Clearly this teacher (?) either does not know the law, or is lying to you.

I'll share my story with you:
My oldest son is also both gifted and has AD/HD. After much deliberation and mixed feelings, we tried stimulant and other meds, as other interventions weren't working so well at the time. We tried it all - Ritalin, Ritalin LA, Concerta, Strattera, Adderall, and finally the Daytrana patch. At best, some seemed to work for a short while, then would create for him side-effects that were worse than the "cure". After 2 years of this up-and-down roller coaster ride with him on meds, and with his school (another very involved subject), we saw his side-effects start to get so bad (sleeplessness, loss of appetite, even skin hallucinations!) that we told his doctors "enough is enough - meds aren't the answer for our son". What followed with his school, teachers, and the school district for months after taking him off the meds would be the makings of an incredibly frightening documentary on just how nasty the "dark side" of the public education system can be for children and their parents with learning differences, especially if you don't bend to the teacher's preference to medicate your child into quiet complicity to make their lives easier (those with kids on stimulant meds know that we often get the other side of the coin when the meds wear off mid-afternoon).

While this is not always the case, many general education teachers and school social workers "think" they understand how AD/HD affects learning and behavior for a child, but their understanding is often very limited in comparison to what a medical specialist in this area or a parent of such a child knows to be true. One size does not fit all with AD/HD, and lack of understanding this often results in teachers trying to apply behavior modification and disciplinary methods with these children that simply do far more harm than good.

In the end, my husband and I held firm, weathered the storm with our school and district, then moved both of our children to a new school with a staff much more accepting and capable of working with our son. He is now doing very well - not perfect, but much better than he ever did on meds. Getting the right school and teachers made a huge difference too.

Needless to say, I am not a parent who will be strong-armed by either teachers or medical professionals into giving my child drugs when I know they are not the right answer for him. I must point out that I do believe meds can be helpful in many cases, and I would never tell another parent that stimulant meds are not a good option if they are really helping. However, a number of medical professionals who specialize in ADHD have since confirmed what I have long believed to be true: up to 1/3 of children with ADHD actually do not do well on stimulant meds or their alternatives, due to severe adverse side-effects misdiagnoses, or co-morbid medical conditions that should preclude a physician from prescribing them in the first place. Misdiagnoses are very common, too, especially in cases where a child is both gifted and has ADHD (behaviors of gifted children can be strikingly similar to those of children with ADHD).

If you don't want your child on meds, then stand firm and be clear that you are aware of your rights and your child's rights in this. Be a force to contend with and stay strong, because this teacher (or other staff member in the school? ... not clear from your post) is not only outright lying to you but also attempting to intimidate you into doing it her way. And she may not make it easy for you to stand firm. Other educators she works with may even stand with her against you ... I've been there, and I know.

Get your own private evaluation by an M.D. or psychiatrist with M.D. credentials, then get him or her to put the results in writing to give to your school and/or district Special Education department. Make sure this is an M.D., or it won't hold as much weight with the school. Alternatively, if your child has an IEP or you are requesting one, sign the IEP paperwork at the end of the team meeting with a statement that you are requesting an independent education evaluation (IEE) in disagreement with the team's findings. You will have to submit a separate request in writing within 10 school days to cover your request legally. Why would you want to do this? Because if the school district is paying for the evaluation, this holds more weight with them than if you go out and get your own private medical evaluation without their consent. And keep trusting your own instincts - you are the most seasoned expert regarding your child's needs!

Just to clarify, children can be both gifted and have ADHD...if it turns out to be the case, you might be interested in joining Greatschools "2e" twice exceptional group at community.greatschools.net/groups/16042

Machaux,
Please consider getting an education advocate to intervene on your behalf with the school. If your son is at the top of the class, then he may be gifted. Have him evaluated by a psychologist for intelligence. Misdiagnosing gifted children with ADHD is more common then you think. If you can find this book at your local library, read:Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults.....by James T. Webb, Edward R. Amend, Nadia Amend, Keam Goerss, Paul Beljan,....Do not let yourself be bullied into medicating your child (or threatened by social services). This is why you need an outside pyshologist to evaluate your child and an education advocate to intervene on your behalf. We refused to medicate our son 4 years ago and he is now in an excellent gifted program and doing well....without Ritalin. Good luck and God bless.

