My son is on another planet, according to his teacher. Some help and advice is needed

[Faery-Wings]

My son, is 5 and is in kindergarten. Last week, I had a teacher conference for him, first of the year. The teacher, whom I know from teaching two years ago- her son was in my class- said he was brilliant but on another planet.

She said that after three months of school he still doesn't have the morning routine down. The kids are to come in the classrooom, hang up their coats, take their folders out of their backpacks and any papers in their folders go into her basket on her desk. Then any papers she has for them to go home are in a little mail center and they go there, find their names and take the papers and put them in their folders. He apparently is the only one who can't seem to do it- he wanders around the room, forgets about his back pack, sits down on the rug after she has already moved onto the next lesson- he is always a few steps behind. She also thought he wasn't paying any attention to her- to the point she had the nurse check his ears. He is having a hard time finishing his work- because he runs late, but all of his work is done correctly and above the level she expects. She has been sending books home for him to read- he is already well above the other kids in reading skills and can read short books of high frequency words.

She was going to try a behavior mod program with him and send home a dinosaur toy when he did his routine on time. He brought it home once and I don't know if she hasn't been offering it or he hasn't done his job. I am getting frustrated b/c he isn't bringing home stuff on time that he needs to be (like our tickets for Breakfast with Santa) and isn't handing in assignments on time.

I was thinking of trying a behavior mod chart with him at home- give him a sticker for every day he does his routine and each week he gets all 5 stickers take him to the dollar store.But I don't know how well that is going to work- it might be too late- it really needs to be done at school. My hubby is pissed big time at the teacher. he thinks she isn;t doing her job. But my thought is if every other kid can do this and it has been over three months of the same routine, the problem is with my son.

Any ideas?? I feel like this is out of my control, but I need to help him. he is bored at school already and I don't want to make school a negative experince. But I also don't want him to start already falling behind because he can't follow directions.

Thanks, Chris

[talamh]

You said it yourself... your son is bored at school. Unfortunately, schools are geared for the average kid.. the slow learners and the brilliant ones both get neglected.

Is there some sort of alternate school in your area.. a Montasori school or some sort of private, progressive school. i know it can be expensive. Is there some sort of enrichment program somewhere in the regular system. Would you consider home schooling?

Perhaps you could have your son get some sort of assessment.... perhaps he has a genius IQ... maybe he just can't be bothered.

You are right to spot the problem and seek a solution now.. rather then when he is in grade 6.. or grade 10. All best wishes in finding a solution. bb talamh

[Laiste]

Oy boy! I can certainly relate to what your going through! I am having similar difficulties with my son. He's in 3rd and will be 9 in February. His difficulties concentrating are a new thing. He never had this "problem" before. He is acting "silly" in class and not "paying attention" according to his teacher. He is not completing or handing in assignments on time and has failed two math tests because "he did not complete the test"!!! At home he is defiant and it sometimes takes him an hour or two to complete 15-20 minutes worth of homework. He always was above grade level and was on the honor roll for the past three years...now this year he got his first C ever and no A's...he was quite dissapointed to say the least!

I have met with his teacher, the school psychologist and the student assistance councilor. My son is regularly seeing the assistance councilor. My son is also attending some special enrichment programs at the school. He loves these programs. This seems to be working. He is doing a little better than he was just a few weeks ago. We are taking it one day at a time! They are cutting him some slack because of all the things that have gone on in his life in the past few months. We moved far away from family and friends, his great-grandmother passed away...and his treasured NYC was attacked! This was quite devistating for my son.

Chrissy...look into if the school has any staff that can provide some support for your son...someone for him to talk to so they may try and figure out the root of the problem. You said that he is a bright child and is above his grade level...this can severly affect a childs behaivor, they become bored and feel useless because there is not enough stimulation for them. Perhaps the school has a special enrichment program...this could be the answer to his problems!

