First of all, congratulations for being on top of things, having your child evaluated, getting an IEP and remaining open and grounded throughout the process. It is tough when you realize your child is struggling. My son also struggled in Kindergarten and I remember the worry vividly.

The resources that dhfl gave you are excellent and a great start to understanding the options and your child's needs.

I do have a few questions - who diagnosed your child with ADHD? Did the school evaluation reveal any trouble areas other than attention/focus? What were the recommendations? What kinds of goals and services are in his IEP?

It sounds like your son may have a bit more going on than ADHD. Difficulty with letters makes me wonder about dyslexia or a language based learning disability of some sort. Very frequently ADHD and dyslexia come as a package (they do with my son). Both areas need attention and explicit instruction for the child to make adequate progress - especially if he is already behind.

That said, should he be retained? Generally speaking, retention has far more long term negative outcomes than positive. He has already demonstrated that without good teaching, he will not keep pace with his peers. It doesn't make sense to give him the same curriculum, with the same approach and expect a different outcome.

I would consider grade retention ONLY IF his IEP included very specific, structured multi sensory instruction in his areas of need by a WELL Qualified and experienced teacher that has experience and certification the teaching methodology / learning program AND if the instruction is given in sufficient intensity in a small group setting of similar peers or one on one.

If his IEP sufficiently addresses his needs, you then should decide whether or not he will be able to close the gap as a 1st grader or whether he is so far behind and his learning needs are so complex that he needs to repeat. If both scenarios seem equally likely, I would go with 1st grade.

Best of luck to you and your son - and if you have more questions and insight to share, we may be able to offer more specific advice. Take care.

Michellea & dhfl143,

Thank you, I feel instantly comforted by the 2 insightful replies thus far. Dyslexia is a possibility that we have not ruled out as of yet. From my novice understanding and what I’ve been told, it cannot be accurately diagnosed at this age yet. He does reverse some of his numbers however, I am hoping that this is due primarily to the focus we have emphasized on teaching him the written word. It is a matter that I will bring up at our next therapy session however.

He was first diagnosed by the schools team. Then the findings (the many pages of findings) were shared with his pediatrician and therapist who were in absolute agreement with said findings. Also, much like any parent in this situation we read every bit of information (both book and online) that we could get our hands on. Most of the time I felt as if the symptoms described in the respective source were speaking directly to me, they were that exact.

One small ray of positive light throughout this ordeal was that through testing he was found to have a somewhat higher than average IQ. I can only imagine that this is a good thing and that when we figure out how to unlock what is troubled with his mind we hope he will thrive.

With regards to the IEP, you have given me food for thought. I don’t believe they have put together a plan or set of goals. The IEP was put into place so late in the school year perhaps there was not time. I will push for this to get done. I can tell you they are providing him with 15% support. Meaning 15% of his day is spent out of class in a one on one environment. I do wish it was more and it is something I plan on pursuing.

I am going to assume for my purposes of making our decision that the IEP lesson is not that specific (although now I will push for it) and yes we have been guaranteed a great teacher whom he/we really like in the case of retention. Speaking of closing the gap one of the things that worries me is that he only recognizes 10 of the 33 required sight words that Kindergartners are expected to know. Next year in First grade that requirement rises to 225 sight words. I feel somewhat intimidated for him. People also keep telling us that if retention is going to happen that it is better that it happens now and not later.

DHFL’s Questions:
The tutor (also a teacher) strongly endorses retention. Her projection was basically that he could not catch up with his peers by summer’s end despite his recent achievements and that he could only benefit from another year in K. I will have to inquire as to what method (or program) she is using. I often sit in on the sessions and I have never heard her mention a program name. She uses various materials that appeal to his likes (dinosaurs, animals, etc…) to engage him.
I’ve never had such a difficult time making a decision. My instinct say that retention is a bad idea however, I cannot stand the idea of him being in a first grade environment feeling absolutely lost in the lesson plan on a daily basis.

Question for Michellea.
You mentioned you’re son’s struggle with ADHD and Dyslexia. How is he now compared to when you first discovered the affliction? If it is not too personal I’d like to hear what you’d be willing to share.

We understand your situation. We both have ADHD or ADD. We have six kids, ranging in age from 2 to 25 years. They all have ADHD/ADD. Medication is a private choice, we decided not to.

We had one of our kids retained in kindergarten. To this day the child resents it. Repeating kindergarten was perceived as “everyone thinks I am too dumb to be in the right grade”. Self esteem took a major hit, and some classmates made fun of “flunking kindergarten”. To this day, this child considers school to be a “necessary evil”, not a good experience.

