Parents (or teachers) of Early Readers- VERY uneven development in other areas?(LONG)

This is not meant to be a brag or 'my kid can' post. Please dont take it as such.

Both my girls have very asynchronous development-- they aren't potty trained, but both are reading. One at a higher level than the other. I did not 'teach' them---we dont do flash cards, drill, etc....they both just picked it up (Like I wish they would pick up potty training or cleaning up!!LOL) DD2 is at a K level and DD2 is around 1st +. Math skills are age appropriate - they both can write their names and print letters/a few words .. Both LOVE books and are very interested in books/letters/sounds/speech at an early age. DD1 is borderline obsessive about it.- when she gets obsessive we focus her on something else not book related.

DD2 has mild gross motor delays ( cant ride a trike), mild fine motor delays, and definate social/sensory difficulties (still puts things in her mouth). She has a VERY short attention span and is very distractable. DD1 is socially age appropriate but is also advanced in fine motor skills. She has a long intense attention span and is hard to redirect.

DD2 cant potty train (per neurologist) due to physical immaturity--DD2 is partially potty trained, but struggles with severe constipation.

They qualify for an 'at-risk' preschool next fall due to developmental delays of one twin (social, physical) and the fact that they both have asthma, severe allergies, were preemies, history of therapies(PT&OT), a few other qualifications, and low birth weight.

1.I am concerned that they will get kicked 'out' of the preschool for their reading skills both could use the social development (esp one of my DDs) and really are age appropriate for other skills. We can not afford a private preschool for both of them at this point.

2. The girls have fall birthdays (oct) and would be youngest in class if sent to K the following year. Socially- I would totally wait, but in 1 year (less since we have to register next Feb) I cant even imagine where they will be at and can't picture holding them back academically for social skills. DD2 has some sensory issues/social delays/possible Pervasive Developmental Delay and we are looking at an IEP or 504 plan right now (she was eval'ed last week).

3. How did/do the schools adapt for kids that were reading fluently in K? what if they had other 'issues'?

4. Did they 'even' out skill wise or are they still 'advanced' ?

5. How did/do you approach it with other kids? Both DDs ask other kids their age to 'read' things and then tell them it is 'easy' and/or do it for them. I dont want them to either 'show-off' or 'feel weird that they can' about reading.

6. Anyone have a twice exceptional child? (talented in one area and disabled in another?) How did you handle it? How did the school handle it?


7. How do you find age appropriate books? DD2 is happy with Biscuit, Word Bird, Clifford Puppy Days, Frog & Toad etc Easy Readers but DD2 is starting to gravitate/choose ( for us to read or for her to read parts of) longer books (Fancy Nancy, Ready Freddy, etc) that deal with things she has no exposure to ( bullies, school, vacations, older humor, social issues), but she has the comprehension and decoding skills to read them----. Any ideas?



Thanks.....feel free to PM me if you want- I was hesitant to post this since I did not want it to come across as a brag post--. DH and are struggling with how to best handle their very uneven development ( I know all kids are uneven, but this seems more than normal) and want to help them build self-esteem and confidence as much as we can in ALL areas--this next year will be choice time concerning K and how we want to handle school (another year PreS, multi age, private, home school, 1/2 day K, all day K etc).

KC

As a former teacher, it is SO different on the other side of the fence (now as a parent)- when I go back to the classroom, it will be with totally different viewpoint!

 

When I taught Kindergarten, I had a few exceptional readers and would use them to help the other students. They were average in math, but had no motor development problems that I knew of. Since they qualify for that program, I think they will wind up staying in it. A child can need help writing or with physical aspects and still be a good reader. I don't think they will give you any problems at the program. I hope that helps. My brain is fried after a day of toddlerhood!

 

Real quick -- have you looked at this?
http://www.hyperlexia.org/aha_what_is.html

I have no personal experience, but a friend of mine in another buddy group mentioned that her 4yo son was just diagnosed with it.

 

Look into hyperlexia - it sounds like it might apply.

I teach a K-1 class of students with special needs. I have a couple that we believe are hyperlexic. They get services based on their need. Just because their reading decoding skills are high doesn't mean they do not need help in other areas. Being able to decode doesn't necessarily mean that a child can function independently in a school environment. .

 

Interesting--hyperlexia fits more w/ DD2 due to the social issues, self-stimming, fears, sensitivities, and routines....but both girls are fairly verbal and have a great imagination. I will ask her Occupational Therapist about it....I know they've looked at Aspergers (she was too verbal and social) PDD-NOS, speech disorder (she used to echo a lot), and now are just using her gross motor delays to get services when it is the sensitivities/sensory stuff that is the problem. Her short attention span lends more to a large sight word vocab and 'shared' reading than stories. Though she does read to herself in bed (I c an hear her over the monitor sounding out words or rereading a book).

DD1 has NO social problems and is the more advanced reader. She is not just decoding or word calling, she can answer questions- use context clues to figure out unknown words, goes back and rereads to correct herself, expands on the story, and can retell it.

Thanks ladies-I will address hyperlexia w/ the OT this week.

 

I'm a pre k special ed teacher and I was going to mention hyperlexia, but everyone beat me. Often children with this have poor comprehension, however in my experience not always the case. Usually these children do lack age typical social skills. You said your one child does not. I had a student like this who was declassified at the kindergarten level and the parents were not happy. They did go on to report that he is doing great without services.

Just wanted to add about books. I am also a literacy specialist. You should bring your child to the library and let them choose books about anything that interests them (bugs, trains etc...) The reading level is not really important at this pont and there is nothing wrong with a challenge.

 

Once they take the girls into the program, they will not dismiss them mid-year. Jonathan was also reading really early--he pre-K teacher, the year he was in 3 yo preschool, said that when she had to evaluate him, she had to cover the words, or he would read them rather than look at the pictures--it was the first time in her 20 years of teaching that she had to do that.