I'm incredulous the teacher would tell you that.

I would definitely get my own evaluation. I got a recommendation from another mom for an educational specialist (PhD) who specialized in ADHD. She spent over an hour with my daughter, one-on-one. When she told me my daughter had ADD, I really believed her. (Other specialists had told me my daughter had other things --a story in itself -- but my gut told me they were wrong.) My daughter did eventually go on medication, and we are glad she did.

Is your daughter on medication? If so, you understand the pros and cons. But I would really resent being strong-armed by the teacher like that. I would try to keep working with the school. But if they don't start to work more WITH you, instead of dictating to you, I might consider changing schools.

I'm a former teacher.

I'm not sure what law this person is quoting.

The school is not a medical institution. It cannot prescribe or require medication.

Did a school-appointed psychiatrist conduct some sort of evaluation? Who's the "they" that has evaluated him?

Why do they care if he sits on his foot or picks his hair?

Is he disturbing the other children?

I have a lot of questions here, but one thing I know for sure is that no public school can require a child to be medicated. I also know that no one with an education degree is qualified to diagnose a condition or prescribe medication for it.

Do be sure to parent each of your children differently. Your younger child may indeed have attention difficulty even though it does not manifest itself the same way as it did in his sister. That said, whether you medicate him or not is also a separate decision.

And yes, you can get your own evaluation. Your pediatrician will be the best place to start for that. And yes, you can change schools, but a private school may be very expensive.

No, the school cannot force you to medicate your child. Below is a passage from US Dept of Education.
" It is important to note that the decision to prescribe any medicine is the responsibility of medical-not educational-professionals, after consultation with the family and agreement on the most appropriate treatment plan."

From their own article/guidelines here www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/adhd/adhd-identifying_pg3.html

But if your child did have adhd, studies have shown that medication has been the single most effective treatment.

As a parent myself, and a teacher, we care greatly about our children. You made the best choice buckaroo for your little girl.

I do have a question for you, if you don't mind. I am asking this politely.

Your child has improved in school, but does your school focus mainly on having children sit all day and do paperwork? Also, has your lovely daughter's creativity been inhibited because of the medication?

Hopefully, not, but I am curious.

Yes, many children are labeled the moment they come into kindergarten! Especially boys.

She says by law if they evaluate him as ADHD then he has to take meds or I am inhibiting his education and social services would get involved.



Wow, that just speaks corruption all over the place. No school has the right to say you must drug your child because they are inefficient. I teach extremely active children. If people want to be teachers, they must be able to keep up with the energy of little boys.

As a teacher, I am going to tell you I am extremely against Ritalin. I call it kiddy crack. A study was done in either Denmark or the Netherlaands. The study showed that 38% of children who used Ritalin were prone to having a desire (and they did use) hardcore drugs. Ritalin has now been banned from all of Europe. The side effects of Ritalian are atrocious (and btw now they have Ritalin for dogs!)

Some children definitely have ADHD but nowhere near as high as they claim. Many children are misdiagnosed, however some are accurately diagnosed.

