Evan is 5, turning 6 in may and is behind in every subject in his kindergarten class. He has a 2 in everything, 2 being below average, 3 average, 4 above average, and 5 excelling (oh, and 1 is beginning which he was that in everything last semester) His speech is very bad, no one can under stand him unless you’ve been around him a long time. We have done everything with him: he has speech therapy, IEP, we do numbers and counting and spelling with him, he has a doodle pad to write on, he has workbooks for every subj in school. We havehim count things everywhere and he knows how to count 1’s and 2’s + whatever. (2+8) etc. He can’t count above 10 with the plus or minus but can count to ….forever. He does 110 with no trouble at all and can go farther but sometimes has trouble.
Why is he behind? Some kids his age are ahead.he still isn’t recognizing words except his name. We read to him and point out the words and have him say it, but he memorizes it and just says the entire thing back to you instead.
Why are some kids above average as a skinder and some of them do less learning than my nephew does.
we talked to his teacher and we brought up holding him back which is what we are most likely going to doand the teacher agreed.
We had him tested for autism around 4 and it was negative.
he is also very behind emotionally. He gets frustrated easily or angry easily.
he knows all letters, upper case and lower case. When going to websites such as noggin or sprout we allow him to type it: n, and we wait for him to type one n, then o, g, g,i, n, then I type the ., and he types the c, o, m
We have him in a class where the teacher is best for him in every way. We want him to feel like a normal kid and do not want to put him in a special class. He is with other kids who were put in the same class for the same purpose beause they were behind in one way or another.
he has speech therapy I think 3 or 4 times a week.
What are the goals on his IEP? That’s what you need to look at. If his IEP goals are significantly less academically compared to what his peers are doing then maybe it’s best for him to be in a class for kids with LD (learning disabilities). If he has learning disabilities then repeating kindergaarten is just a temporary solution to an ongoing problem.
I have a 17 year old who knew about as much as your nephew when he was in kindergarten. He’s in 11th grade now with all college preparatory classes and a 3.1 GPA. Your local elementary school seems like they have pretty high standards for kindergarteners.
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Can your nephew go to a resource room for more one on one attention? Resource room is small group tutoring at the school. A kid may be there for half hour to 2 hours a day depending on his needs. Ask his teacher about it.
ETA:
In case you are not familiar with resource room, the resource room teacher helps the kids with reading, writing and Math. Who is on the IEP team besides yourself, his teacher and speech therapist? Is a resource room teacher part of the IEP team? Where I live there is at least one resource room teacher in every school in the city. At my kids’ former elementary school there was anywhere from 1 to 4 students meeting with the resource room teacher at any given time during the day. Your nephew really sounds like he can benefit from resource room.
ETA:
My son was in resource room for 2 hours a day from kindergarten until 3rd grade. Starting in 4th grade he went to resource for 40 minutes a day and it was only for reading. He went to middle school with a Resource Room reading class instead of regular reading. And then in 7th grade, it was all mainstream classes and no more resource room. He didn’t need it anymore.
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My son also got Speech Therapy in elementary school but it was never more than 1 hour each week (or three 20 minute sessions a week). I never heard of anyone getting more than an hour a week of Speech Therapy. Kids who qualify get a lot more time in Resource than they would in Speech therapy. If I were you I would seek out more services and try to find out why he can’t be in Resource Room for a little while each day. Talk to his teacher about this.
If you are interested in reading more about resource room then I got a good link for ya.
http://specialed.about.com/od/idea/a/resourceroom.htm
ETA:
If you have custody of your nephew or if you are his guardian then you can request an IEP meeting at any time. That is your legal right. I would do this if I were you to discuss why he can’t have resource room services. Even if you decide to have him repeat kindergarten, it is still a good idea to have him receive the maximum amount of services that he is eligible for so he can reach his learning potential to its fullest. The academic demands are going to keep getting more challenging as he gets older so it is best to get every service possible to support him along the way. OK, now I’m done with all my posts for this question. Good luck and I wish the best for Evan.
Comments
have you asked his teacher ? or voiced your concerns to his dr for testing ?
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learning and remembering facts is developmental…he may be a young 5…and just developing the mental skills it takes to remember all the facts…reviewing could help him a great deal
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He seems to excell in number concepts and it shows that you have been working with him in that area.
Talk to his teacher, find out if they teach by letter names or by phonemic awareness (sounds the letters make). Either way, extend on this at home. Concentrate on the individual letters first before showing him how to blend them together to make words. There is a great phonemic awareness prgram called Jolly Phonics- which incorporates body actions and a jingle for each letter. It helps the kids to remember them and distinguish each letter sound. Another great one is called Letter Land, which is bascially the same but aimed more at pre schoolers.
If you dont get much help at school, google thesew programs, buy a copy and do it at home. They really do work wonders.