Another of our children struggled during their kindergarten year. The school pushed for retention, but we chose not to. The child did not have an easy time in first grade, but with the IEP in place, the child did progress. This child does not consider school to be a negative experience.

All kids are unique, and you know your child best. It is not too early to include your child in this decision, talk to your child. If your child would “freak out” about being retained, it would be best to stay with same aged, non-disabled peers.

With your continued support, your child will succeed.

You do not have to retain your child, if you don’t want to. We found the website “wrightslaw” to be highly useful. Information that can be accessed there ranges from how to effectively advocate for your child, to what is actually written in IDEA law.

These two books are terrific:

www.wrightslaw.com/store/feta.html
www.wrightslaw.com/store/selaw2.html

We have several well worn copies ourselves!

Good Luck,

Mr. & Mrs. Papertrail

We would like to address a few of the things you said in your second post. A couple of our children also have dyslexia, and your son’s experience is quite similar.

“Dyslexia is a possibility that we have not ruled out as of yet. From my novice understanding and what I’ve been told, it cannot be accurately diagnosed at this age yet.”

That is fairly true, especially since most schools that we encountered do not write dyslexia in as a category. They put it down as SLD (specific learning disability). Dyslexia is considered a medical diagnosis by some school districts.

Our daughter (now 15) has ADHD, Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, and anxiety disorder. She was retained in kindergarten, and she is placed in “Title 1”. They explained that retention would close the gap between her IQ score and her Woodcock Johnson performance level, she will not need special education services because her ADHD is “under control”. We were concerned about her reversals, but they told us they were not “necessarily” a problem.

She finished kindergarten the second time, but was still struggling. Testing during the middle of first grade resulted in a diagnosis of SLD in the areas of reading and written expression. She was “advanced” in the area of math.

By the middle of second grade she was falling further behind in reading and written expression. She began having much more pull out time.

By fourth grade we were desperate. The school informed us that her SLD now included the area of math. (We discovered that some of her pull out time had been during math class!)

We got private medical diagnosis, including anxiety and depression. Things got so rough by the time she reached Junior High, we had to put her in a public on-line school. She quickly caught up under our guidance, and is entering public high school this fall.

“One small ray of positive light throughout this ordeal was that through testing he was found to have a somewhat higher than average IQ.”

That is good, but it worries us that he is struggling so much with a high IQ. We think you should look into “specific learning disability” (SLD) it is an umbrella term, many things fall under that category, but it does qualify you for services and accommodations.

“15% of his day is spent out of class in a one on one environment. I do wish it was more and it is something I plan on pursuing.”
Be very careful what you ask for. Make sure he does not miss anything important in his regular classes. Also remember that Special Education Services are just that, services-not a place. You may want some of his services to be delivered in the regular ed. room.

“Speaking of closing the gap one of the things that worries me is that he only recognizes 10 of the 33 required sight words that Kindergartners are expected to know. Next year in First grade that requirement rises to 225 sight words. I feel somewhat intimidated for him”

That reminds us of our daughter at that age. But, if he does have dyslexia, it won’t get easier just because he was held back. He needs remediation and accommodations/modifications if he is dyslexic.

“People also keep telling us that if retention is going to happen that it is better that it happens now and not later.”

With an IEP, he does not ever have to be retained. If he starts to “flunk” it means the school is not providing him with an appropriate education under the law. Retention is not something you will ever have to deal with, the law is on your side.

“My instincts say that retention is a bad idea however, I cannot stand the idea of him being in a first grade environment feeling absolutely lost in the lesson plan on a daily basis.”

Follow your instincts. Put your concerns on paper and have them addressed at the IEP meeting. Provide accommodations and modifications to make your child as comfortable as possible. If he has a learning disability, it will always be there, he just needs to learn how to work with it.

Again, best of luck!

Mr. and Mrs. Papertrail

Be aware you can have an IEP meeting at anytime as often as needed.
Here is the link to the IEP Team members required to be present.

www.wrightslaw.com/idea/art/iep.team.members.htm

Mr. paperTrail

Do you know how to draw a Bell Curve? If you do, you can go over your son’s test scores yourself, and get a better understanding of what is going on.

The wrightslaw site has lots of information on this, including test scores and their equivalent “percentile rank”.

If you see a large discrepancy in your son’s test scores, you will know the areas of disability yourself.

All educational and psychological tests that report scores using percentile ranks or standard scores are based on the bell curve. To interpret tests results, you must know the mean and the standard deviation. Most standardized tests use a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 15.

Tests that use standard scores (SS) with a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 15, a standard score of 100 is at the 50% percentile (PR). A standard score of 85 is at the 16th percentile (PR=16) A standard score of 115 is at the 84th percentile (PR=84).

