Let’s take a little trip to Zoolandia and get an update on 2E Daughter #2. We’ve learned a lot about Zoolander’s learning issues since I last posted about her.  Last fall, as she started 3rd grade, she had a Sensory Evaluation done at Children’s Hospital.  Here’s the summary:

Zoolander has somatosensory challenges which presents as hyporesponsive exteroception.  (So, that’s why she is never cold and doesn’t flinch at pain.  We just thought she was brave.)

Zoolander also has challenges with proprioception, which is unconscious awareness of body position and movement: speed, force and direction of movement.  (That’s why she likes to wear clothes that are too tight and small for her because it helps her body know it’s place in space.)  

This is has caused delay in development of bilateral coordination, such as riding a bike, playing the piano and tying her shoes.  (Yes, she learned to tie her shoes and ride a bike very late.  And this is definitely a big part of her struggle with piano.)  

This is currently impacting her functional performance and production of work—handwriting, piano and organization of her body to attend to the task at hand. Organization of these areas may help her filter extraneous sounds within her environment to attend to the task at hand. (This is why she sometimes has trouble paying attention at school and can be easily distracted, especially by sounds.)

AH HA!  Many mysteries explained.   What next?