Best of luck to you and your son, I don't know if this was mentioned to you by the school staff...but, don't let them push the who ADD thing on you...I've seen that happen to many of my friends! That's the first thing they try to blame...oh he/she should be tested for ADD! Put the children on meds and turn them all into controllable robots!!!:rolleyes: ;)

PM me anytime if you want to talk!:)

[Faery-Wings]

My husband really wants me to homeschool. Sadly he went through something similar when he was a kid. He was reading before kdg, but ended up with an undiagnosed learning disability. he can read all he wants, but he can't comprehend it. It would take him many tried to even read a passage in a guitar magazine. He ended up, by grade three, hating school, and by high school was a typical problem teen drug addict cutting school. he barely graduated. And my hubby is insanely smart- I graduated with a BA in Eduacation and a BA in psychology, both with highest honors and a 3.79 GPA, and I feel stupid next to him. :)

Anyway, back to homeschooling, I have a degree in Elem. Ed and feel qualified to teach him, I just don't think I have the patience to teach him. And it sounds selfish but I would like a little more freedom from my kids, not less. Don't get me wrong, I love them totally but most days I don't fee like i have time to breathe esp. since my daughter (3 yo) is pretty high need. And my son is very shy and somewhat insecure and I really think he needs the socialization of a public school.

Ahh, I just wish I knew what to do! Thanks for the suggestions, I really appreciate them. :)

Chris

[HerbGurl]

I would get your child tested for two things- first to see if he is gifted/Talented then if he is ADD . NOT the other way around! Most of the time, being gifted is considered the same things as being ADD. Children with ADD are usually super, super creative and energetic! A whole bunch of famous people had ADD, (Or the symptons at least! :p ) Thomas Edison, Leonardo Davinchi and my, absolute favorite, Ben Franklin! :D
I myself have struggled with ADD since I was a child. I was reading a magazine article in the middle of junior year about learning disabilities and I noticed that I suffered form most of the symptoms. I took the article to my doctor and I was put on Adderal- two pills int he morning one in the afternoon. It was an incredibly LOW dose, but I got very very sick on the meds, especially after it was increased to 3 in the morning. I was nauseous all the time, lost my appeitie completely and I lost 15 pounds. (Not good when you are underweight to begin with! ;) ) Part of the problem is finding the right medicine. I have since switched to Dexadrine once a day and everything has been going fine. :D
I would also try to see if he has a fatty acid deficiency. It turned out that I had one, and I have been taking flaxseed oil to help combat it along with my meds. Kids with ADD often have these deficiencies. I definitely suggest the following website. It has all sorts of POSITIVE information on ADD.

http://www.borntoexplore.org/

I'd definitely give it a look. Hang in there okay? Raising an ADD child can be "hell" as my mother puts it, but it can also be a rewarding experience. Who knows, perhaps you have a future Edison under your nose!!
I hope this helps!
Blessings,
HerbGurl

Oh yeah- ADD can be genitic. I went to a family reunion and half of my mother's cousins had ADD. My father's family shows signs of it too as well!! Both of my parents do too. (Undiagnosed, of course:rolleyes: ) I guess I'm just a chip off the old block!! :lol:

[Lavender]

Hi Chris, your son sounds so much like mine. :D We had our son tested & found out he's gifted. It's not that he can't do these chores but because his mind is thinking of so many different things, they forget...especially at that age. They've got so much going on in that brillant little mind. We're constantly amazed that how can he be so smart & yet can't remember to wash his face after he brushes his teeth!:rolleyes: The child pyschologist explained that there are so many different types of gifted children. Some are very smart in learning facts & others may be gifted in the way they think. I'm not sure if I'm explaining that right. It's that their thought processes are different from other kids their age.

He's been in a challenge program for a while now & loving it. But he still has a hard time remembering little things that should be routine to him. Just as you described the morning routine. One thing I found is to get them to repeat back your instructions. And give them one thing to do at a time. If your son's 5, this is his first year in school. It may take a while for him. I remember it took us most of the year for my son to get into the routine of things & it will start all over at the next school year. It's slowly getting better as he got older. He's now 11.

If you can get him tested by a child pyschologist, they can give you some insight on his learning patterns.

[HerbGurl]

Originally posted by Wildchild


One thing I found is to get them to repeat back your instructions. And give them one thing to do at a time.