On tests that use subtest scores with a mean of 10 and standard deviation of 3, a subtest score of 10 is at the 50th percentile (PR=50). A subtest score of 7 is at the 16th percentile; a subtest score of 13 is at the 84th percentile (PR=84).

So, get a piece of paper, and draw a bell curve (sort of a hill).

Put a vertical line down the middle. Label this line “0” standard deviations (SD), 50%tile, 100 standard score (SS), and 10 subtest score.

Then put two vertical lines evenly spaced between the middle and the right end of the curve, and two vertical lines evenly spaced between the middle and the left end of the curve.

Label the vertical line furthest to the left “-2” SD, 2%tile, 70 SS, and 4 subtest score.

Label the next line “-1” SD, 16%tile, 85 SS, and 7 subtest score.

Label the first line to the right of the middle line “+1” SD, 84%tile, 115 SS, and 13 subtest score.

Label the vertical line furthest to the right “+2” SD, 98%tile, 130 SS, and 16 subtest score.

Make a vertical line a little to the right of your “-1” SD line. Label this 25%tile, and 90 SS.

Make a vertical line a little to the left of your “+1” SD line. Label this 75%tile, and 110 SS.

Your Bell Curve is now ready for your child’s test scores. A percentile rank score between 25% and 75% is within the "average range."

For other tests, you can still use the curve this way:
Z scores are have a mean of 0 (zero) and standard deviation of 1.

T scores have a mean of 50 and a standard deviation of 10.

In Stanine tests, the mean is five and the standard deviation is 2.

A printable pre-labeled Bell Curve can be downloaded from here:
www.wrightslaw.com/bellcurvepicture.pdf

A printable chart showing scores and their percentile ranks can be downloaded here:
www.wrightslaw.com/bellcurveandstandardscore.pdf

An article explaining all of this can be found here:
www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/articles/tests_measurements.html#bellcurve

Good Luck!

Mrs. Papertrail

MikeJLopez-

Please read the following article with particular emphasis on the bulleted items: www.greatschools.net/LD/identifying/reading-disorder-or-developmental-lag.gs?content=743

It is imperative to meet each child at his/her need. To catch them before they fall. That way it becomes a challenge that can be overcome -- a problem that can be resolved, rather than a personal failing. Just as raising your voice while trying to speak to a person who speaks another language does not help close the communication gap -- neither will instruction that does not specifically meet your child at his challenges.

Best wishes.

(528198)

We are throwing a lot of information at you - it seems we share similar experiences and have found that knowledge is power. I strongly agree that you should read the article about reading/developmental delays that Dhfl posted as well as the info on testing at Wrightslaw that Mr. and Mrs. papertrail posted. I've personally used both, time and time again.

You asked me a bit about my personal experience, and I'll try to give you an overview with key lessons learned.

M struggled in Kindergarten. The school conducted many reading assessments and screens and he was always at the bottom of his class "with no company". These screens included phonemic awareness tests, assessment of his letter recognition, rhyming, counting, naming skills. Finally in April of Kindergarten (after reading a number of books and websites on literacy) I had him evaluated by the school. We found out that he had a very high IQ, but with some significant ly lower scores in the area of processing. He qualified for special ed under specific learning disability and his IEP called for daily small group reading instruction using the LiPs program.

We tutored him over the summer ( 2hours, 3 X week) thinking he would "catch up". When 1st grade started scored poorly on all academic screens. So much for catching up.

Although he had an excellent classroom teacher and reading tutor (whom we still maintain contact), he struggled with all aspects of school including routines, academics, handwriting. Luckily, his social skills and overall behavior were (and still are) excellent. The school gave him additional services, a classroom aide and other help to address these challenges, and he was able to survive. Over the next summer we had him privately tutored in the LiPS program for 56 hours plus he attended 36 hours of the school's summer program. We found out that the LiPs program he had received at sschool was proably not delivered as intended - he was unfamiliar with many of the routines and approaches.

He returned to the same teacher for 2nd grade and she was concerned that he had "regressed significantly" although he had worked hard all summer and had a ton of individualized tutoring.

At this point we were terrified. M was starting to show the effects of all the extra work and the lack of progress. His teacher said he often appeared shell shocked and confused. He was less outgoing than he had been the year before. Both his teachers were confused as to why he wasn't making better progress and were beginning to feel frustrated with the situation.

This is when we knew that he could not stay in the public school. Dispite best efferts, he wasn't making progress and beginning to feel emotional wear. We hired a lawyer and put together a strategy to obtain a publicly funded placement in a private school specializing in language based learning disabilities.

