When Gina’s daughter Katie was young, she told her mother that she (Katie) could “do anything she wanted to do if she put her mind to it.” Pretty amazing for a child who struggled greatly with disabilities, including Asperger’s syndrome, ADHD, and dyscalcula.
The article below about Dannel Malloy, the current Governor of Connecticut who has dyslexia, proves her point.
By the way, Katie’s never expressed interest in holding a position such as this, though I’m sure she would put her unique spin on things. “I’d like to declare a state of Fashion Emergency. I have nothing to wear to my ball.”
Do you know a special child who has exceeded expectations? Tell us about it.
My daughter was diagnosed with ADHD and Perceptual Impairment in 2nd grade and displays many typical symptoms that are obstacles for those dealing with these disorders. I had gone to Catholic School and had no knowledge of Special Services and accommodations in public schools. She was actually the one who initiated her own evaluation by seeing other kids getting pulled out for extra help. So after a few evaluations, she received a firm diagnosis but refused to be medicated. Instead she struggled until 4th grade where she started to understand that she learned differently than the majority and learned about her needs. It wasn’t until 10th grade when the high school started to lower the bar to help her through that she realized they were doing things that would prevent her from getting into her choice of colleges that she took a stand and rebelled against the system and rose to the challenge, putting all she could into academics. She utlized strategies and elf-discipline and through her need to have a jam-packed schedule that she learned to be well-organized and have superior time-management and self-discipline. The school finally backed off, actually stating she should hate school and be failing everything due to the nature of her disabiltiy rather than fighting for AP classes and they told her they would no longer fight her on the issues, admitting she knew more about managing her disability than they did. When she got into college and lost the structure of the school system she was accustomed to, things fell apart terribly over the course of three semesters. Finally I pulled her out and brought her home. Once everyone she knew went back after break she couldn’t bear being a failure. She did 2 semesters at home at the local Community College, making Deans last in the 2nd semester, and then returned to her University and made Deans List and Academic Honors every semester after that. (She had finally begung regular visits to a psychiatrist and accepted medication). As I write this, she is celebrating her last day of student teaching and receipt of her teaching certification with advanced standing. This December she will graduate with her Master Degree in Teaching Summa cum Laude with a 4.0 GPA., which she managed to accomplish while managing 3 successful Departments for a high end retailer. She doesn’t know it, but she wiill also be getting engaged at the end of the month to her boyfriend of 6 years who understands well the symptoms of her conditions and how to live with her. I could not be any prouder of her. Thank you for the opportunity to share.