:lol: That what my parents have to with me! Even though I am at college, they still get on IM and remind me of stuff that I have to do! My sister organized all of my stuff for me (She is the exact opposite of me, she is practically OCD about cleaning up. :rolleyes: ) and I can IM her four months later and she will tell me where what I am looking for is! :lol:
Blessings,
HerbGurl

[Lavender]

:lol: I use that one on my husband too! It works great...don't tell him. :D

[mato]

My whole family is like that, they are intellegent and gifted but when it comes to routines and deadlines... Lets just say when I needed picked up at 6:30 I said it was 5:00. We get destracted easily by more interesting things. I have never been able to get a routine down, I hate them, I figured that I was just not one of the drones... I was reading before all the others, I was finished with my kiddy library before all others, and had to sneak into the older library just to get something fun to read.
However a word from someone who has been in the gifted programs, make sure that they are actually doing something! ACK!! I cant tell you how many times I went into my algebra class to find that no one was doing anything. Or worse the after school math groups were just trading baseball cards... You have to find a good one or else he will do something like I did (which was taking to the delight of terrifying the teachers staff and students, manipulating them, forcing them to play my games. I wasnt a very nice child genus...) and mess up the whole enrichment program for every one.
If it's ADD please find other alternitives, drugs dont work, they fried my brothers brain to the point were he was no longer the brother I knew, even off the drugs he didnt recover fully.

[Illuminatus]

It's a sad fact of life that Teachers are given the charge of educating children, but very rarely given the authority to effectively do so.

chryssi, your husband is wrong in blaming the teacher. Odds are, she is doing everything within her power. All she can do is reprimand the child verbally, withhold small privlidges from him, and complain to you. That's it. Period. Nothing more. Conditioning your child to behave appropriately in the outside world is solely the responsibility of the parents. You, the person with direct control of the child, must be the one who enforces discipline! Because nobody else is allowed to.

You need a better communication system than the dinosaur toy. Perhaps a phone call?

- Ill

[Faery-Wings]

Thnak you for taking the time to reply. I am glad I am not the only person going through this.

herbgurl- I skimmed over that website, it looks very informative. His teacher doesn't think he has ADD and neither do I. He could easily spend over an hour drawing or modeling with clay. He keeps himself occupied and has a very active imagination when playing. His behavior is calm and quiet. I have spent time at the school as a class mom and as a helper and he rarely talks, sits quietly and... stares into space. LOL. So there was some good info there and I will take some time to read it over carefully.

Laiste~ good luck to your son too. It must be hard adjusting for him right now. I'm sure as he settles into his new school and home things will flow better for him at school too.

Wildchild~ ok, your son does sound like mine! :) Scott could tell you just about every name of dinosaur or insect, but has to be reminded 100 times to brush his teeth or put on clean underwear in the morning. (Or is it a guy thing?:p) Scott does process things differently- he is so observant of everything and his puts all that his knows together. Like, he can relate to supposedly unrelated things together and it always makes sense (not like hhis mom, sheesh! :D).

Mato~ your family reminds me of Robin Williams in Flubber. Which is who Scott reminds me of too. HIs teacher said she expects that he will turn out to be a "Mad Scientist" sort of guy. I agree! LOL! Thanks for sharing your experiences too.

Thanks again everyone. Today he came home and had all of his papers handed in, so *fingers crossed* maybe things will get better.

BB

Chris

[Faery-Wings]

Ill~ We must have been posting at the same time. :)

I agree with you, which is why I feel that I need to work on this at home. if I don't help him, really no one else can. I told her to feel free to yell at him, but she said she wouldn't- that she only uses positive reinforcement. Heh, as a teacher I felt the same, as a mom- no way!:D

We set timers to get his butt moving at home, but I know she can't do that. So we will see how my plan works and I'll keep in better touch with her.

Thanks!

Chris

[Lavender]

Scott does process things differently- he is so observant of everything and his puts all that his knows together. Like, he can relate to supposedly unrelated things together and it always makes sense (not like hhis mom, sheesh! ).

Chris, that's exactly how Erick is. The teachers always comments on how he seems to gleam insights that the others missed. He would even surprise his teachers sometimes. The behaviour modifications are good. The one year we had trouble was in grade 3. It was his first male teacher & he just didn't understand Erick. We went through a very tough year. Now Erick's in grade 6 & just loving school. He still forgets things but definitely much better than before. He's learning to keep track of things better. The hardest thing for me to do was to let him fail a test because he forgot to bring his work home.

