My 7 yr old second grader has ADHD for which he is medicated during school (he does not want to take it otherwise), and he is LD He is a twin and his brother does not have these issues. He is eligible for summer school, but it is not at his home school, they say the class will be full, and I have no idea who will teach or how it will be run. It goes 8 - 12:30. Since it is half an hour away, by the time he gets home and has lunch, there is no camp he can go to. Also, last year, the attitude was that I should go to the class a few days with him and decide if I want it. The reality is you cannot wait that long to make summmer arrangements. People and programs get booked well in advance. Last year I just took him to an ed therapist 2 hrs a week to minimize regression, and he went to camp with his brother. I’m in L.A. and sent his records to The Kelter Center, an ed center. After they review them, we’ll set something up, maybe 2 hrs a day twice a week. It is very costly, but would allow him to “have a summer”. The twin issue is a big factor in everything - comparing himself, fairness issues etc. Sorry to be so long winded - I really would love to find a program where there are academics AM and some kind of camp afterward. I’ve seen this type of thing in regular classes, but not special needs. I checked the camp guide on this homepage, but found nothing here. He is a child who will do almost no work at home, so home remediation is out. Any suggestions?
Re: WHAT TO DO THIS SUMMER
I can definitely relate to the twin issue. I also have twins one LD one not and my LD twin was retained in K ( against my will) putting them in different grades in school. All of this is very difficult for both of them emotionally, so whenever not in school I try to make them feel as “equal ” as possible and let them just play and have fun and be twins.
Re: WHAT TO DO THIS SUMMER
Sue, I don’t know of any other twins in this situation - I don’t even know other families with an LD child! I would love to communicate with you further to share some experiences or advice. If interested, please e-mail me at [email protected]. Thanks.
Choises Choises....
Hi Amy,
It’s always a difficult choise and particularly hard when one child doesn’t have to “work” over the summer while another needs the mental stimulation.
I don’t know what your son’s specific academic difficulties are, but Westmark School in Encino has a summer school program that uses LMB (in fact, LMB refers people to them!), Fast Forword and other programs. Although I don’t have a child at the school, I’ve been there and it’s nice. The administrators are very helpful. Also, they offer tutoring.
If your son had SID or motor planning difficulties a summer swim program or some type of non-competitive sports acitivity might be good. If he has any communication difficulties you could try a theatre camp. I know there are a few in the L.A. area.
You may want to take a look at your son’s areas of “weakness” and look for fun summer activities that could help stimulate these areas.
Re: WHAT TO DO THIS SUMMER
My boys are 12 months apart. As my friends with twins say, “twins the hard way.” I was pregnant for 18 months out of 21. Two boys, 5 and 6. One is autistic and the other has visual processing issues. The special ed program is in session this week but I’m not sending my autistic son because his brother is home. I’m also not sending him to summer school because it is taught by subs who allow the schedule to fall apart. It was a disaster last summer and I pulled him out. I vote for fun summer camps for both of your sons. Our community recreation programs offer different themes, one week sessions, full day and half day options. There ‘s a company that offers science related camps, I think it’s called Science Adventures, they may have camps in your area. My autistic son always seems to make progress when we go away on vacation together in the summer. We’ll be gone most of this summer. I have both boys signed up for a week of gymnastics camp before we go on vacation. I think a break from school is a good thing.
If you're in the USA, my kids loved this camp
My kids (1 ld spec ed, 2 not) love Camp Invention. Here’s a link to their site. They travel everywhere in the USA & its a day camp, not expensive, they all had alot fun :) They begged me to sign them up again!
The people at this camp are hip to children with special needs- we will be going back this year.
http://www.invent.org/camp_invention/2_1_1_background.asp
Oh, do you really?
If you have ever received an encouraging word or an informative message from this board, then may God forgive you. You have just chimed to call a caring, challenged parent a poisoner of her child, recommended a medical procedure for the addicted for her child.
This mom has made the tough call to med her child, she did not go into details of the child’s history, so you know nothing about the specifics.
Shame on you
Re: Oh, do you really?
Thank you for this. I can’t imagine a parent who hasn’t educated themselves quite thoroughly on the issue of medicating their child and looked at it from all angles before making the decision.
I’ve learned that all types of people , and people with varying degrees of knowledge participate in bulletin boards, and one must be a discerning reader and evaluator of info and additudes.
Re: Choises Choises....
I do know someone whose son goes to Westmark (paid for by the public school). They do have an academic/camp combo, but it was prohibitibly expensive last year when I looked into it. They actually send kids to the Kelter center in West LA for LMB.
Theater camp is a great idea. I asked the drama teacher at school for a recommendation for movement classes, but he couldn’t come up with any. I’m still looking all around. Thanks for the suggestions!
Re: WHAT TO DO THIS SUMMER
My boys did a week of Science Adventure camp last year and loved it. They have 1/2 day, but only in the morning. My son needs the remediation in tyhe morning so he can be “free” the rest of the day. It’s really hard to find an afternoon program. I can’t drive all over town every day.We try to get 10 days of pure vacation - going away - in as well as formal activities.
Have a great summer!
Re: Choises Choises....
I hadn’t looked into the cost of their summer program, but it wouldn’t surprise me that the cost would be quite high.
I did take my son there for a couple of tutoring sessions and the tutoring (compared to other programs) was very reasonable. Also, one of the tutors we had was awesome! I believe they are all trained in LMB. (Maybe I’m wrong? You could always contact them and get futher info if you’re interested). I’ve never heard of the Kelter Center, but I’ll have to contact them and get some information. I’m always interested in learning about possible resources (for me or other parents!).
I don’t know a lot about theatre arts programs, but my daughter took some classes through Glendale Theatre. You might want to see if they have a program or can recommend one. Also, I think there are some programs in Santa Monica. I believe I have a folder with some programs too. I’ll try and take a look at that tomorrow if I have time and list them for you.
Can you hire a tutor to come to you, or to help him in a location near you? I do this kind of work myself — unfortunately not in LA — and if you look around enough, you may find a knowledgeable professional who will do the right thing for him. One to one, if the person knows good methods, is always more bang for your buck than a center or a fixed program, especially in a larger group. And at least some of us don’t charge a fortune.