Friday, October 01, 2010

I think Andy likes his teacher.

Andy and I had a little chat about his teacher. Her name is Mrs. Woodfolk. Every now and again, we refer to Andy as an elf, fairy, or (more often) brownie, because he has that sparkly, elfish quality about him.

"So, Andy, how do you like your teacher?"
"Oh! She is named for the people who live in the woods, the Wood Folk! You know, fairies! Because she is one! Just like me!"

I think we may have a winner here.

Meeting #5

Three IEPs, one meeting with the principal, and now one meeting with the Director of Student Services later...

Well, I think I made some things very clear today.


I think the school OT sucks, especially professionally.

Summer for Joey is going to look very very different from now on.

I know what a transition is, and everybody else better get on board with how it is done.

I expect people working with Joey to get some training in autism.

If this happens with the next school, I am going to have a conniption. I mean, a worse conniption.


But once again, by actions shall all be judged...

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Happy Mountain Day!


Wish I could take the day off and go play in the leaves today!

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

We had a meeting.

Nothing makes you feel quite as much of an ineffective failure as an IEP meeting. I went in with a 31-slide presentation about Joey, a 3-page handout of concerns passed out a week before, and I came out with... a flip-flopped schedule. He'll go to math in the inclusion room, and language arts in the self-contained room.

Some things got said. The school OT insisted the IEP go back to consult-only because she "can't deal with his behaviors in 1:1". She's right. She can't. Because she doesn't have the skills to provide my child with appropriate OT. And I said so. I don't think I beat about the bush, either. I'm not happy because my child clearly is in desperate need of OT services, but this lady definitely does not have the skill set to provide them, and there is no other OT in the school. Is that clear enough?

We tossed around some strategies for dealing with Joey's issues, because I learned at this meeting that 3 weeks into the school year, and the inclusion folks have been able to do zero academics with him. The school folks asked how long it took for Joey to settle in at the last school. They were a bit unhappy when I noted he was settled in within a couple weeks there. We're not even close to settled here.

But in the end, what actually happened? We flipped his schedule. Woo. Hoo.

It may help. It may not. Im not sure they understood why they were doing it, just that it was a suggestion tossed out there to try.

I'm working on a follow-up letter. This is starting to get ugly.