Does anyone here have a child who has been identified as

I think you need to be more clear about what your child is identified with. You may have run out of characters in your title.


(((hugs))) I hope you find the answers you need.

IQ test by design is a range, with IIRC about 70% falling between 85-115. It is also not a number carved in stone. A test taken as an adult is a good assessment, one done as a child can change.

I completely understand your fear for the future but you need to concentrate on what you can do to help your child now and they will be ready for that future.

I was in your shoes 10+ years ago when we finally worked our way to some answers for DD's struggles in school. Starting in K, it was 2nd grade before we got her APD, ADHD and short-term memory deficit diagnosis along with an IQ measure at 85. The low IQ was honestly the hardest thing to hear.

DD graduated HS this year with a 3.4 GPA that she worked very hard to earn.  Meds, speech therapy and a couple years of homeschooling were what it took for us to get her on track to succeed in HS. We haven't done an IQ test again, but with her IEP she goes through a number of tests and the last set was done at the end of her Junior year. She is well within the normal ranges in everything except math (which will forever and always be her nemesis).

Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions. 

My dd (18) has an IQ of 68, 70 is the cutoff point for mental retardation. If this is what you are experiencing then please private message me, I would love to help you if I can!

I have had many, many high school students with what I am assuming you call low average IQs. I don't see that designation in any of our paperwork. I'm told numbers or just given accommodations. These students' success mirrors that of students with higher IQs more often that you'd think. Students that have a strong work ethic and supportive parents can do surprisingly well. Often much better than students that lack those two things yet have a much higher IQ.

Please find out who the special education coordinator for your district is and have a conversations with her if possible. Often school personnel change so not everyone follows policies and laws like they should. Learn what resources are available from the school system.

Think of an IQ as a ceiling number. The floor is the same for most of us.

How much a child actually achieves has more to do with other factors, some of which include motivation, support, educational opportunities, learning opportunities outside of school, resilience, and many many more.

There are many kids/people with high IQs who land in prison, use drugs, drop out of school and life. And there are many kids/people with low average IQ - around 85 - who succeed at life.

IQ numbers really don't have much power, unless parents, educators and kids give it to them in terms of self-fulfilling prophecy. And I say this as a psychologist who is trained to give and has taught others to give IQ tests...

I know of a child who was tested and found to have low IQ along with some emotional difficulties. She grew up, held down a job at a fast food restaurant, got married, and now is a stay at home mom to her dd. She has support from family. She doesn't have a drivers license. She has a husband, a child, a modest home, and a happy heart/life.

I think we all have limitations, but each person has value. Focus on what the child IS able to do. I think early intervention and a realistic expectation about the future (looking into vocational training, skills to develop independence, etc) are important.

Hugs to you. I know you probably want your child to grow up healthy, happy, and well. I hope someone here is able to give you great advice.

This isn't meant to be a brag; rather,  something to give you hope. I have a higher IQ, but a severe learning disability. I might be able to do some things well, but I cannot do math problems, have failed algebra 8 times and will always have terrible visual perception and spatial relations. IQ is not a measure of success.

the thing about average is that there are always going to be people on either side of average and IQ is only one small aspect of a person. Not everyone excells academically - some people excell in the arts or in working with their hands (mechanics, carpenters etc...) - and not everyone who has the potential to excell in an area meets that potential.

It IS hard as a parent, because we want our kids to have every opportunity and we want to be able to say my kid's on the honour roll or my kid is doing great in school because people see that as a reflection on the parents. But I've always told my kids that I want them to do THEIR best - whether their best is an A or an F. And that I'll be prouder of an F that they worked their hearts out for than an A that they got with little effort (and yes, I've had the opportunity to put that into action).

But I think it's most important to focus on our kids' strengths and interests - and all childen have strengths - while still encouraging them to do their best even in areas that are harder. A lower IQ isn't the end of your dreams for your child - he/she is still the child you've always loved and still the same child he/she was before the IQ results. It doesn't mean he/she is incapable of succeeding in school or life - it does mean that academics will require more effort and hard work and perhaps come slower than for a child with a higher IQ

((((Hugs)))) and prayers. You and your child will be okay