What Illuminatus said is true about teacher/parent relationship but I guess you know that! :p We were always in constant contact with all Erick's teachers. On the whole, (except for that one teacher) we were fortunate enough to have good teachers. I'm sure I must have come across as the mother from hell! :D

[Demeter]

The absent-minded genius is a stereotype, but it is so because that behavior pattern is so common. We laugh at these guys on TV shows or in books, but when they're our kids -- or us -- it isn't quite so funny. I was the way your son is, and so were all of my brothers, and my daughter. To this day, I have problems dealing with routine matters because I am much more fascinated with something else, some creative matter, a problem to be solved, even communication on a bulletin board while I'm supposed to be typing letters at the office!

Your son will probably need supervision of the routines of life for a long time. He just doesn't perceive routines as being "important". His gifts lie deeper, in insight, in creativity, perhaps in the sciences, or the arts. He should be encouraged to push himself as far as possible, to challenge himself in as many ways as possible. In that process, he may discover for himself that routines are helpful in organizing data, equipment, and life in general.

Your little boy is the classic marcher to his own drummer. He will no doubt infuriate you over the years, but if his gifts are allowed to mature, there is no limit to what he might do.

[StormChaser]

I agree with all the gifted and add statements. both are worth looking into, in that order.



There is another problem that could be looming, which is autism. There are MANY varieties of this. Autistic children are amazing in certain feilds, but get lost in other worlds.. they need constant "bringing down to earth.

But, in any case, you will have to help him hone in his attention skills. Try playing memory games 2 to 3 times a week, try activities that require total attention to detail, more arts and crafts.. something perhaps like oragami. Focus Focus Focus.

Part of parenting is rearing y our children so they can take care of themselves as adults, you don't want to be organizing your childs life still when they are 40 simply because they "accepted" that they will have no attention span because theya re "gifted" or "challenged", and because of that they should never even bother to try to develope more awareness.

~Sarah

[Sequoia]

I can really really relate to what everyone's saying.

When I was younger I was in all the gifted classes. . . problem is, sometimes these "advanced" or "gifted" classes are the same curriculum at a faster pace. So I really hated it. Just because someone is "gifted" doesn't nessicarily mean that in all fields, they can rush through subjects and understand them explicitly. I sure didn't. I'll be taking Algebra for the third time this coming year. I'm just glad I got out of school. I'm in college now, and I LOVE it.

But I was one of those kids who'd be so focused on the work she was doing that she'd start humming or something and not even realize it. My teachers said I was both a joy and a nightmare. I barely remember it, in all honesty.

I would NOT reccomend drugs. I would only say in extreme cercomstances should they be used. My boyfriend was put on ritalin when he was young for ADD. . . now, the thing is. . . my boyfriend is EXTREMELY intelligent. The problem he always had, that got him stuck into the "special" (aka disabled) classes, was that he just couldn't read. I'm still not sure why he has trouble, but he's getting MUCH better. He understands what he reads very well, he's EXTREMELY smart. He just can't read quickly at all (it doesn't stop him though. . . ^_^ I find a book series I love, see if he'd like it, and once he decides he likes it, there's no stopping him). When he was younger, they said "ohh well he has ADD so we shouldn't expect anything from him. He can't read. So let's put him here in teh special classes." and he was bored to death. When he was on ritalin he was like a zombie. He's told me about how all he could do was study and schoolwork, like he was compelled.

When I was in JR high, I got chronic migraines. I also was bored to death in school and hated it. So I would be skipping because I hated it, or I was sick and in a great deal of pain.
Well, one day I decided to try to deal with the migraines. So I had my mom set up a DR appointment for it. I went in, told him what they were like (classic migraines, only mine tend to manifest more in vertigo than headache pains), and then I went outside while my mom talked to him. . . appearntly she told him that I was faking it because I didn't like school and was depressed or some junk like that. . . . yes I hated school and yes I was depressed but NO I was NOT faking it. Jeeze. So I come back in and he starts spouting some stuff about TMJ (which, as he explained it, was that my jaw was tight and that's why I was getting headaches) and he put me on a medicine that appearantly can be used for both TMJ and depression. (I forget what it's called.) So I was taking it for a while. . . and I noticed how it was for depression, mainly. . . and I asked the guy about it and he was like "oh no, don't worry about it, it's FAR too low a dose to effect anybody like that." Sure man. That's why it turned me into this personality-less, does-what-the-teachers-say, I-don't-feel-alive person. He was giving me the depression dose, and it turned me into practically a zombie. I, like my boyfriend with ritilin, realized this and took myself off of it. I felt much better after, and decided not to see that guy again. I told my mother about how I took myself off it and she was like "are you sure about that?" like she had a secret for me to stay on it, but didn't want to voice it (which would be exactly like my mother).