A big issue is not the children but the schools. Schools continue to be an assembly line instead of a center for exploration. Schools across America, especially where I teach in a poor urban district, need a wake up call. This is what a good school looks like, if more schools followed these methods less children would be labelled special ed:

1) the teacher uses very few worksheets, and all worksheets involve something besides fill in the bubble (such as coloring, doing a scavenger hunt to find the answers, etc.) - the fact that we teachers have a high price to pay for nat'l standards is NO excuse to be lazy and give worksheet after worksheet

2) the school allows children to go outside at least 20 mins a day for recess

3) the children are actively working with partners or in groups and are free to move about the room

4) children are able to learn science through literacy and able to go outdoors for some science lessons

5) the classroom is child centered and not teacher centered

6) discipline is firm and consistent

7) Rules are enforced and do not differ from one class to the next

8) Art and music are within the school

9) Independent reading is done daily and children are allowed to read all sorts of books from sports magazines to comic books to novels and more

10) Parents and teachers are involved through journal writing. Once a week a teacher could write a paragraph on how the student did and bring it home, then the parent can reply and have the child bring it back. This way you know what's going on not just during parent-teacher conferences or when you receive a phone call home

11) Children's work is displayed throughout the school

12) Families are involved with the children's learning through children doing interviews and conversations with family members (and people in the neighborhood) bringing that wealth of info into the classroom

13) The teacher has children make/do: skits, plays, posters, collages, brochures, comic strips, and more. For example, learning about the Civil Rights Movement by having children create comic book strips

14) The classroom has a few comfy spots such as beanbags in the reading corner. Allow children to read in the beanbags, on the floor, etc. or do their math there.

15) Children are not sitting at their desk all day within the classroom. For example, during math the children could be taking measurements of objects in the room in order to learn inches, feet, yards, etc.


I hope this helps a bit.

oh my god. I thought they stoped that a long time ago. Get him evaluated outside of school and fight for your kid not already being labeled. My son had a 1st grade teacher like that and well...my son does have end up having ADD but also tested 30% higher than his peers. So he was bored.... Stick to your guns, do your home work and don't let anyone force your kid to be on meds. By the way I use two homeopathic meds for my son and they work great and there are NO negative side effects.

Of course you can refuse meds for your child. The decision is entirely yours, working with advice from your child's doctor.

I felt the same way you did. I absolutely was against drugs for my daughter (ADD-inattentive). However, after discussing the options with her ADHD specialist, I agreed to try her on meds to see if a difference was noted.

A major difference was noted.... not just by her teachers, but more importantly, by my daughter. She was able to concentrate at school which reduced her frustration level.

Denying meds to my daughter simply because it isn't a cure would be like denying her glasses if her vision needed help. While it doesn't cure her, it makes her life better and allows her to make the most of her learning environment.

So in other words, don't let anyone bully you into giving your child any type of meds or services. However, do some research and truly be open with your child's doctor. If you can, see a pediatrition that specializes in ADHD. Remember, you can always try meds and see if there is any improvement. Then you can weigh the pros and cons.

Ok sorry my wife infomed me that, the school would send him to get evaluated and whatever the evaluation suggested, I must comply or its against the law. I guess that is my "real question"..Is it against the law to refuse for your kids to get on drugs that may or may not help..Remember there is no cure for ADHD? Just day aftre day a pill everyday

Is your son attending a public school? Legally, the school can not diagnose any medical condition, nor can they insist that you treat a medical condition in a certain way, even if your son has it. On the other hand, I would not assume that just because your son is nothing like your daughter, he can't also have ADHD. My son was also extremely smart, and he does have ADHD. (There's actually a term for gifted kids with ADHD and/or LDs, and that's "2e" or "twice exceptional.") Sometimes, the bright kids can get by until they're older, doing the work required of them, even though they're not really performing up to their capability because ADHD is in the way. Although you may have been hyper and nothing was done about it when you were in school, times and expectations about the work that children are expected to do have changed. I am not saying you have to rush into a decision about whether your son has ADHD or if medication would help, but I also would not want to deny my child the opportunity to reach his full potential. If his problems don't improve on their own, you may want to have him evaluated. In the meantime, do you think that requesting a change of teacher, to someone who is more flexible, would help? You might also want to join the Learning and Attention Difficulties Group at community.greatschools.net/groups/11554

They are wrong. By law, they are not allowed to tell you that your son needs medication. If they say anything again, ask to see their medical degree, for surely they must be doctors to know so much. They can not diagnose your son with ADHD. They are not qualified.