The Pre-K was actually not about academics at all, so they really didn't look at how much he could do--they focused on preschool skills. So the fact that he could read and was way ahead in math was immaterial.

In K, his teacher had him come in early once a week for tutoring sessions, so he could work with him at HIS reading level--which was way above the class. He was never bored in K, and she would have him do "special" things, like read directions, and other things like that.

 

I can only address a small portion of your post -- I, too, have an early reader, and I was a little worried about her being bored in K (she starts in the fall). Nadia has read all the Magic Treehouse books a million times, the A to Z Mysteries, the Capitol Mysteries by the same author, and is now working her way through Geronimo Stilton and the Boxcar children.

However, I just got her suggested summer reading list from school, and it had mostly easy readers and picture books on it -- we checked them all out of the library, and I found that she is just as happy and excited to read picture books as she is chapter books. I think it's because emotionally, she's very much a 5-year-old, so even her advanced reading ability doesn't prohibit enjoyment of age-appropriate subject material, you know?

I really like this blog, which gives great suggestions for appropriate books:

http://www.books4yourkids.com/

I don't have much experience with the social issues, but I can tell you that Nadia is average or somewhat behind in fine and gross motor skills, but not enough to be considered a disability. She's just a clumsy kid.

Please don't feel like you have to apologize because your kiddos read so well! I'm unbelievably proud of my DD. But, I do understand -- I have one kid who is advanced, one kid who is delayed and has a lot of challenges, and one somewhere in the middle. I sometimes struggle with meeting all of their needs.

 

My 11 yo was an early reader. He was 4 and reading on a 2nd grade level.


3. How did/do the schools adapt for kids that were reading fluently in K? They had a library in the classroom that had books for different level readers.
what if they had other 'issues'? My son was a late potty trainer (4 1/2) and he is still lacking in the social skills dept.

4. Did they 'even' out skill wise or are they still 'advanced' ? Now besides the social problems and adhd he is advanced in most classes, he is still very ahead in the reading, hes on a 8th or 9th grade level in the 5th grade.

5. How did/do you approach it with other kids?
He and I don't brag about it. He read the school mandated books and then read other books on his own time.

7. How do you find age appropriate books?
I take him to the library and we have a collection of about 200 books at home in all age catergories and subjects for him to choose from.

 

I'm glad you posted--I just learned a lot reading the replies!
I can't come close to addressing your questions except this one:
QUOTE
5. How did/do you approach it with other kids? Both DDs ask other kids their age to 'read' things and then tell them it is 'easy' and/or do it for them. I dont want them to either 'show-off' or 'feel weird that they can' about reading.


My girls speak two languages, it did take some time for them to get that other people don't. They would sometimes use English with other kids, or Spanish when we were in the US, and totally expect those kids to speak that language. So far they've never tried to show-off, I really see that as a behaviour older kids do, like around 7 or 8. So I don't think this will be a problem in pre-k. We use it as an opportunity to talk about differences. And recently they've taken an interest in playing at teaching English to people around them, but I think that stemmed from adults around them asking them to teach them English, which is a highly desireable skill where we live. Reading is also a highly desireable skill. As some of the teachers have already posted, you girls can help their classmates. Hopefully it will be two way. The classmate will help them learn the norms of social interaction.

Just remember that each child develops at it's own pace and has their own strengths and weaknesses.

 

I have one that learned to read very early on very well (he is also exceptionally good at maths), but had some severe social difficulties, he is/was on the autistic spectrum (I write was because in the past year and a half he has advanced so much socially i would not think he would get that diagnosis anymore). He could not relate to other children, not even his siblings, and he would get beyond frustrated when he did not get his way (with children, he is absolutely fine when at home he doesn't always get his way).

When he was 4 I was kind of desperate, because his behaviour was driving me nuts, he would scream and cry, play by himself even when in a group, talk to plants rather than to human beings, etc... he is also the single most cautious kid I have ever seen. Not a daredevil at all.

He was in a preschool until last october (when the twins had just turned 5), when we moved here they told me to put him into first grade since he can read and do maths so well, while his twin was definitely not first grade material and was put into kindergarten. I decided to have both in kindergarten, first so that they would have one "friend" in a completely new environment, secondly because I didn't want to separate them into different age groups and thirdly because I think later in life he'd rather be in the same age group as everybody else, plus nobody regrets years later to have had an additional year of fun when they were 5!
Both boys are doing great in K, they are advancing a lot, the reader is much better socially, the social one is learning some easy letters and is starting to do some maths. for us this was the right decision!
Millie

 

Sean was an early reader. He had just turned 4. I actually suspect he was reading for some time prior but we only discovered it at 4. He read my computer manual at age 5 and absorbed knowledge like a sponge. Yet socially he was nowhere near ready for K when he had just barely turned 5. (He had been in a preschool setting a few days a week since age 3 but this was not academically oriented.) So we opted to keep him out of K until age 6. We were blessed in that he was able to attend a full day K which was actually in a combined K/1 classroom. His teacher was WONDERFUL and never let that boredom sink in. We stayed in close contact with her and she saw to it he always had extra, more involved homework geared towards his exceptional abilities. Sean just graduated last week and has continued to excel in all areas academically. He graduated with distinction, taking all honors and AP courses in high school. B&C are on the same track and we did the exact same thing with them as we did with Sean, with the exception of putting them in all day K since it was not available here in TN. They are starting high school in the fall, enrolled in all honors courses. Both scored perfect scores on their algebra finals in 8th grade. So my point is, early reading is not necessarily something that will hamper them in school, even if they do not start K the first year they are eligible. I would seriously discuss this with administration and staff at their prospective school to see how the school will accomodate their learning needs.