Meet Elsa

Elsa (she/her) is a seven-year-old first-grade student living with her caregivers in Worthington, MN. She is the only child of two caregivers who have completed post-graduate education. Elsa is an intelligent and caring young girl with significant academic potential. In her spare time, Elsa enjoys spending time with her friends and participating in physical activities such as swimming, running, and skating. She enjoys participating in social events and is often invited to play dates and birthday parties.

Elsa’s family has an extended history of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), mental health concerns, and also academic excellence. While Elsa interacts well with peers her age, her parents note that she can be easily led and influenced by others. They also report that Elsa gets upset when she does not receive recognition or feels that she has been ignored. Her teacher notes that she sometimes acts “socially immature” and often demonstrates attention-seeking behavior.  Behavioral concerns such as these, with aggression, lying, arguments, and disruptive behavior have been noted since Elsa participated in the preschool program at age four. Her family obtained an ADHD diagnosis from their family doctor a year ago. Since late kindergarten, at age six, Elsa has received special education services under the disability category of Other Health Disability (OHD). Notably, she did not know her address or home phone number, could not print her surname, and recognized only a few pre-primer words.

Elsa describes difficulties with focusing and sitting still in class. She recognizes that she can “hyper focus” on some activities of interest but often has difficulty sustaining her attention at school. Her parents and teacher indicate that Elsa is restless and often requires reminders to help her stay on task. She is described as “constantly running around” and struggling to listen and follow instructions. Elsa’s teacher indicates that she often blurts out answers and interrupts other students in the classroom. Elsa recognizes this tendency in herself but says she cannot stop despite her best intentions. Elsa has always had challenges falling asleep and sometimes wakes up in the middle of the night. When she wakes up, she finds that she has a difficult time getting back to sleep and sometimes stays awake for as long as an hour and a half.

Her father reports that Elsa has difficulties at home with following routines and remembering instructions. Her caregivers describe emotional reactivity as well as aggressive behaviors demonstrated both at home and school. Her teacher notes that Elsa is defiant about listening to instructions but interacts well with her peers.  She is easily frustrated and emotionally impulsive. Elsa has had several incidents of hitting, crying outbursts, and inappropriate behavior.

Recently, her teacher brought up the idea of conducting a Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) to help understand the functions of her behavior and design supports. This would add to the current supports listed in her IEP, including social skills instruction related to self-management.