The Exceptional Child in School

In March, 1913, the parents of a nine year old lad brought him to the office of the University of Kansas for physical and psychological examination. To all external appearances the boy was normal. He was of average size, and was well built; his senses appeared to be normal; his motor control was good and he possessed a good stock of common sense. Yet he had made very little progress in school work. He knew some of his letters, and a small number of words that he spelled out laboriously. He took little interest in school work in general, and as a consequence he was inattentive, mischievous, and occasionally "ugly" toward the teacher and his parents. At times he would sit for an hour in a passive or dreaming attitude, paying no attention to what was going on about him. He was fond of playing out of doors, riding a pony, and taking hikes with the boy scouts. Here he showed considerable initiative and intelligence. He was not reliable in attending to simple duties about the home. On the contrary he was lazy, forgetful, inattentive, untruthful and he did not hesitate to protect himself by the most exaggerated falsehoods. This was the report of the parents, who