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Stories from the Documentary: Nathan V. LaurenSarah LeeAdamNathan S.
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Recent responses to the Misunderstood Minds documentary and Web site. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: Just last week, we met with my daughter's second grade teacher together with the school's learning specialist. On the one hand, our daughter's "receptive vocabulary is in the very superior range" - literally 97th percentile for kids of her EXACT age, truly impressive. On the other "She recognizes some number patterns when they are part of an oral sequence, but they are totally meaningless to her visually (she scored 1%)." She was unable to complete any visual sequencing arrays (like: 2 3 4 _ 6), but readily completed them orally. She was unable to calculate the simplest of money problems. The learning assessment suggests a broader learning difficulty than just math. Although she compensates well now, because of her verbal proficientcies - this will not always be possible given the increasingly complex and interdisciplinary approach to education. The learning specialist will be getting back to me regarding a tutor that is actually available at this time and able to teach to her strengths and develop her in those areas of most need. This will likely be just the beginning of a long-term relationship. Her difficulties will not be cured or fixed, they are forever. Building up her own compensatory systems to help her deal with these areas will be our challenge. Your documentary will be a welcome reminder that, while the world of learning disabilities is new to us as parents, we do not have to search for answers in the wilderness. We are not alone. And that helps. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: I have always had a great difficultly in school, but no matter how hard I would try, I was unable to be successful. As a 9 year old, my folks were told, that I was "just being lazy." I tried so very hard to explain that I WAS trying, but nobody paid much attention. I was put in a very special classes for specialized math help -- I was not stupid, nor unwilling to learn. My brain would not "remember" how a problem was to be solved; by the time the signals reached my hand holding the pencil over the paper -- I couldn't remember what steps were needed to solve the equation. Spelling vocabulary words was as difficult; I remember thinking, "What is wrong with me?" "I am a failure." But one dream kept me alive, that was to own a restaurant, even as a kid, I love to cook, especially bake. Most baking recipes require the use of fractions; I could manage to see that two fourths of a cup was indeed 1/2 of a cup. This hobby helped a lot in the world of math. I am 29 now, three summers ago, my coworker, noticed that I would reverse numbers while taking down a phone number. He mentioned he had the same problem, caused by dyslexia. There was an actual name for what I had...but I wonder why it took 26 years for anyone to notice that I have it? I have learned to deal with dyslexia, but repeating phone numbers back to the caller a few times, sure it must annoy them, but hey, I have the correct number. I assumed EVERYONE had trouble writing down numbers, and also not being able to solve basic math problems...or not being able how to spell basic words. Thank God for spell check, dictionaries, dedicated teachers, friends and understanding family. Thank you to the PBS' network for bringing this to the airwaves, maybe another child will not have to go through what I path I have journeyed down. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: Our son is finishing 1st grade. We have been to two meetings with his teachers, the school psychologist, and the principal about having him tested for a learning disability. They believe that he does have a disability but the test for 1st graders is so vague that his problem may not show up. If that would happen he couldn't be retested until he entered 4th grade. Teachers are not allowing these children to fall through the cracks. The red tape of our educational system is. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: I am an adult who struggled my entire childhood with language and mathematics LDs. As a young child these problems were hidden, but as time progressed and reading, writing and computation became everyday school tasks my difficulties became more obvious. In the 1960s there was no such classification as LD. Those of us with problems were labeled stubborn, willful, slow, uncooperative and worse. The first thing parents of a child with LDs must realize is that this is not the end of the world, and their child can achieve anything the child wants. Only they just will not be able to follow the "standard" course. It is the stigma of LD that needs to be lifted for a child to succeed. A parent may never really understand what is happening in their child's mind, but what the parent's most important role will be is to love their child without condition. And to hold them at the end of their frequently "hard" days at school. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: My son, Daniel, has a language disability. He was diagnosed at age 3, they said his language level was only of a 18 month old child, he has since been in a special needs pre-k, and I feel he's coming along wonderfully. Most of the people he encounters now can partially understand him, my only concern is will this stay with him for the rest of his life? Will he ever catch up with the rest of the children in his age group? Will this affect him in his adult life? And what more can I do to help him? It's very upsetting that he has this disability, not to me but to him, he gets very frustrated when people can't understand him, and it makes me feel so helpless. He's in a class now of only one other child and the child is far worse than Daniel, I'm concerned this child will not promote Daniel's speech, as the last class he was in had children that were better in speech than he was and he grew off of them, learning more words and sounds. We recently moved and that was how he ended up in this new class, the school prior to this one had an integrated program, and this one doesn't. Daniel has many cousins his age and I try to have him play with them as much as possible so that he may continue in his speech development, because I don't feel he'll get much from the child in his class, sadly. If anyone can offer some suggestions on this matter i would be very grateful. