Our 16 yr old son is a sophomore in regualr high school. He has ADHD & just this year received an IEP which places him in team taught core classes. He has a languaged based learning disability but did not qualify for the IEP on his test scores but was given it because of his attention issue during the testing.
Yesterday he announced we were out of deodorant, I told him where it was, he looked, didn’t see it, came back continued saying we were out of deodorant. Showed him where it was only to find out he meant detergent!
A really long ordeal for him not to have realized he was using the incorrect word so he obviously believed deodorant was the word for detergent.
Also has poor writing skills. Can pretty much do intro, body and conclusion but the writing is awkward, he leaves out words and tense may not match. His reading comprehension is not great. He will need help over the summer before taking the new SAT.
Have tried several language therapy centers briefly in the past when younger but he was resistant and seemed like throwing money out the window. Tried basic English tutor in middle school one summer.
Maybe now that he is older, he would be more invested in improving himself and working at it.
Should we try basic english tutor again or a special program or center?
Recommendations?
Thanks!
16 yr old language & writing
Thank you for your reply.
In 2001 GORT-3 was administered with overall score in 66th percentile (oral reading quotient of 106).Reading accuracy at 5th grade level in 2001 with ceiling of 9th grade level. Basal reading comprehension established at 5h grade story level with ceiling at 9th grade. Comprehension fell in average range. This was summer after 6th grade.
Has good phonemic awareness supposedly.
Tried Visualizing & Verbalizing program which he hated. Hated having to imagine/”picture” things in his head.
Now he is in 10th grade and what to do with a teenager?
Thanks for insights.
Re: 16 yr old lanaguage & writing
If the last testing was 4 yrs ago, I would have him retested as Sue suggests; a student who was 1 or more yrs behind in 6th grade is likely more behind now. Is he in standard 10th grade classes, and how does he do on state standardized testing(looking at achievement)? Will he take the PSATs this spring? I would get an eval. then private reading tutoring, esp. if this is a college-bound student. Also maybe look for re-eval of ADD as well.
Re: 16 yr old lanaguage & writing
He took PSATs this past fall. Critical Reading 49 (scored higher than 69% of sophomores), and writing skills 42 (scored higher than 35% of sophomores). Math was a 59 (higher than 89% of sophomores).
So, focus on private reading tutoring? What about writing?
How do I find someone that works with teenagers?
Thank you.
Re: 16 yr old lanaguage & writing
With those scores then the issues aren’t at the word level, reading-wise, which is a good thing, but it sounds like there are more subtle global issues that are holding back the writing & more advanced skills. Good PSAT numbers, especially the Math :-)
I think I would be inclined to get tutoring for the writing, because generally reading instruction materials are going to be at a more basic level. I suspect he doesn’t really “read” or “write” like we do (but unfortunately, it’s a not-to-uncommon approach); he sort of jumps around and grabs words and phrases and gets the gist… and writes with the same kind of attention. I’d love to know whether it is a function of attention — or whether it’s a function of vision / tracking problems. I think if he were to get in the habit of doing a *lot* of writing, and learn to write paragraphs that made sense, that he might start “getting” what a nice, flowing sentence is supposed to sound like; it also would be worht trying books on tape for the same reason (if nothing else, havfe ‘em in the car). And if it could be reading/writing that he felt was worthwhile - challenging or interesting topics - then he might engage & get more out of it.
Diana Hanbury King has some good writing materials for teenagers; if you Google “Diana Hanbury King” in quotes you’ll find lots of background info. I think www.rlac.com carries her stuff; I know www.epsbooks.com does (both good sources for stuff that works; there’s a *lot* of stuff out there that, I guess, works for somebody, just not students I’ve had).
Re: 16 yr old lanaguage & writing
If he would work with you, I would suggest doing the Rewards program from Sopris West to get his reading skills higher. It is a scripted program so is very easy for a parent to just pick up and do. Website is http://www.rewardsreading.com . You would need both the workbook and teacher’s manual. Even though reading level is not a problem, having a higher-level reading ability is an advantage in many academic subjects and I would strengthen that skill as much as possible.
I would ask at the school about a writing tutor. If that doesn’t produce results, I’d call local colleges and universities.
Nancy
Re: 16 yr old lanaguage & writing
Loking for a tutor to work with teens: I get by far the most referrals from the nternet now. Check out iser.com, and look on city and state general-info websites, both public and private.
Re: 16 yr old lanaguage & writing
It’s too bad he hated V&V so much. It was probably very hard for him, but I’ve found that once students become more efficient visualizers, they are much better at organizing their writing and helping it to flow smoothly. In my experience, most students, even those for whom V&V is very difficult, enjoy our sessions. Is it possible that the problem was with the tutor rather than with the program? If so, you might want to revisit V&V with someone you son enjoys spending time with.
Karyn
Re: 16 yr old lanaguage & writing
I could see there would be a problem if the tutor was certain that true “visualization” was necessary (which could easily happen if s/he were a reasonably good visualizer), instead of using V/V to teach a student to make visual knowledge connections and to get that “gestalt.”
I can’t force visualization myself — it occasionally happens of its own volition, with a particularly vivid image source, but it’s just not my native thinking tongue. However, I could “do” V/V and you’d never know it; you could ask me all those questions and I could answer them in vivid detail. I wouldn’t *really* be visualizing them, though. I’m not exactly sure what the difference is, but it’s more of a cognitive/verbal process … I think it’s different parts of the brain firing off. I can get that “big picture” gestalt thing — but it isn’t visual (and I do have to work at it).
HIs scores look like more of the kind of thinker who does a reasonably good job of processing the symbols…. things start falling apart when he has to see how things work together and their relationships, especially when it’s more than one thing at a time having a connection. As long as things are pretty straightforward, we’re okay — but so much of stuff isn’t linear.
I would really, really, really want somebody to do a reading test with him — something like the Gray Oral Reading Test or Woodcock-Johnson Reading Mastery. It’s probably a bit more generalized than that, though.
I mean, he could have mostly very good skills — but this word thing could be hurting him every breath he takes. (Something tells me you are realizing this.) Does he make these kinds of word mistakes in other situations?
Do you have test scores from the evaluation? How were his reading achievement scores?
There are some good programs for learning to tackle bigger words in reading; he may have a more global problem with word retrieval, but often the attention to detail with the reading helps in that area. WHat also helps is being aware of the specific problem — so in similar situations, you make sure you’ve got the right word whenthings seem to make no sense.