As part of that strategy,
we had M tested in the fall by an independent neuorpsychologist, occupational therapist and speech and language pathologist. They confirmed that he was very bright, but had severe to profound dyslexia and visual processing difficulties. His vocabulary, verbal reasoning and problem solving skills were still extremely high - but were over-shadowed by his weaknesses.

We shared the results with the school, they increased his services and we began monitoring him more closely for ADHD. By the end of the year, we reluctantly tried medication, which made a significant difference in his ability to navigate the school day and stay on task. But, he continued to struggle with literacy. Even with all of the individualized attention, he could not consistently name all letters or give the sounds to all letters - especially vowels. He could not read sight words. His writing was non-existent.

At our annual IEP meeting, we asked for a private placement and the team agreed. (it's usually not this easy).

He's been attending the LD school since 3rd grade and is going into 7th. He gets 3 periods of small group or one on one language instruction per day with highly skilled and experienced teachers. The school has consulted with world reknown experts in the field to help tailor his program and improve the rate of progress. Progress has been slower than I expected, but he has made at least a year of progress for a years work - he hasn't closed the gap, but he hasn't fell further behind. He can now easily read books at the 4th grade level and with support, can read books at the 5th grade level. His writing is further behind, but is improving with the use of a laptop. His skills in core subjects continue to be strong - as long as he is able to show his knowledge orally or with the help of a computer.

Lessons Learned:
1. School based tutoring is often not provided with fidelity. Teachers often do not have extensive training in the programs, take short cuts, have groups of students at different levels, and have no mentors or peers to consult with. This can result in substandard progress and frustration.
2. Private evaluations are more diagnostic and accurate than school based evaluations. Schools evaluate to determine eligibility. Neuropsycholgists evaluate to diagnose the challenges, to identify the strengths, and to provide comprehensive recommendations based on the child's needs - not the resources available.
3. The severity of a child's disability will impact their progress - regardless of how hard they work or how smart they are. I've seen kids zoom ahead of my son - yet he is one of the most diligent, smart students you could find.
4. As a parent, there are ups and downs. The fear hasn't left completely, but each year I am more hopeful that he will attend a good college and find life success.
5. Parents must advocate for their children. To be effective, they must know more about their disability, the teaching approaches, testing, special ed laws than the teachers. Reading, attending seminars, researching have been life savers for me. They also have given me the knowledge to be an equal member of the team that is heard and is able to solve problems.

I hope this helps a bit -

Now, I'll offer an opinion - I hope you don't think i'm being too pushy:

I would not retain your son. I would keep a close eye on his progress for the first couple months of 1st grade. If things don't improve quickly, I'd find the best neuropsychologist I could and schedule an evaluation. (They are often booked 6 months in advance). Based on the recommendations of the evaluator, I would push for everything your son needs and I would monitor it closely to ensure that it is provided in an effective and quality manner.

Early intervention is best. You are lucky you have started already. He most likely won't have the significant struggles my son has - he is complex and severe case. But, plan for the worse hope for the best.

Read these books:

Straight Talk About Reading (Moats)
Overcoming Dyslexia (Shaywitz)
One Mind at a Time (Levine)

And of course, continue to stay in touch with us - we can help with resources, ideas, problem solving and emotional support. Take care.

Wow! I am touched by all the time you all have took in you're replies. I have been reading over them all day. It's eerie how some (most) of the things written within this thread ring so true to me. It sounds like a long road ahead for us and it comforts me to know that people like you exist and are willing to share/advise. I am grateful. Thank you.

Retention is hotly debated because - it hasn't often been found to work. That said I'd also say retaining in Kindergarten has been less debated and if there were a year that I would hesitate much less over retention - it's the kindergarten year.
We could go at this from several angles but I think this angle is the the shortest one - retention from here on out likely won't be an option again. If you were going to try to give him some edge this is the only year you'll likely have to do it. It's not uncommon to retain children in K for a year - it's even more common to retain children in that last year of Pre-K for a year. Why?
Because we're not really 'retaining' in the classic sense of the word when it's PreK and K. In these two years, we're looking to give the child some gained advantage from simply developing a bit more and thus from that alone being more able to master the curriculum. Givng them an extra year of Pre K or K can make a big difference. A child seemingly unable to learn to read at age 5 can seemingly 'overnight' become very able to read a scant year later at 6.

No one says this about any of the other grades. Why not? Because the difference between a 7 year old and a 9 year old is indeed a great difference. But the difference between a 5 year old and 7 year old is a World of difference. There's Exponential cognitive growth that can occur in those two formative years.