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: I am excited reading the information provided on this web site. ADHD is real, ask my daughter. She went almost 22 years not being diagnosed and while struggling in college, one of her psychology professors suggested she be tested. After being diagnosed and being put on medication, she was a different person. I resent the fact this was never discovered while in middle school or high school. She wasn't disruptive, maybe more of the class clown and it was due to the fact she couldn't process what she was reading or hearing...couldn't decide what is important. I pushed her to college and insisted she stay. Many of her friends told her if they had to study as hard as she did, they would have dropped out. I knew she had the intelligence, but had no idea why she wasn't able to do better than she was. I thank her professor for taking an interest and helping her. She was able to take oral exams and there were other considerations given to her, but she was able to graduate with a double major, psychology and communications. I thank heaven for the meds she takes every day. Her life is so much better because of them. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: My 14-year old daughter has a reading disability and ADHD. She was diagnosed years ago and has been receiving help and is now, finally, doing well in school. However, this website really opened MY eyes as to what she actually faces each day in the classroom. Even though it had all been explained to me before, and I could tell you what she was experiencing, until I actually experienced it myself I didn't understand what it was like. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: Would the man who doesn't want to give his daughter Ritalin because it is a drug not give her insulin if she had Diabetes? I will do whatever it takes to help my son get through everyday life. He is 12 now and takes Concerta if he still needs it when he is 30, he has my blessing. I want to help him in anyway that I can. I wouldn't deny him help if his condition required any other kind of medication, why should we deny them this kind of help? Life at it's very best is hard, why make it any harder? March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: The documentary will undoubtedly be an eye opener to many parents who have watched their children struggle academically. The missing disability in your series is the other "hidden disability"......... a social disability. Children unable to competently read or display social interactions suffer far more perhaps than those whose differences involve academics, although there is some crossover, and some children may suffer from both. Schools may offer appropriate remediation for dyslexia and a myriad of other learning disabilities, but rarely if ever offer appropriate remediation in the area of social skills. Academically competent children suffering from mild autistic spectrum disorders are typically self contained in classes with children struggling academically, or are mainstreamed and left to struggle socially. These children are often the ones who are continually taunted, excluded, and victimized by peer abuse. I would like to see your program expanded to include them...and their struggles. March 25, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: i am so happy to read about this documentary!! my 1st grader is having great difficulty reading, it is so frustrating because the school says that she just needs more time and wants me to think about retention!! she is testing poor in the area of visual processing, i requested more testing from the occupational therapist at her school. i know that waiting is the worst thing you can do! i have a gut feeling about her difficulties and feel that there is something there that needs to be dealt with. i also have a 7th grader who has great difficulty in school, she hands in all of her homework, does well in class, but when it comes to tests, she does poorly!! they even kicked her off the basketball team because she had a failing grade in social studies!! this was so devastating to a child who has such poor self esteem to begin with!! i requested testing, but the child study team thinks that she just is being lazy and needs to stay for extra help, she has never been a good reader, and always says that she hates t read!! now i know the importance of catching problems with reading earlier in life!! reading is the core of everything in life and school!! it is so important to do whatever you can for your child, but the frustrating part is dealing with the school. if your child does not test significantly below average, there is no help for them!!! schools do not want to spend the money to help these children! what is it that president bush said? "leave no child behind"??? but where is the help that they so desperately need?? it is so frustrating for the parents to find the help that is needed!!! March 23, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: I am thrilled to find this web site and information. As the principal of a small private school, I have the responsibility of making sure the teachers are equipped to be effective. Teachers come to our school enthusiastic and ready to share knowledge and learning with their students. Unfortunately, they are not fully equipped to meet the abilities of all the students present in every class. The documentary "Misunderstood Minds" and this web site will become one of the in-service tools I will use with my staff on a regular basis. Thank you for all the work each contributor added to such a quality program. March 23, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: well...i just spent an hour going thru your site. My daughter has CAPD [central auditory processing disorder], a receptive and expressive language disorder and short term memory problems. She is also weak in the areas of decoding and integration. Her diagnosis has been refined over the yrs but i never really understood how SHE heard her world until i tried to do the audio task with distractions. WOW! If it was that hard for me,i can't imagine how exhausting it is for my daughter!So many sounds to filter out...and pay attention to! While she is in school, she wears an FM system(the teachers voice is miked and she wears headphones with an adjustable audio level) to help her focus on the teachers voice and not on outside distractions. I also particapted in the decoding exercise and found it extremely difficult. We were lucky enough to have a very caring 1st grade teacher that pushed us to have her independently