Drugs are NOT the answer, to most things. Yes, there are some cercomstances. . . but try everything else first. Chances are your boy is just a brilliant little guy, who deserves the world and more. Something he might really enjoy would be nature hikes. . . go on hikes in teh woods or at the beach or something. . . have him write down the animals he sees, and what he thinks about them. Have him collect leaves and such, maybe take pictures, take LOTS of *mental* pictures.. . really explore the forest. And perhaps he could put it all together as a project and surprise his teacher? I know as I child I dearly loved that kind of thing. Hands-on often appeals to bright children. (hey, all children! hehe) He might also really enjoy learning another language. When they're young is the best time, and there's TONS of children's books and tapes of other languages. You'd both be learning at the same time. . . how fun!

Best of luck to you and your family!! ^_^

~Puma Hime

edit: ok I know this post is getting real long, but I forgot something. I used to get literally "shoved" into some of the programs and extra-curricular activities because I was "gifted." All I had to do was express the SLIGHTEST fleeting interest in something, and my mother would have me in it n the blink of an eye. She would get SO excited and SO deturmined to have me be just as special as she thought I was that she didn't really seem to think about what *I* wanted. . . more like what she THOUGHT I wanted. I would almost immediately develope a hate for whatever she had put me in. It still hurts sometimes, because there were things I was truely interested in, yet the experience was ruined.

So while it is very true that you need to encourage your child. . . (and this is for anyone). . . you need to remember that it's your child's life, not your own. Giving your child oppourtunities is wonderful, just try not to live through them. It's their life, ne?

[SnowStar]

Between my brother, my sister, and myself, you've got about every sterotype for a "gifted" kid you could think of.

First there's me, I'm not horribly forgetful of the day to day routines, and if anything I get stuck in them and hate to alter the order or manner of which I do anything, just so it doesn't mess me up. Maybe that's my own subconscious way of keeping myself from forgetting. Who knows. Anyway, for the longest time I REALLY enjoyed school because my teachers often recognised that I was ahead of most of the kids my age and fostered to that, which was truly fortunate. There have always been times (more recently than before, really) that I'd get bored and zone out, and then miss something important. I don't particularly enjoy the institution of school, but I hate it when people take that as I don't like to learn, because I LOVE to learn. Truthfully, I think I learn more on my own time. Anyway, there I go getting off topic again. That's another one of the quirks I have is that I am forever rambling and going off on tangents because my mind is constantly going 100 mph. It also keeps me from paying attention. I've found that I've got to actively do something with a class lecture, like take notes, so I don't go off thinking about something that I was reminded of during the lecture. Based on probability, I more than likely have an undiagnosed LD myself, but academically it has never hindered me so it has never been a concern. I'd always found extracurricular activities to be beneficial when I was younger (not so much now because I have a life, but that's a different story completely). It kept my brain busy, I rarely was bored, and I loved it. One thing I always suggest is learning to play a musical instrument. It requires so many multiple thought processes that you really can't get bored and it helps so much with concentration.

To move on to the next set of stereotypes, we go to my sister. The child is EXTREMELY energetic and can be pretty scatterbrained. However, she has got a nearly photographic memory, can remember details like no one I know, and other than the energy and the slightly more firey personality (and as much as I hate to admit it) our brains work quite similarly. I think the biggest factor in the differences is age (I'm 5 years older). We know that she is most likely ADHD and her teachers this year are trying to make her seem like a problem so my mum will put her on meds because she is such a, well, personality. My mum refuses to do it, however because is does not affect her academically and in her everyday life.

My brother on the other hand is on meds for ADD, but it is only because the area in which he is affected is at school. He had the worst time in kindergarten and 1st grade because he'd do what I tend to do now - pay attention and then go off on something completely different. It didn't help that his teachers treated him like an idiot which lowered his self esteem and drive to learn anything. After multiple assessments of just about everything you can imagine, they found that he was not only of a genius IQ like both my sister and me, but he also had ADD as a side effect of that, and it was affecting him academically. They first put him on Adderall because my parents absolutely refused to put him on Ritalin. That didn't last long as it made him whiny and irritable and almost depressed. The doctor changed his medicine to Medadate, which seems to work bettter for him in keeping his personality and helping him focus. He went from nearly failing the 1st grade to making honour roll now in the 3rd grade. Under the right circumstances and as a last resort the meds do help, but we only turned to that after letting it lie to see if things would improve, after tutoring, and numerous other things. My parents really hated to do it, but it was necessary for him. I'm under the impression that if my parents weren't so adamently against it except for as a last resort my sister and I would be on meds too if some teachers had their way.