And we're trying to lay down fundamental skills on which all others are built in those years. You could really skip 2nd grade, stay home for the year, read a lot, do some math and come back and go into 4th grade. (3rd grade teachers would like to shoot me for saying that but I choose the year as an example)

If there's a year you can't miss it's K. It used to be 1st but we've dropped down all the once 1st grade skills into K - and that deserves to be mentioned too. The old 1st is now K - it's not a year you can miss and it is a year of fundamental instruction.

I promised that I'd go at this from the shortest angle and I've gone off on a tangent but given your son's history, I wouldn't hesitate to retain him - despite the great prevailing debate in education over retention. When they started that debate, they didn't mean Kindergarten retention and they really didn't have Ben in mind.

If you can help Ben - especially if he asks - to happily accept why another year of K would be good for him - and with a good teacher - then I'd say this extra year of K can't hurt and might help. Can he have Mrs. Sainted Teacher again and tell him she's too wonderful to pass up another year with her? Sadly every year won't afford us a saint like her.

I'd also say - I understand where you're coming from. One of my own sons had Lds and Add and we held him back in 2nd and switched schools to do it without him having to lose face. It was not an easy decision and it did work out very well but please know I've been where you are.

And I'd say this too - having spent decades parenting my own sons through school and decades teaching the children of other parents in school, I tried to be a caring, involved parent and had the opportunity to meet up with many caring and involved parents. But my hat is off to you - I know the Hard Work that it must have been to have Ben taken from the wrong teacher's room and put into the right teacher's room - I know how schools fight that and so hard that few parents would find the strength to fight back much less to win the struggle.

That you accomplished that puts you in a league of your own and with you there at his side, I have every confidence Ben will not only survive school but he will prevail. I Admire what you did and am in awe of your accomplishments for Ben. The powers that be gave Ben to the right parents and other parents would do well for their own children to follow your example.

I hope you'll post back and let us know how the year goes. Much good luck from me and my son to you and yours.

The research into retention shows that retention may be an acceptable plan for students who meet any/all of the following: 1) missed a considerable part of the school year because of illness 2) started the school year in one district and ended in another district (curriculum mismatch) or 3) has moved numerous times during their academic career.

If retention is being considered to help a child "catch-up" - it doesn't work, Studies show that within 3-years of being retained the child is behind just as much as if they weren't retained.

Years later, when asked to recall the one most important thing about their academic career, individuals remember being retained more than anything else.

Retention is a one-time "fix". A child should only be retained one time during the academic career. (Think middle schoolers driving to school.)

If a child is going to be retained, the earlier the better (Kdg versus 1st versus 2nd...)

In general, based upon what you've written, retention doesn't sound like the best option. Rather, a well-developed IEP addressing the unique learning needs is most important since you can expect that your son's difficulties are not a "one-time" problem but will continue. It is also important to keep in mind that, depending on the research, anywhere from 25 to 40% of children diagnosed with AD/HD will also have a co-morbid learning disability and this should also be considered.

I hope this helps.

Help4kids,
I like the way you put it:

Just noticed my incomplete reply - I'm not sure what happened! This is what I meant to say:
In general, based upon what you've written, retention doesn't sound like the best option. Rather, a well-developed IEP addressing the unique learning needs is most important since you can expect that your son's difficulties are not a "one-time" problem but will continue.

I am very glad we did not accept our district's offer of the "gift of time" . This only would have delayed the intensive remediation that he received via his IEP and he would have lost valuable time while his brain was most malable.

Hi,
we went through the similar situation. Our son repeated kindergarden which was extremely academic at his school. The second year was different. He finished it with above grade level at all academics and even good grades in behavior/social areas. He also made many friends.
The downside was what he was feeling ashamed in a beginning, especially meeting his ex classmates in the hallways.
We made it a point to talk to him repeating a year and we stressed out his health and maturity issues (children are different, they grow at a different speed etc). It was also important what he returned to the same class and the same teacher the second year and teacher had a talk with other children about him (more or less the same what we did). It would be good if someone can talk to his ex classmates, so they wouldn't tease him.
The most important thing for him to realize what he is not stupid, but he learns differently.
I would say it worked out well for us in the end. He also had good grades his next year in the 1st grade.
However, we decided to home-school him for the next year.
The pressure to be always on a right path was too much. We think what schooling as it is does not go well with his condition and prevented him from releasing his potential..

Just read this article and thought that you may find the information helpful: Rethinking ADHD from a Cognitive Perspective: research.aboutkidshealth.ca/teachadhd/abc/chapter3/document_view

"Although diagnoses of ADHD are based on behavioural symptoms of inattention and/or hyperactivity/impulsivity, evidence suggests that children with ADHD also exhibit significant cognitive weaknesses in areas that are essential to daily functioning both at school and at home."

