TK RUBRIC
THINKING & LEARNING DIFFERENTLY
Having the Talk
ISTOCK
When and how to tell your child about their diagnosis W O R D S K E L LY W O O L E Y
P
ARENTING A CHILD WITH A LEARNING DIFFERENCE
can be grey and filled with questions. Am I doing everything I can to help them? Is anything I’m doing hurting their progress? And one of the biggest questions of all: when and how do I tell them about their diagnosis? Many parents of children with learning differences wonder if there is a right age to have the discussion, or if there are certain things they should—or shouldn’t—say. But like so many other grey areas, there isn’t a one-size-fits all answer. Still, there is a common thread among the advice from both medical experts and parents who have already navigated the question: it’s a process. This isn’t a one-and-done conversation, but rather a series of conversations that lead up to the talk, followed by ongoing discussions that evolve over time. DFWCHILD | may 2024
11