Welcome to Best of the Best (BoB), Edition 3. The topic is school issues as they relate to invisible special needs. A total of 30 bloggers submitted posts this month.
These bloggers have shared an incredible array of information addressing a multitude of school issues. Categorizing these posts was definitely a challenge. The posts have been grouped into the following topics: Academics, Bullying, Classroom Supports, Legal Issues, Organizational Skills/Routines, and School Options, and are presented in alphabetical order by sub-topic within these topics.
To present varied opinions and a range of experiences, BoB accepts one post per blogger. Note, a few bloggers have multiple posts because they are a part of a series. Also, there may be more than one post from the same blog, but these posts have been written by different authors.
Academics
- Apps. Penny Williams presents Apps for Education, Volume 1: Organization and Time Management and Apps for Education, Volume 2: Reading and Writing posted at a mom’s view of ADHD. These posts are the first two in a series that Penny is writing on educational apps for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. Penny starts by revealing, “I can’t remember how I discovered that apps can be used for education and very successfully for special education, but I remember being stunned.” You will be stunned too! Penny summarizes 10 organization and time management apps and 16 reading and writing apps. A huge amount of information has already been presented; I can only imagine what is yet to come in this series.
- Class Selection. Pamela Hutchins (from Road to Joy) presents Picky, picky, picky: The Clark Chronicles posted at Penny William‘s a mom’s view of ADHD. As a mother of a teenager with ADHD, Pamela lists her top five tips for selecting high school classes. She reminds us that “You’re looking for teachers that can appreciate that your child is an outside the box thinker.”
- Educating a Child on the Spectrum. Andrew Schlegelmilch presents How do they do it? posted at Asperger’s/NLD Social Skills Group. As a school Clinical Psychologist, Andrew compares the strengths and weaknesses of children on the spectrum with that of all the other cognitively or behaviorally impaired children in special education. In general, their profiles are opposite and most special ed programs are geared to teach the profile other than that of those on the spectrum. This insightful post could explain why your child on the spectrum may not be having success at school, because as Andrew boldly states, “More than likely though, the child will fail.”
- Grades. Patty presents Report Card posted at Pancakes Gone Awry. She discusses how she has slowly seen her son’s high grades in 1st grade creep down to C’s. Due to his autism and SPD she had heard “…grave warnings that he may start having difficulties with his schoolwork.” But rather than take a backseat and watch what happens, Patty reveals the plan she developed to aid her son in learning his math and encouraging him to read.
- Homework. Alysia Butler presents Here’s Where the Story Ends posted at Try Defying Gravity. She documents the difficulty surrounding her son completing a simple homework project. As you read on, you will discover that this is about much more than just homework as Alysia states, “…sometimes when I see what other kids
and families can do, I’m reminded of how different we really are.“
- Reading. Martianne Stanger presents Teaching Dipthongs and Digraphs with the Dipthong Song from How Do I Teach This Child to Read? posted at Tiffani Lawton’s OUR Journey THRU Autism. This is the first of 12 in a monthly series called How Do I Teach This Kid to Read. It will be written by different authors and posted on the 11th of each month. Martianne explains that “The Diphthong Song is a literacy song…created to help students remember sounds associated with letter combinations.” She provides additional ideas to reinforce the learning of the targeted dipthong or digraph.
- Visual Learning/Teaching. Chynna Laird presents Parent’s Eyes: A Book Review of “HOW Do I Teach This Kid ” by Kimberly A. Henry posted at The Gift. This is a thorough review of “a great book for teachers, caregivers, therapists or anyone working with a child who struggles with learning or needs to learn skills with a more visual learning style.”
Bullying
- Bullying. Chi Yon Barbosa presents I Feel Because He Can’t (Bullying Incident #2) posted at Parenting a Child with Aspergers Syndrome. Chi shares a very moving and a very real bullying episode experienced by her 15-year-old high school son. You will feel a mother’s anguish as Chi writes “She left him not covered in milk, but covered in shame.” Chi encourages all parents of children with Asperger’s to “Fight for your child’s rights.“
- Bullying. D.S. Walker presents Protecting Your Children from Bullies and Protecting Victims of Bullying posted at dswalkerauthor. In this two-part series, D.S. passionately explores “How do you protect your child and make sure they do not become the bully at the same time?” Her first post presents things you can do to prevent your child from being bullied and her second post answers the question “…what if you have done everything right and your child is still a victim of bullying?“
Classroom Supports
- Access. Barbara Boucher presents Closed Doors posted at TherExtras. Barbara talks about closed doors, literally, and explains “I have been in many classrooms where the passage-paths are inadequate for a student to use a walker.” She also talks about closed doors metaphorically, where access to something is prevented. Barbara sees doors as tools in an environment that need “Management for safety and the freedom to explore and learn.“
- Behavior Solutions. Tiffani Lawton presents Behavior Solutions: Bumping, Touching & Oral Sensory, Behavior Solutions: Hiding, Running Away & Meltdowns, and Behavior Solutions: Difficulties with Starting Assignments posted at OUR Journey THRU Autism. This is a three-part series reviewing the book Behavior Solutions for the Inclusive Classroom: A Handy Reference Guide that Explains Behaviors Associated with Autism, Asperger’s, ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder, and other Special Needs by Beth Aune, OTR/L, Beth Burt and Peter Gennaro. The book has four behavioral sections and Tiffani highlights one problem and one solution from three of the four sections. Tiffani recommends this “fantastic resource for the advocating or homeschooling parent!“
- Confidence. Lorna d’Entremont presents Raising a Confident, Contented Child ~ Part 2 posted at Kid Companions. Drawing upon her 30 years of experience teaching middle-schoolers, Lorna provides her insight and concrete tips for nurturing a happy child with a healthy self-esteem. Lorna advises to “Celebrate small steps, reward daily effort and progress and do not wait for the big ending or there will never be one.” (Raising a Confident, Contented Child ~ Part 1 looks at the years prior to attending school.)
