I am an adult who has been diagnosed with Adult ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and mild dyslexia). I am also the mother of four children with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), two with dyslexia, all attending public schools.

Interacting with school administrators and teachers often involves anxiety and confusion on the parent's behalf. The situation gets worse when a child has a learning difference (often referred to as learning disability and/or learning deficiency). The student's rights, the parents' rights and the school's obligations to fulfill these rights are often confusing, ignored, not explained or jumbled between information that is irrelevant to the purpose of the meeting. The result is almost always the student in question being, in some manner, denied his/her right to a "Free Appropriate Public Education" (FAPE). Section 504, No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and Individuals with Disability Education Act 2004 (IDEA) along with FAPE guidelines are pieces of the puzzle for providing the FAPE to these students and requiring the school to provide the FAPE.

Often due to old myths and archaic attitudes and beliefs about certain learning differences, many parents are embarrassed about the situation and don't seek out the information needed to understand their child's educational needs and rights. Although there are some learning differences that are too obvious to ignore and parents and school administrators have no choice but to address them "head on," there are yet a large number of very common learning differences that fall under, what is referred to by Section 504, as "Other Health Impairments" and are required by federal law to be addressed by all schools receiving funding from the government. These learning differences include, but are not limited to: ADD, ADHD, dyslexia, epilepsy, diabetes, asthma; basically any health impairment that "adversely" affects the student's educational performance.

Most students with these differences are highly intelligent, but struggle to succeed in some areas (or all) because their learning environment does not provide for their specific needs. Often these same students excel in a specific area but are held back from achieving praise and personal success in that area because of their deficiency in another area. Learning difference students are not bad kids, they do not (as often assumed) come from bad homes and are not the result of bad parenting skills or poor maternal care during their developmental period. Many of these differences are genetic and have been inherited without any fault of a controllable source. Often these students with learning differences have inherited their difference from one or both of their parents. Unfortunately many of these parents were never aware of assistance availability or requirements outlined in federal and state education laws and consequently were never offered any assistance to accommodate their specific needs. Some were never diagnosed or were

just labeled as lazy and/or incorrigible. The results of this happening to these parents are the same results that will happen to any learning difference student that is withheld from receiving the appropriate accommodations, resources and intervention. The results from lack of intervention can be a personal embarrassment about the existence of the learning difference, guilt because of their failure to perform academically, lower self-esteem which can evolve into depression and anxiety, and finally resulting in severe effects of the parent's/student's ability to achieve educational, vocational and/or social success.

Underachievers, social outcasts, financial train-wrecks and drug, alcohol and food addicts almost always exhibit some form of an undiagnosed and/or untreated learning difference. It might surprise you to know that Albert Einstein suffered from dyslexia and ADHD. Tom Cruise, Thomas Edison, Woodrow Wilson, Nelson Rockefeller, Winston Churchill, General George S. Patton, Cher, Greg Louganis, Walt Disney, George Washington; all suffered from specific learning differences that caused them to struggle academically and to have low self images and self esteem until resources were found and implemented. All things are possible, but we have to seek the answers and create the needed learning environment, otherwise, these unfortunate results will continue to exist.

When our children have an illness or broken limb, we are quick to secure medical advice and attention. Why when we or our children have a learning difference that might mean there is a difference in the way their brain functions, calculates, responds and or processes information do we not act in the same manner? Is the brain not a part of our healthcare concerns? Are old beliefs preventing us from accepting what might be an issue or are we allowing our own misinformation (or lack of) to deny our children (and sometimes ourselves) the resources, healthcare and/or remediation that could assist us in our achievement levels? Why do we voluntarily hold our children (and ourselves) back from succeeding? Why can we not see that sending everyone over the same mountain in the same manner loses the opportunities to learn about and experience other areas of the mountain?

There are a number of websites and books available to all people and to all levels of learning styles, needs and or preferences that will provide answers and resource information for nearly every aspect of learning differences diagnosis, medications, resources, alternative treatments, legal protection, educational opportunities, camps, conferences, court cases and so much more. My wish is to empower parents and students so that they are no longer feeling lost, tossed aside, ignored, ridiculed, bullied and/or vulnerable. The law requires that we all are given the same fair and appropriate opportunity to achieve success in all areas of our lives.

Candy Spence

Delphi