ISO School for boy who is gifted/LD/highly anxious/difficult

amother

Blonde

Thu, Dec 31 2015, 8:17 pm

Our son is in public school bc there is no Jewish school in our fairly large city that would work for him. I tried homeschooling him, but it was too emotionally draining for me. We are now in the unique position that we could move literally anywhere in the US or Canada that would have a program for him. We are looking into South Florida Jewish Academy. Does anyone know of anything in the NY/NJ area? Or anywhere else in the US or Canada?

sourstix

Thu, Dec 31 2015, 11:17 pm

new york definitely helps alot more in these cases then other states that I know. I dont know of a school for your child maybe someone here knows. good luck.

seeker

Thu, Dec 31 2015, 11:38 pm

Gifted/LD is always a difficult combination to work with within any school system, in my experience. All I can say is look really deeply into the school(s) you're considering before moving your whole family anywhere. And post here when you find the Jewish school that adequately addresses these needs!

amother

Magenta

Thu, Dec 31 2015, 11:40 pm

How are his social skills?

I too will be following. I have an aspie with similar qualities, and have not found much success.

amother

Lime

Fri, Jan 01 2016, 10:58 am

We're in the same boat as well. Ds is gifted, highly anxious, ADHD and aspergers.
Looking into Bnei Torah a Montessori cheder in Flatbush. Anyone know anything about it?

amother

Jetblack

Fri, Jan 01 2016, 2:45 pm

amother wrote:

We're in the same boat as well. Ds is gifted, highly anxious, ADHD and aspergers.
Looking into Bnei Torah a Montessori cheder in Flatbush. Anyone know anything about it?

When I applied there, I was told by one of the people in charge that it's not the right place for a child with "special needs".

Things may have changed since then.

Ask them directly and see what they say.

amother

Royalblue

Sat, Jan 02 2016, 7:22 pm

I send my child there. They are not equipped for these kind of children. And they are not accepting children that they cannot handle.

amother

Red

Sun, Jan 03 2016, 8:37 am

I am in the same boat, will move anywhere in NJ or PA. I've looked into

Politz Cherry Hill and Philadelphia
All three passaic schools
Netivot in highland park

Open to any suggestions

I don't have great info on any kne of these schools.

amother

Hotpink

Sun, Jan 03 2016, 8:48 am

A good option is the Sinai program (special ed) at Kushner Academy. Very high quality professional with mainstreaming options. They definitely service his population. I also second the T- class programs at YNJ, very high quality program.

amother

Coffee

Tue, Jan 12 2016, 6:39 pm

amother wrote:

From the way you describe your son, the Sinai program at YNJ might be a better fit for him. Like all the Sinai programs, it offers opportunities for mainstreaming, and some students have gone from Sinai at YNJ to the T program.

Inspire

Tue, Jan 12 2016, 7:03 pm

Once you determine receptivity of any school (via interview & recommendations) a good idea is to offer some literature on gifted kids to the administration, let them familiarize themselves with the issues and this will smoothe the way for anything that comes up later.....try the website sengifted.org

amother

Magenta

Tue, Jan 12 2016, 7:41 pm

Personal experience - By all means, try the T program, but it's really going to depend on what you mean by "difficult". They're not big on behavioral problems that aren't attentional, and even that they can only do to a certain extent. It has to do with staffing levels.

You may also hear, in any program that largely caters to LD kids, that your dc will be bored because the learning is below his level. You need to figure out if that is true, and if not, know how to counter it. This is why kids like ours get lost. They don't really fit anywhere...

Sinai might work. You want to check both programs and listen carefully to what the plan would be in each, for academics and emotional/behavioral. Also check if there are other gifted kids near his age who he could have class with. It is mega expensive, and most people go to court to get it covered.

seeker

Tue, Jan 12 2016, 10:35 pm

Can the YNJ people (Sinai or T) please share your knowledge or experience about their ability to adequately provide for gifted or near-gifted students? Even though they talk the talk of differentiation and individualized programming and all that, I still worry as Magenta said that the overall learning level in a special ed program may be low. Do they provide adequate support for children whose issues are mainly social (with some attention and behavior, but the behavior is mostly part of the social picture - child is eager to please and not chutzpadik on purpose but because of missing social cues and such ends up being chutzpadik, and because of processing issues isn't always doing the right things at the right times...)