We Had A Better Week...hooray!

Things seem to be going much more smoothly now! Hooray for now! We met with the autistic consultant from our county along with the principal, OT, special ed. teacher, and 1st grade teacher. The AI consultant had much advice to give, and once the teacher realized it wasn't a critique of her teaching, but more advice on how best to reach Caleb, things went very smoothly. It seems breakfast was a major source of tension for Caleb because he wanted what he couldn't have. Now, we have a sack lunch (from the lunchroom w/ things he can have) waiting for him in the Special Ed. room after he gets off the bus in the morning. He will get to have his breakfast & play computer games for 1/2 hour in the morning. That should give a good start to his day, and hopefully make it go smoother. The AI consultant also talked to the teacher about the necessity of a visual schedule and visual reminders. The teacher was mostly relying on her words being enough for Caleb to understand what's expected, but it was most likely getting him confused & frustrated. The reminders might not be needed later, but for now (since EVERYTHING has changed from last year), it will be added security for Caleb. I really like the AI lady because she reiterated that it isn't his fault for getting frustrated, that it's part of autism. The teacher had said, "But how will I implement these strategies in a room of 32 kids?", and the AI consultant said, "We aren't going to worry about that now. Let's zero in on Caleb & what's best for him, and worry about the rest later." I SO appreciated another professional being able to get through to the school. So, for now....I'm a bit more relaxed :) Better yet....so is Caleb!

I'll still go in on Tues. and Thurs. mornings to help out, and also I'll meet again with his school team to go over any other trouble spots in Caleb's day, but so far the fight has been successfull! Just think how easy the next ASD kids & families will have it :) Which reminds me....that for our district of 500 students, we have about 8-9 children that are possibly on the spectrum. That's much higher than the 1 in 150 statistic! We're much closer to the 1 in 50 or 60 that England is quoting. All who read this: keep praying for this country, these children, and their families!

Also, I hope to soon have some informational posts on dealing with IEPs, the law on education, and resources in your county. Keep watching!