It has great info on how ADHD can affect literacy, math, organization and other academic skills.

Hi Everybody,
I just wanted to say thank you again for all you're support/advice. It's been a tumultuous few days for us to say the least. There seems to be so many of you who are against retaining a child with ADHD. Despite the fact many of the faculty members have suggested to do so, we have finally after much thought decided against retention. Allot of it is due to you're stories and experiences you have shared. They spoke volumes to me. On top of this, we met a couple at a BBQ Saturday night who actually went through this a few years back at the same school (with very similar circumstances). They retained and were very successful in convincing me that it was a horrible mistake.

My lesson for the week however, is regarding the word advocate. It's a word that has come up many times in my readings lately (Both in books and online). I never understood why I would have to "advocate" for my child at school. I know completely understand why this word is so prevalent in my research regarding the topic of children with learning disabilities within the public school system.

I just want to say that I know it takes time and energy to read my ramblings and then on top of that to actually reply and share you're own stories. It might sound trite but it's really helped me to know there are others who have been through it and have intelligent, sound advice to share.

It seems difficult right now while you are in this place but for the future it will be the best decision for your child. My own nephew was held back in Kindergarten and it gave him the confidence to be Valedictorian of his own grade 12 years later. Your son will gain more confidence and be able to become more involved in other activities. If retention is necessary the younger the better since younger children don't notice and judge as much as older students.
Good luck to you and your son.

I am a special education teacher who also has a 4 1/2 yr old Grandson with ADHD. At my request, my daughter took him to see my Naturopathic doctor. Through a blood test the Dr. found out that he had developed allergies to many foods. As soon as my daughter removed those foods from his diet and started giving him probiotics to heal his digestive system, he became much better, better able to attend, better able to control his impulses, and was much happier. The doctor also gave him some other vitamin, mineral supplements (Vit. B complex, Omega 3 and Magnesium to name a few). Naturopaths look to help the body work to its optimum by making sure that the body has all that it needs to work properly and efficiently. With our food and environment as polluted with chemicals as it is, it takes a toll on the body...first the digestive system, which then affects the immune system, and continues then to wreak havoc on the nervous system and it continues from there.

To learn more about probiotics, check this site out...
www.healthy.net/asp/templates/article.asp?PageType=Article&ID=953

To learn more about naturopathic medicine, check this site out...
www.ndwellness.net/

There are many sites on the net if you google ADHD and natural treatment, but you have to be careful.
It's not easy, but you have to look for what's best for your child, you need to be his advocate in school and out. I believe the natural treatment should be the first line of action because it looks to build up the body. Medications may be needed but they will not replace what is still missing in your child's body. Some times you may need to do both natural and medicine...but never the medicine w/o the natural. Medicines also have a wide range of side effects. So to prevent any more problems, I would urge you to see a good naturopath. Some of my students have gone and also have had very good results.

As far as his learning, you may want to try to help him learn skills through music. Some times that works very well. Go to the Teacher Store, they may have some suggestions. Hap Palmer is one musician/teacher that comes to mind. Some ADHD kids need to learn while moving or standing, and really can't do it while sitting. Get a portable white board that he can stand by and work at using the large movements of his arms while drawing on the board. Think up activities for the skills you want him to learn where he can move on the floor. And sometimes calming repetitive kinds of music playing in the background can help calm as well. You'll have to experiment. Good Luck and God Bless.

You bring up a good point about the importance of getting a firm diagnosis of a child's attention issues. There are many ADHD look alikes such as Lyme disease, sleep disorders, sensory issues, LD etc. It is important to rule out issues such as allergies.

That said, if the diagnosis of ADHD is firm, stimulant medication has been a time tested remedy that provides the greatest relief for most people. Also, ADHD has a high co-morbidity rate with many other disorders such as LD or sensory issues. If a child has one, there is a much greater chance than average that he or she has another.

For the best results, all issues should be treated.

Music, karate, special diets can all be a part of a multi-pronged effort to help the child. This is why it is important to deal with a physician that is very experienced in treating children with complex profiles that include ADHD.

As far as medications being time tested... it has been well documented that many children are over medicated and that those meds are prescribed much too frequently and many times without trying alternative type therapies first. I believe those meds should be the last resort. It's possible that you could just be adding to the child's problems instead of fixing the ones he has. I have had many students that were medicated, and in most cases the problem isn't fixed or they may improve slightly but the child isn't himself anymore. They're in a cloud or zombied out or their personality has changed. I am not a doctor but so many times I want to say to the parents STOP! Just because a child is calmer ... that should not be the goal alone ... we must not lose the child in the mean time. You can look this information up on your own but MDs take one class in nutrition, and unless they've pursued it on their own, they know medications way better than they know what might be deficient in a child's small body. It could be allergies, it could be vitamin or mineral or amino acid or neurotransmitter deficiencies. But it's been my experience when I talk with parents and with my experience with my grandson, that MDs, whether they're pediatricians or not, DO NOT look for the cause. Their goal is to treat the symptoms not find out what's broken and address that. I believe there are MDs out there that have gone the extra mile, perhaps like Dr. Daniel Amen (google him), but they're far and few between.

