Let me just say that things are going well..oh, except for both my kiddos getting croup and my husband working to overcome his sickness. So, I guess I should say that the ARD we had on Tuesday went really well and tomorrow CB will have his first visit with a highly-recommended biomed/holistic practitioner, yay. To start, at the ARD meeting we had at CB’s school, I really felt like I was a part of the team and that my voice was heard. The next steps were exactly what I was hoping for. Wow, that is so strange to say. I really expected more push back. We didn’t actually make any changes to CB’s current IEP (Individualized Education Plan), but I didn’t expect to. This was meant to be a meeting for me to share my current concerns and to see if we could get further evaluations performed so we will get a better picture of the challenges CB faces. This will help get some of the additional supports CB will need in a general education classroom. They provided me some easy steps to get CB diagnosed with ADD or ADHD without visiting an expensive specialist so he would classify as OHI (Other Health Impairment) , in addition to the Speech qualification he has, in his IEP. Now, do I think CB has ADD or ADHD? Well, I think it is still too early to tell. Is it just a part of the Dyspraxia or is a co-morbid issue? I am definitely not trying any meds to help with his focus, at least for any foreseeable future. I am however wanting to get additional supports at school in place so he will have help with staying on track, completing assignments, and being redirected. Our school, like most schools here in the US, does not recognize Dyspraxia as a learning disability and because of this, you have to get supports in place via whatever route is available to you. For CB, the main things are for him to get help with his speech, attention & focus, and fine motor skills. The school will also perform another OT eval in the Spring. Unfortunately, our state only provides consultative OT services and not direct services but we will get what we can. The principal also already stated that they can provide a teacher aide/instructional aide for CB for the times of the day where he will need extra help. He will share the aide with others in the classroom that also qualify for an aide, but that is to be expected. We are still not certain that CB will go to the neighborhood elementary we are working with, but we need to have his IEP accurately reflect his needs so if we choose any other public or public charter school, they will have to provide those same services mentioned in CB’s IEP. The principal also mentioned that before kids starts kinder, the parents complete a form so they can tell the school about their child. This information will be used in determining child placement within the Kindergarten classrooms. She mentioned that since they are already aware of CB’s needs that they should be able to place him in the classroom that will be the best for him and his teacher. That is a big bonus! I am still very concerned that the curriculum at the neighborhood school will be too challenging for kinder. We will have a better idea come early/late spring.
The other big news is that CB will have his first visit with a holistic/biomed practitioner tomorrow. I am hoping he can help guide us a little more on our journey and help us be a bit more targeted in our approach for helping CB with his various symptoms and allergy issues. I will write up more about this after the visit. Wish us luck!!
What’s New with CB?
CB asked for the first time for a school friend to come over and have a play date :). He really connects with a new kid that joined his swim class about 3 weeks ago. He is starting to identify some letter sounds like daddy starts with D, mommy starts with M, etc. He still really enjoys for his brother to hug or kiss him when he is hurt; although, HB is sometimes denying him comfort. I think it is one way for HB to get back at his bigger brother for pestering him. He still comes into our room most nights either in the middle of the night or early morning to sleep with us. The bonus is that he will now usually cuddle up to one of us for part of the night.