Saturday, November 10, 2007

Hyperion

Hyperion in so many ways is a complete reincarnation of me.

He tested for G&T this semester and didn't quite make it. His teacher says he did amazingly well on the problem solving section, but he just missed making the cut. I wouldn't have made G&T in second grade either. Second grade was my year. It was the year I was able to really come into my own in school. Kindy was spent in the naughty corner (well, I was an outside girl, I didn't make the adjustment at all well). First grade was spent in a power struggle with my teacher over my name (I don't go by my first name and it really, really, REALLY bugged her) and trying to learn to read.

I learned to read midway through first grade. So did Hyperion. I had an instinctive grasp of numbers, but if I learned something wrong, I had a very difficult time relearning it (I still have trouble with left and right). Hyperion has gotten into his head that 8+4=11 and 7+4=12. When we have him stop and look at it of course he knows he's wrong, but his first reaction is 11 and 12.

His teacher assured me that if she continued to see improvement she would recommend he be tested again next year.

3 comments:

badmomgoodmom said...

How do they test in Texas? 30 years ago, in CA, we were tested one on one by a district psychologist. I was surprised to learn that kids in our area are now tested using a multiple choice test that is optically scanned and scored.

They used to test in second grade. Now, they test at the end of third grade.

I am shelling out many hundreds of dollars to take Iris to be tested the old fashioned way later this month.

Have you ever read 'Delivered from Distraction'? I think ADHD is a whole continuum of behaviors. Not everyone who prefers the outdoors and can't sit still indoors is ADHD. But they are probably closer to that end of the axis.

One recess a day for first graders? Sheesh. I would have never left kindergarten if they did that.

Tanya Brown said...

People who won't call kids (or adults) by their preferred names can just. piss. off.

Good for Hyperion. Sounds like he's doing really well.

Gaia said...

My understanding is that it is a one on one test. Hyperion's problem is that if he doesn't connect with you, he's not going to do well.

We're working with him on understanding that he just has to live his path and not pay attention to the paths of others. Because if someone strays off what Hyperion thinks is the right path, it will bug him for hours and to the point where he can't concentrate on anything else. My nephew has Asperger's Syndrome and I see certain commonalities in Hyperion's behavior - not to the same extent, of course, just enough that I jump in and work with him immediately using the techniques my ex-SIL uses with my nephew.