It just goes to show that its all just trial and error and trying to find what works best for which kid. The scatterbrained thing is very much a side effect of being smart, some people can learn to work around it and some can't. And as for me, my mind continues to run 100 mph and I probably just made absolutely no sense. Eh, just get what you can from whatever I just said. I must be going now.

[Sequoia]

:) I know what you're tallking about.

Have you ever had your mind take one subject and go running with it and make a comment and have everyone stare at you and then have to explain how you got from a to q? And then get stared at strangely for being able to say so much with one breath, and for being "elaborate" when you thought you were being practically spartan in your speach? ^^;;

[Myst]

Wow, kudos to you for being such a good mom. Keeping abreast of any issues and looking for the best answer for him. Especially since he's only in kindergarten and you're heading any problem right off right away. I think Wildchild has come up with some excellent ideas and I hope you guys can chat more about it. I wish I could offer more but I think she's your best person to talk to about it. :)

[AradiaSupernova]

You have said it, but I just thought I'd throw this in. Homeschooling your son would be an excellent idea. I am home schooled for various reasons, one being that I was bored in school. I have always been a fast learner, and I loved school in the respect that I love learning. However...if you look at it right...you have been home schooling your child since birth. Maybe not in math and reading or other things like that, but in other things. If your son is truly having a problem with public school, who better to help him in the learning process than the people who have already been teaching him? My Mom home schools 2 teenage daughters now. She used to home school 3, but my youngest sister went back to public school. Its benefits out weigh its concequences. As long as you make sure your son still has social interactment, you're good to go. I strongly recommend home schooling :)

[Faery-Wings]

I really appreciate all of you sharing your stories. I see a lot of him (and me:)) in your descriptions. Some of my friends think I am worrying too much as he is only in kdg- but I feel this is where he is going to develop his feelings and attitudes towards school. But I don't want to push him to where he is unhappy with it, either (point well taken Puma!). He is an "old soul" too and part of me just wants to protect him. You have given me lots to keep in mind as the school year progresses.

Blessings!!

Chris

[Sequoia]

Best of luck to you both! ^_^ and give him a hug for me

[Lavender]

Chris, pm me anytime! :)

I don't have all the answers but I can share what we've gone through.

[StormChaser]

My best friend is now doing homeschooling in addition to agoing to votech.
She went to public school till 7th grade then was put in the ultimate private school. which I personally would have loved, but she just isn't that type of student.. a work aholic or a thesbian. She already knew and knows what she wants to be and how to do it... and private school didnt give that to her. It also never seemed to help her get friends. So she went back to public school in 9th grade only to find herself ostrisized and bored. So she said "that's it" started vo tech for childcare *which she now has a 4.0 in* and started homeschoolin g*told her parents, I'm dropping out with or without you, I'd rather get home schooled"
and her father agreed. She is the HAPPIEST i have EVER seen her now.. and doing what she loves. home school, vo tech, and working in a day care.

I have known others that did private schools that helped *my cousin becca for instance, and myself as a young child*

I've also known homeschoolers who were NOT doing well or had trouble adjusting when public school became necessity. The hardest thing really seemed to be social interaction. If you can find away to fill that gap... you should be great. as others have stated!

[SpikesPet5150]

I loved school until I got into high school. I, too, learn at a faster rate than the average student. So I was either bored, or I just wouldn't pay attention because it was "beneath me." In the 2 years I went to public high school, I only got 1/4 of a credit. Then I attended an alternative high school.... and in the 2 years I went there, I got all of the credits (except 3) to graduate. I ended up getting married at 18 and dropped out again, but thats not the point. The point is, I kinda realized one more thing I hated about public schools (at least the one I went to). If you weren't one of the popular kids, the teachers wouldn't ever talk to you. You were stuck in a class with 50 other students, while the teacher droned on and on and on about some subject or another than bored me to tears. It's good to know that your sons teacher has that interaction with him and she's not just pushing him to the back of the class.
~Bree