The Wrightslaw Way

My daughter has ADHD. She sometimes “acts out” but is not a behavior problem.  At the IEP meeting, the Assistant Principal demanded that we put her on meds. He gave us a deadline date. If we did not comply, he would call 911 for any “acting out.” Is this legal? The Individuals with Disabilities Education […]

My daughter has been diagnosed with ADHD but it is not included in her current IEP. The school has her diagnosis on file. The school won’t make any accommodations for her ADHD because we cannot get it into her IEP. What should I do? I also have a child with ADHD. My son has and […]

Update: Policy Statement (12/31/12):  The American Academy of Pediatrics believes that recess is a crucial and necessary component of a child’s development and, as such, it should not be withheld for punitive or academic reasons. The Crucial Role of Recess in School My sixth grade son, 12, is diagnosed ADHD with anxiety. His current IEP does […]

The Atypical Learner Conference, designed for parents and caregivers of bright children who might be failing in school. The conference will focus on common causes and explanations for dyslexia, ADHD, speech delay, school failure and behavioral problems that are treatable. Pete Wright, will be one of the speakers on April 9th and will focus on […]

My child attends private school and demonstrates focus problems, tics, and some hyperactivity. He was recently diagnosed with ADHD by a physician who recommended a psychoeducational evaluation. The public school district conducted the evaluation.  The evaluation dismissed physicians findings of ADHD. Question: Our doctor reviewed the test results. He told us that the law said […]

My grandson has ADHD. He is  in therapy and taking medication.  He will be going into second grade and the school wants to segregate him into a Behavior Modification class located at another school in the district.  I thought it was against Federal law to segregate children.  Is this a good plan? Your grandson is […]

My 13 year old son, in private school, was diagnosed with ADD & ADHD. He is failing all subjects and the teachers claim he has difficulty concentrating and organizing. We requested special ed services from the district. His test scores actually were pretty good so the head of the special ed department was not helpful.  […]

My granddaughter is a happy little girl when not in reading situations.  She is almost 8, in the 2nd grade at a public school. She has a reading disability the private testing psychologist called dyslexia, ADD inattentive type,  and a processing deficit.  Her language IQ is low-average, her processing speed is slow. She cannot read […]

I’ve scheduled my daughter for a speech & language evaluation due to CAPD and potential expressive language disorder. She also has a diagnosis of ADHD Inattentive. Our school district goes to any means to prevent giving a 504 for ADHD. They say it does not substantially affect learning. How do I advocate for all her […]

My son turned 21 in May. He is attending a local college and getting all F’s.  He seems depressed and lost. He likes computers but has difficulties passing the classes required for computer technology. Any ideas will help because we are out of plans. From Pete: My Personal Interests Matched Against My Aptitudes In my […]