My darling daughter has ADHD and language based disabilities. It can take her twice as long as the "average" person to learn something new. And I wonder what her adulthood is going to be like. Will she be a happy and productive citizen?

I really wonder what I should focus on. Should I make Natasha practice her handwriting more? It is really awful. Or should we be drilling on spelling? Again it is awful. (Natasha has rote and short term memory problems so drilling her really doesn't work. So it is silly to think this would help, but it still pops into my head.)

So what academic items should I be stressing over? What will allow Natasha to have a happier life?

Recently I met a very nice woman who also adopted from Green Forest Specialized Orphanage (my daughter Natasha's orphanage). She has raised children to adulthood with similar issues and she was very encouraging. College is a possibility for my darling Natasha.

Colleges seem much more open to special needs. Colleges aren't required by law to supply or support IEPs but some are starting to. I know an 19 year old who has an Individual Education Plan with a college and not because he is a gifted student. Normally College based IEPs are focused on gifted students and keeping them challenged.

I found this great page called Transition to College. It has given me several ideas. I need to build a transition plan for my darling. It provides information on:

• Know what steps to take before transitioning


• College terms you should understand


• The new role of parents


• Differences between High School and College


• What colleges are not required to do

And just this morning I found a news story about a "mock" classroom that lets disabled adults practice college. This sounds perfect for my daughter.

I know Natasha is only 9 years old, but I started working with her on handling money when she was 5 years old. She has a savings account and gets a regular allowance. She is allowed to borrow money which she must pay back. She donates to the church and other charities that she likes.

I think now is the perfect time to start getting ready for college. We have 10 years.

BLACKSBURG, Virginia (AP) -- The college classroom scene is a familiar one: young adults in flip-flops and baseball caps, some scribbling notes, others napping.

Evelyn Scruggs, a student sitting near the front, is among the more attentive, filling an entire page with notes. But, by the time she leaves, she won't remember the lecture topic or one word she wrote.

Scruggs, 19, has attention deficit disorder and related short-term memory loss. Like everyone attending this mock class, she's hoping it will give her tools to balance her disability with her dream of a college degree.

.................

Increasingly, such students are aiming for degrees: 11.3 percent of undergraduates nationwide reported a disability during the 2003-04 academic year, compared to 7.7 percent during the 1989-90 school year, according to the most recent department statistics.

From: Program prepares disabled youth for college life