The frustration and anger things is because of his expressive speech. Your speech therapist should be working with him on that. Phonics programs will help him distunguish the different sounds and therefore help him develop his speech.
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EC Teacher
What are the goals on his IEP? That’s what you need to look at. If his IEP goals are significantly less academically compared to what his peers are doing then maybe it’s best for him to be in a class for kids with LD (learning disabilities). If he has learning disabilities then repeating kindergaarten is just a temporary solution to an ongoing problem.
I have a 17 year old who knew about as much as your nephew when he was in kindergarten. He’s in 11th grade now with all college preparatory classes and a 3.1 GPA. Your local elementary school seems like they have pretty high standards for kindergarteners.
ETA:
Can your nephew go to a resource room for more one on one attention? Resource room is small group tutoring at the school. A kid may be there for half hour to 2 hours a day depending on his needs. Ask his teacher about it.
ETA:
In case you are not familiar with resource room, the resource room teacher helps the kids with reading, writing and Math. Who is on the IEP team besides yourself, his teacher and speech therapist? Is a resource room teacher part of the IEP team? Where I live there is at least one resource room teacher in every school in the city. At my kids’ former elementary school there was anywhere from 1 to 4 students meeting with the resource room teacher at any given time during the day. Your nephew really sounds like he can benefit from resource room.
ETA:
My son was in resource room for 2 hours a day from kindergarten until 3rd grade. Starting in 4th grade he went to resource for 40 minutes a day and it was only for reading. He went to middle school with a Resource Room reading class instead of regular reading. And then in 7th grade, it was all mainstream classes and no more resource room. He didn’t need it anymore.
ETA:
My son also got Speech Therapy in elementary school but it was never more than 1 hour each week (or three 20 minute sessions a week). I never heard of anyone getting more than an hour a week of Speech Therapy. Kids who qualify get a lot more time in Resource than they would in Speech therapy. If I were you I would seek out more services and try to find out why he can’t be in Resource Room for a little while each day. Talk to his teacher about this.
If you are interested in reading more about resource room then I got a good link for ya.
http://specialed.about.com/od/idea/a/resourceroom.htm
ETA:
If you have custody of your nephew or if you are his guardian then you can request an IEP meeting at any time. That is your legal right. I would do this if I were you to discuss why he can’t have resource room services. Even if you decide to have him repeat kindergarten, it is still a good idea to have him receive the maximum amount of services that he is eligible for so he can reach his learning potential to its fullest. The academic demands are going to keep getting more challenging as he gets older so it is best to get every service possible to support him along the way. OK, now I’m done with all my posts for this question. Good luck and I wish the best for Evan.
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For a 5 year old he actually sounds like he knows a fair bit but if he is behind in everything then it might be time for the specialists. There are more things out there than Autism. There are so many different learning difficulties. Have you had the hearing and sight checked? Bring in the professionals for a diagnosis, not people on the internet
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Perhaps he has a developmental disorder. Maybe you should look into placing him in a lower functioning or ESE class. Do some research, it sounds like you are doing everything possible to help your son, which is awesome!
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Everyone learns at their own speeds. For example I learned to read extraordinaryly well when i was 4 and my older brother (by 1 1/2 years) didn’t learn to read untill well untill almost 4th grade. I skipped a grade so we are currently in the same grade and I am a good 2 months ahead of him in every subject (did i mention my mom home schools us?) but he is doing the school and doing it well it just takes him more time than me (I am a extreamly FAST learner) oh and he has been in speech therapy since he was 8 or 9(he is now 15) and goes twice a week (my lil’ sis goes too, she’s 5) so my point is just keep working with him untill he gets it!!! Eventually he will get it and he will be great in all his subjects. it is better for him to gradually understand and comprehend it then it is to keep having information crammed down his throat.
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Seeung how different my older brother and I are (the one that is in speech therapy)
I didnt read it all, but your first sentence had me wondering…have you had his ears checked?> This can be a HUGE reason behind why he firstly cant speak properly, because he cant hear you or himself when he is learning new words, this would also explain why he is unable to learn new things easily, because he cant hear the teacher…kids sometimes can learn to lip read , but usually thats easier for people you see everyday (mom and dad) and sometimes they can fake it for awhile….consider this please.
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Stop trying to make him feel normal. If he needs a special class, put him in it. Don’t believe in the negative stereo types just because this ignorant country makes fun of special children.
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I think you’ve missed the point here.
Half of all kids are below average. That’s what average _means_. All that matters is that your son is progressing. If he was a 1 last term and he is a 2 now, then he’s coming along. Being below average does not mean there is something wrong – it just means he’s…below average. Just like half the other kids in his class.
I’m confused, though – if he can’t recognise any words how does he know what lettters to press for his website? And how can he not be in a special class if his class is especially for kids who are behind?
Just stick with it and encourage him to progress at his own rate. He may not be the next Einstein – but then most people aren’t.
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