Question: My grandson will be 4 in November. He is immature for his age, will pee on the potty but when he has to poop he asks for a diaper. He refuses to poop on the toilet. He doesn't listen, he runs away and laughs as you yell to him to stop. His parents put him in time out but he laughs at that too and won't stay still. He says sorry but doesn't seem to understand what it means and doesn't understand the consequences of his actions. He is in pre-school but doesn't listen to the teacher or sit still at lunch (won't sit still at meals at home either). He jumps on the furniture at home and is very active. On the other hand he is very bright and knows his alphabet and can count to 30. He plays very well by himself and likes to watch some children's shows on XXXXXXX jr. He can be very sweet. He also has been going to speech therapy for over a year because he wasn't speaking well or had language that was age appropriate. He talks better now but does not yet have the vocabulary or conversational skills of other children his age. He will suddenly just start crying for o reason. His parents and I are baffled and worried. They are good parents and I can't see anything they have done in raising him that would lead to his bad behavior. If you threaten to spank him he just laughs. He doesn't play well with others yet but loves being around other children. What can be wrong with him? We're really worried.

I don't think he has ADHD. He doesn't show all of the symptoms - for example he's fine sitting quietly and playing by himself. We just feel like he doesn't get what we're talking to him about. He doesn't really understand what time out is. I hope it is just a maturity thing but that's what we thought for a while and he doesn't seem to getting any better. Other chidren his age just seem so much more mature and better behaved. My daughter spkoe to the case manager at his pre-school and she is going to sit and observe him in the classroom and we'll see what she thinks. We're just so worried about him. Thanks for yout time,