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Questions and Answers
Q: My 15 year old son has bipolar disorder and a learning disability. He has a lot of trouble with all the writing required at school. What can I do to help him?
A: Writing issues are quite common for children who have childhood emotional disturbances. Their central nervous systems are a bit off balance and it often creates challenges in areas regulated by this system. Motor control is coordinated by the brain. These children at times have mild hand tremors, odd pencil grips, and write with a lot of pressure. All of these aspects combine to make writing a very laborious and draining process.
The goal of learning is to bring new information in and synthesize that information. If a child has depleted their energy by using it for writing tasks they don't have energy left to utilize for learning. You might ask the school if they cold accommodate by implementing some of the following suggestions:
- Provide access to a computer for school and homework assignments. This strategy only works if the child has keying skills. If the child cannot type I would suggest the child work with a typing tutor program such as Mavis Beacon or Typing Tutor or take a keyboarding class in school or at a local community college or district community education program. The child can also use voice/speech recognition software such Naturally Speaking which inputs text into the computer via voice rather than keyboard.
- Provide a scribe to write long test answers.
- Allow alternate means of expression such as verbal responses, audio/videotape work, projects or demonstrations.
- Eliminate copying assignments other than creative writing assignments.
- Provide copies of notes: power point notes, copies of overheads or smart board print outs, skeletal notes or buddy notes another student.
These strategies allow the child to conserve their energy and use it for the critical task of learning.
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