Spirit, i appreciate your concern and advice to seek a well qualified physician that is familiar with ADHD, look alikes, treatment options and co-morbid conditions.

I stand by my advice to seek a professional and team of professionals to determine the etiology of the difficulties and to treat appropriately.

I'm not going to debate whether or not children are over medicated. I believe it is best to look at each case individually and determine treatment on an individual basis. I do have personal experience with ADHD and after 2 years of alternative treatments and ruling out other conditions, we found that stimulant medication gave the most relief. This is in line with current research.

As mikelopez stated, to decide to try medication can be heart wrenching. But, each parent must do what they think is best for their child and I am glad for Ben's sake that mike is able to keep an open mind and make an informed decision

Sorry if I got a little strong w/ my opinion. I do feel passionately about what I've said. I do agree with you that it is essential to find the right doctor, and perhaps get a 2nd and 3rd opinion and do your own research as well. Yes, there are times when medication is needed. I just want parents to know there are other avenues and to pursue as many as possible for their child's sake.
Good luck to you all.

There are lots of good posts on this thread. I just wanted to remind everyone that the decision to medicate, or not is a private one. (We choose not to medicate for ADHD).

The law on the subject is clear, school administration or teachers can not suggest or require that you medicate your child.

Every family needs to decide for themselves what forms of treatment they want to pursue.

You all bring up excellent perspectives. It is always good to be an informed consumer and knowledgeable about available options. Informed parents are able to consider all options presented by qualified professionals and make the best decision based upon their child's needs and specific circumstances.

Getting back on topic to Mike's last response. It is great to learn that we were able to provide resources and information that allowed you to make your own decision regarding retention. Yes, this journey can be challenging at times. It appears you are well on your way to becoming your child's best advocate, which is wonderful news for Ben.

Why are so many people talking about the families choice to medicate... the question is should he let his Son go to 1st grade or repeat Kndergarten!

I don't know what happened to my post, but it was long. Maybe lost on purpose. Anyway, something you can add to your "things to look into" would be neurofeedback with a neuropsychologist trained by Joel Lubar, the pioneer in using neurofeedback to treat add. Here are a few websites. Would be happy to discuss my daughter's experience maybe in a separate thread.
newideas.net/adhd-eegbiofeedback-neurofeedback-research
and
www.smartbraintech.com/
It is based and developed in conjunction with NASA's program to help astronauts focus better, longer in difficult situations.
I also highly recommend Daniel Amen's book.

I have a child with ADHD and I don't want it treat. I do not believe in it. Any doctor or public school must respect that. Can I suggest a chiropractor, diet and patience and you well see really with this same effort Ben Succeed

Just a reminder that the post centered around the question of retention - not whether or not to medicate for ADHD. "Ben's" parents have already indicated that after much thought and medical advice that they would try medication. Each family must make their own decision as to whether or not to try medication. But, I would hate to see this thread turn into a debate on the subject. I'd prefer to see support for Mikelopez and his family and expect that we can provide practical information regarding his concerns with retention and school performance.

We went through a similar scenario and also chose not to retain our daughter. Our child also was thrown into a kindergarten class that was added at the last minute because of increased enrollment. The teacher was terrible, and our daughter learned nothing the entire year, partly due to the teacher partly due to learning issues. The principal, teachers and specialists also all agreed that we should hold her back. I did research as well and found nothing positive about retention. We decided to move her forward and get her as much intervention help as possible. The school disliked our decision, but it has worked. I have talked to a number of parents who have retained their children and have found no benefit, but we have gotten great benefits from the appropriate intervention. We did change schools (and states) after first grade and got her in a better school, which also helped. She is now entering fourth grade and has made great strides. I do have to say though I have learned to be leery of what various educators and "experts" tell me. I read every report I'm given and ask a lot of questions to see if what I'm being told rings true or not. Our daughter has received some bad misdiagnoses and some advice that has been right on target. In your child's case, it sounds like there may be a working memory issue, among other things. Those types of problems require special attention. Kids change a lot too beyond kindergarten, so I'd even take the ADHD label with a grain of salt right now. I think an involved parent knows best. There will be some people who will tell you things that are wrong and hopefully your research and your gut will lead you in the right direction.

