great vocabulary but who couldn’t write clearly because she couldn’t finish a thought, was having issues beyond the norm. We did put her on meds for a while and the difference in her schoolwork and her ability to connect with others improved almost at once. I think it helped slow her mind down enough that she could actually get a look at her thoughts. She found out that she wasn’t ‘wrong’, or ‘random’ or ‘stupid’…and she went from being ‘weird’ to being a ‘nerd’ (apparently that’s a step up in kid-world!). That gave her enough confidence to quit the medication in H.S. and she has done well w/o it. The meds didn’t solve every issue, but it helped tremendously. Don’t be afraid of it, if that’s the solution you, your kid, and your doctor comes to. </p>
<p>Of course, she hated it because she thinks it stole an inch from her height…(G)…not a problem for college students. Besides, she’s quite tall enough, taller than me anyway!</p>
<p>These kids have done some amazing, and sometimes very attractive, things with a mainstay in my life at home, in costume design and at the stable, and the winners justly deserve their scholarships and recognition. Oh, to be back in high school (or maybe not).</p>
<p>re: This dress equals a new Pontiac G3 – For $14K, I don’t think it’s much dress. It’s just a standard sleeveless slip-dress. At least in that price point in a wedding gown, you get re-embroidered lace, silk-satin, Swarovski crystals, and a husband. With this, unless everyone knew what you had on (and if you are the kind of person who bought it, you probably told them) no one would say, ‘my God, that’s beautiful!’</p>
<p>In the interest of full disclosure, my D’s dress is from the same company, La Femme. But I think hers is prettier, more interesting, and was less than $200. Frankly, I’d rather buy her a car.</p>
<p>Good to see how families are working out possible visits or re-visits. We have to wait to see what the rest of the FA looks like from schools and then narrow the list for revisits/possible overnights etc–
amanda kayak I like your 80% financial 20%fit/feel method!<br>
Acceptances to 6 of 7 schools are in for D1, waiting on one more school, one I think is iffy but don’t think it’s her favorite (she’s being fairly quiet about her preferences since we have to wait on FA info)</p>
<p>Both the Prom contest and the festival have become big events here in our community. It really is amazing what the kids have created in the Prom contest.</p>
<p>I love the duct tape dresses and tuxes. Very creative. </p>
<p>The more I read the more I am hopelessly confused now regarding S’s ADHD diagnosis. He has always had big issues with organization. As one of his teachers said in their part of his assessment, S wrote the best essay he read in years on the middterm, but his grade suffers because he fails to hand in completed HW assignments that he left in his locker or are in another books, etc. Some of his teachers accommadate S, but others have absolutely no tolerance for the chaos. And believe me we have tried for years using various techniques to get this kid organized. At our meeting with the psychologist, she said it has to frustrate the heck out of S to be sitting next to kids acing a class when S knows he knows more than that kid but S only gets a B. If nothing else we will probably have him work with someone between now and college to fix something, not sure what, but something. We and others have tried working the organization skill thing and it falls apart as soon as we let go, so I don’t think that is it. I guess it was one reason I was so happy he won the scholarship competition. He grades don’t reflect what he knows, but unfortunately, that is how he is being judged for college admissions. I appreciate everyones input.</p>
<p>Mamom –
Not sure if you’ve been part of any of the discussions about executive coaching and executive functioning.</p>
<p>Our kid was not getting work done, seemed to be able to grasp topics being taught, but wasn’t getting work done. A cousin, who is a school psychologist, strongly suggested an IQ test…not to find out intelligence, but to see if there were discrepancies in the different areas tested. After a number of frustating years in elementary school, our school system finally gave a full set of tests when Middle School started. Similar to your son, this child’s IQ test showed high average overall…but low average on processing speed and visual motor. Further testing did not indicate a learning disability or ADD (and we knew he wasn’t ADHD). School system was willing to put in a 504 plan…with extra time for testing, keyboard usage (hand writing was a big issue) and a couple of other strategies. </p>
<p>Plan helped this child, along with some spectacular Middle school teachers who took the 504 plan seriously and really worked with our kid on organization (for a kid with slow processing speed…disorganization makes it even worse!)</p>
<p>Child was not diagnosed with Executive Functioning issues…but…I’m not sure there was any actual testing for it. Because there are still some issues with time use and concern about how the very large amounts of unstructured time in a college setting will be used productively, we are considering some sessions with an executive functioning coach.</p>
<p>For anyone in the mid Hudson Valley region who needs a referral for an excellent educational psychologist to work on coping techniques for those students with dual exceptions, including executive functioning issues, I can recommend someone. Not that my D ever worked with someone like that- just ask her. Unfortunately your expenses are pretty much out of pocket as Dr. does not work with insurance companies. :(</p>
<p>In my opinion (granted, as a non-psychologist) I think it is very difficult to test for executive function issues. When my son was given his latest battery of tests last summer, the test really didn’t show he had EF issues even though he has HUGE EF issues. As I remember the explanation of the test, they see if the student can stay on some task or another…I think that MOST students could stay on task for 15 minutes while sitting in a very small room with a clinical psychologist across the table. That in no remote way reproduces the EF required to succeed independently in college.</p>
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<p>I love your D!..because she reminds me of me. On several occasions I have emailed segments of the Texas Education Code to teachers and/or administrators. There was this issue regarding science requirements for D’s class, since the law changed when she was in 8th grade. I received no fewer than four different “official” “final” answers to my question. So I looked up the answer myself and circulated the relevant language from the Code.</p>
<p>^^^^Well she is a handful- but (almost) always with good intentions. She had become the de facto advocate- if a kid is in trouble and really thinks there is a “guilty with explanation” avenue, she is often asked by the kid to come to the principal’s office too. (We refer to her at school as Solicitor General.) We just try to encourage her to use her powers for good.</p>
<p>Does anyone know last year’s MIT decision release date? I’ve found a wide variety of answers online, and haven’t received an email stating the exact date, like I did with EA.</p>
<p>Thanks a bunch! I suppose they don’t state their release date earlier than they have to so they can avoid having to postpone it if the volume of applications increases one year.</p>