tested. Her problems were diagnosed within 6 months and appropriate strategies were put into place for her. Her progress is slow, but she has never lost the desire to learn or to attend school. My daughter faces these struggles every day in her world. Thank you for showing me, her mom, what she copes with every day of her life. March 23, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: Thank you so much for this intriguing and illuminating Web site. I'm 54 and I've struggled with ADD all my life, not knowing I had it or having a clear understanding of it. Your Web site puts many of my experiences in perspective. I've managed to succeed (sort of), earning an undergraduate degree and two advanced degrees. But it hasn't been easy. Even today I struggle with attentional and organizational issues even with medication (Adderall). Social situations can be unsettling and I often miss cues from social settings. Yet last Sunday I read the Gospel directly from Greek during the service and I can do the same with Hebrew. It's very confusing and sometimes frustrating to experience these situations. Your site is very helpful and I look forward to the broadcast. March 23, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: I am a resource room special education teacher in a K-5 school. I am VERY impressed with your website. Often parents are unsure of how to help their child, or the specifics of the disability that the child is dealing with. Your detailed website will allow parents of special needs students to overview, in plain English, the needs and supports that the parents and school can do together to help the child. I am passing along to the staff and to my parents the information on the Misunderstood Minds PBS series on Wednesday. I plan to purchase the video to have as a resource in my classroom. Thank you so much for your efforts towards special needs children. It is a wonderful thing you do! With deepest respect. Bobi Spence March 22, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: As a reading specialist and Instructional Support Teacher, I was thrilled to come across this website and am looking forward to this documentary. I have read some of Dr. Levine's previous books so will be acquiring this one also. I just linked this site for my school district's administration, special ed. department and plan on recommending this special for some of our families. I am the mother of a child (now young adult) who was not diagnosed with ADD until almost 8th grade! Unfortunately by then the impulsiveness was mixed with hormones and teen-age rebellion! We were all in serious trouble and dealt with many angry moments, lots of self-defeating behaviors, and many sessions with our family counselor. Luckily we all lived through that stage and life is better at this point, but I worry that she may never match her potential. I hope your efforts help other families see themselves in the mirrors of these stories and help them advocate for what their children need. March 20, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: I want to thank you for airing this very important show. I am a parent educator from Hamilton who is committed to raising awareness of children with learning issues. I contribute to DyslexiaMagazine on-line http://www.dyslexia-parent.com/mag36.html This show should be aired in every school, Kathi Borthwick March 20, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: Excellent site. My aim was to find information for my colleagues, to help them understand the difficulties experienced by the ADD child. So many teachers just don't want to know and label the child lazy and often feel uncomfortable having an ADD child in the classroom. Thank you A learning support teacher. ps I wish all teachers could be trained to work with special needs children. March 20, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: I have read a lot of things on ADHD in alot of web sites. I learned of this site from schwab learning. I can't wait to see the broadcast on PBS on March 27th. My Son who is 9 has been diagnosed with ADHD and exhibits a majority of the symptoms. My Husband is denial but I see it. I am trying everything I can to make sure the signs are not food allergies, have checked eyes and hearing. Trying behavior modification, punishment and more. Your information on the medication is very interesting. I want to try on one hand and to not on the other, but my husband will not hear of it. Thank you for this web site, I know with all this information and God's help we will progress. March 20, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: Great site! I have not seen the documentary just yet, but I definitely will be watching. Glad you offered simulations on the site. I have a child with phonemic and rapid naming deficits who hates to read but will listen to tapes or readers, often by request. My child is a lost soul in the world of print. Getting help for a child who has learned much and still test in average ranges offers little reprieve in the frustration of learning. It is nothing less than horribly sad to feel left behind and to watch the gap widening. Self-esteem slips through the hands like water. Lucky for our family, we have had terrific navigators to help understand and face the challenge. Thanks to very dedicated and caring professionals, our child is not facing a life as a hopeless behavior disorder on the rise, but has been renewed in a sensitive, intuitive, kind demeanor. The world of print remains a challenge, but it becoming less overwhelming through time. Professionals who write, like Dr. Levine, Rick Lavoie, Dr. Robert Brooks, Dr. Larry Silver, Priscilla Vail, and more, have helped us keep going in the right direction. We have experienced the benefit from such great works! March 20, 2002 Dear Misunderstood Minds: This site is EXCELLENT (yes, I'm SHOUTING :-)) I've seen - no kidding - hundreds of LD sites...I've been researching for over 5 years...both of my children have learning disabilities...my son also has attentional issues...I especially think that the simulations are of great value...not only to help my understanding, but the understanding of family and friends who often just don't "get" the issues that my children face. Thank you, thank you, thank you...and you can believe that I'm anxious to watch the documentary. (needless to say, I'll be sharing the site URL with many others) |
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produced by © 2002 WGBH Educational Foundation All rights reserved |
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