You're post was strikingly similar to what we are/were going through. Much like what you did, we decided last week to push Ben into first grade and increase his IEP. Not a popular decision but his first week has been great.

After we initially made our first decision to retain my wife and I both felt sick to our stomachs. It didn't feel right like the right decision because it wasn't the right decision. Like you mentioned there is just too much data to argue with stating that kids in his situation do not benefit from early retention.

Thank you once more for you're and everyones posts. While I am in the midst of all this and do not alway reply right away I am here everyday reading the volumes of information provided by you all.

Regarding the controversy behind medication, I know in you're eyes it is wrong or unjust however all I can tell you is it is what we have chosen. It was not a decision that came lightly. I hate giving him a pill. Everyday I hate it. For now though, it is helping him immensely. Our goal is to teach him how to learn with his disatvantages and someday soon hopefully he will learn how to be successful without daily medication. Much like politics and religion though this subject will always be hotly debated with no final answer.

Don't forget to include your son in the decison making process. FInd out what is most important to him - the social aspect of staying with his friends or getting another shot at the academics. You'll have to deicde on how much to tell him. We were in a similar place at end of 1st grade and we're leaning against retention but all of the school disagreed. Then we decided to get our sons feelings on it and he spoke for over an hour - creating a well thought out list of what the school should be doing to help him. For the very first time we heard all that really goes on in his head. It was eye opening for us and the school and we have never regretted it.

Retention or to pass one on? As a parent for over 30 years, I have seen it all. But what really bothers me in the 21st century, regarding education is the public education system to move beyond retention and social promotion. To move beyond by supplying the necessary tools, to facilitate learning, in K to grade 6. If a child is struggling in part or all in the ABCs of reading, writing and numeracy, the focus should move to bringing the child up to par. Instead, and schools take the easy route available to them, where retention and social promotion is the norm, rather than providing the proper help for children who are struggling.
The advice I about to give you, is based on my youngest child who is now 14 years old. If I have known what I know today, my course of actions would have been much differently and perhaps my child would have become a good reader and writer. Be aware, even though educators have a certificate to teach, do not assume that they know all when it comes to learning. Be aware of the hidden biases of teachers where children who struggle in learning, are thought of not being capable to succeed beyond a mere pass, because of perceived misconceptions on learning disorders and other conditions such as ADHD that often interferes with learning. I have lost track of how many times I heard the line, your child is only capable of getting a C. I have lost track, of how many times that I have proven that is not the case with my child. I shudder to think, what reasons beyond not making the grade that your son's school have given to you for retention at such a early stage in one's education.
It is up to you to make the decision of retention, but be aware and do not assume that the teachers are qualified in terms of number of hours of instruction at teachers' college and have the knowledge/wisdom to dictate courses of actions relating to your son's learning. My advice, make the decision and concentrate on the basics of reading, writing, and numeracy, because without them in the higher grades it becomes that much more difficult if one does not have the foundation skills to do advance thinking and reasoning. So, if I were you whatever decision that is made, continue with private tutoring concentrating on the basics, until the end of grade 4. Schools do not do a really good job on all students becoming good readers and writers, regardless of learning ability. From my viewpoint, the education systems from K to grade 6, are concentrating on knowledge rather than the skills of reading and writing that must be taught. What is the point of learning the stages of a butterfly, when one is struggling in the reading and writing of the material. Yet more often than not, what is being graded are the stages of a butterfly, and decisions at the school level are being made at the knowledge point, and not at the point of basic skills. This is more so at the higher grades, but it has creep into primary grades, where there is a demand for children to learn a higher set of knowledge and concepts, even though the majority of children in any classroom are still developing the sub-skills needed to understand the knowledge and concepts,
I should have listen to my gut instinct regarding my child, in the early grades. But I have place my faith and trust in a school system, rather than I listened and believed that the educators had the best interests for my child. My child never came close to retention, because she was always maintaining a 50% in core subjects. She did not get help, even though she was showing all signs of a learning disability - until she was failing in all core subjects in grade 3. My child did not get help, because she did not meet the criteria necessary to obtain help. In the case of your son, he has met the criteria for help, but is the school's actions and decisions based on your son's best interests or on the school's best interest? It is an important factor to consider, and many on this forum would agree with me, since many of us have been brow-beaten by schools to agree and help facilitate the actions of schools, even though as parents we knew at some level, it was the wrong action/decision for their child.

MikeJLopez-

Wonderful to hear Ben had a successful first week. Hope the rest of the year goes well also. Nice to hear the good news. Congratulations!

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