School application notes for Ben

School Application Notes for Ben

Description of child’s interests Ben is a kind and considerate boy with a strong sense of justice within the community. He is always excited to try new things, forms strong friendships, and always tries to find fun and games for those around him.

His passion for working together shows in his enjoyment for team sports: he plays football at a high level for the ‘Seattle Celtics’ soccer club and enjoys competing in local tournaments. He also enjoys playing basketball, both for a local “Boys and Girls Club of America” team and his school team. Individually, Ben also enjoys playing tennis and has a huge passion for skiing, which he often does during the winter to a high level.

Outside sports, Ben is always the first to say ‘yes’ to trying new activities, and he has a number of hobbies. He is enjoying leaning to play the piano, spends a lot of time reading both fiction and non-fiction (including ‘The Week Junior’) and enjoys designing games for his brother and friends to play.

Ben’s academic interests are broad: he has a particular passion for mathematics and science topics, and says he would like to become ‘a footballer or an engineer’! He also enjoys history and geography. These interests across school, sports, and music all reflect Ben’s curiosity about the world, his desire to understand how things work, and a desire to work with friends and teammates, both old and new.

Medical and health Ben has received learning support per the accommodations listed in the attached Educational Psychologist’s assessment (password: @ssessmentBW325), including the use of extra time and a laptop in testing, access to laptop and software where possible, and executive functioning and study skills support.

In January 2023, Ben was diagnosed with mild ADHD and Specific Learning Disorders with Impairment in Reading (Accuracy) and Written Expression (Grammar and Punctuation Accuracy). This has not had a major impact on Ben’s school experience, and mostly shows up in his ability to get ideas down on paper: he’s very creative, but has some difficulties with spelling, phonetic awareness, handwriting and, for example, the speed at which he can write essays.

Since his diagnosis and an evaluation by a Developmental Ophthalmologist he now wears glasses for reading.