- Paraprofessionals. Danette Schott presents How To Be a Para Pro posted at Help! S-O-S for Parents. She presents her own experience with using a paraprofessional and then interviews Diane Twachtman-Cullen, author of the book How To Be A Para Pro. Diane shared “All staff, whether professional or paraprofessional, who work with students with or without special needs, should check their egos at the school-house door, as ego-involvement on the part of the adult is highly inimical to student success.“
- Rituals. Jean presents No more rituals/routines? posted at Mommy to Two Boys. She revisited a post she had written over a year ago about her son’s rituals. At that time her son’s teacher believed “He needs to have the ability to accept change and be more spur of the moment.” Jean updates this post and lets us know the results of trying to get her son to be a bit more flexible.
- Sensory Diet. Hartley Steiner presents Sensory Diet for School posted at Hartley’s Life with 3 Boys. Hartley outlines a comprehensive list of sensory activities used to get her son through his day, from the moment he wakes up from the time he returns home from school. With over 100 accommodations, she offers readers “the Sensory Download that I developed with my Occupational Therapist that is a short cut for communicating your child’s sensory needs to their school.” (Please refer to the original post for the link to the download.)
- Sensory Tips. Haley Moss presents Sensory Classroom Tips & Communication with Teachers posted at Tiffani Lawton‘s OUR Journey THRU Autism. Haley shares some of her mother’s early efforts working with Haley’s classroom teacher to ensure that the “teacher and the school understood that we needed to be ‘partners’ in my education and socialization.” Haley also lists a couple of her tips to easing sensory challenges in the classroom.
Legal Issues
- IEP. Karla Fitch (from Hello. World.) presents Tips for the IEP Meeting posted at Hartley Steiner‘s SPD Blogger Network. Karla documents her preschooler’s first IEP (Individualized Education Program) meeting and how Karla and her husband worked with the school district “together as a collaborative team.” She defines an IEP and it’s purpose and presents a very useful list of how to best prepare for your first IEP meeting.
- Inclusion. Caitlin presents Wrong in All the Right Ways at Welcome to Normal: Population 0. Caitlin discusses how in just over 3 months of inclusion in the public school setting, her son’s emotional state deteriorated. She provides her perspective on inclusion and the perspective of others. She is thrilled to have located a new, small, private school that she believes will help her son because he “won’t constantly feel like he’s on the outside looking in.”
- Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). Sarah Schneider presents Is the Least Restrictive Environment always the best? posted at Kitaiska Sandwich. Sarah discusses how her “county has changed the way they interpret the IDEA’s mandate for the Least Restrictive Environment [LRE] for preschool placement” which has resulted in her son becoming ineligible for the preschool she would like him to attend. By the time you get to the end of this post though, you get the feeling that Sarah will find a way for her son to receive exactly what he needs.
Organizational Skills/Routines
- Classroom Tasks. Autimomkate presents Considering the physical and mental complexity of classroom activities posted at The Denver Autism Wheel. Kate was informed that her son’s “noncompliance in class was causing him to fall behind his peers. ” But with a new teacher and support staff in place, she has watched them analyze classroom activities to determine their goals. What appears to be one simple activity may actually be composed of a variety of tasks. As Kate summarized, this approach has allowed her son to “experience success, demonstrate his knowledge, and also work toward strengthening his deficits.“
- Mornings. Gavin Bollard presents The ‘Drag to School’ Morning Routine posted at Life with Aspergers. He provides insight into what could interfere with children getting ready in the morning and then lists some rules that have been helpful with his sons. Gavin acknowledges that “Yes, I know it all sounds a little rigid but that’s exactly what children with aspergers need. Routines and Rules.“
- Mornings. Kim Wombles presents Mornings: Wakeups Are Always Interesting from Countering… Kim shares her morning routine and what works to keep things running as smoothly as possible. Extra time seems to be her secret weapon and she shares, “when you’ve programmed the day with extra time, even when things go rough, it’s not as stressful.”
- Mornings. Lisa Quinones-Fontanez presents Manic Weekday Mornings posted at Autism Wonderland. She documents the morning routine that occurs five days a week with her son. It’s a routine that all too many will probably be able to relate to as she summarizes, they are “Never too early. Never too late. Always right on time, with some seconds to spare.“
- Mornings. Tim Tucker presents Routines, Predictability, and Just Getting to School in the First Place posted at Both Hands and a Flashlight. Tim reveals that “Children like ours often find comfort and stability in routines, so try to keep things as predictable as you can in the mornings.” He outlines how to infuse stability into your mornings by revealing what works for him.
- Pack-Up Routine. Trish Doerrler presents Organizational Skills and the Pack-Up Routine posted at Another Piece of the Puzzle. She shares her son’s experience as his responsibilities increased in 2nd grade. In summary, “When Michael entered second grade, things began to go downhill with regard to getting out of school in a reasonable timeframe and with all of the proper papers, books and other items.” You will learn how Trish proactively kept data on what her son was forgetting so that she could convince the school to develop a routine. You will not only learn what worked for her son, but also be given additional on-line resources for organizational skills.
School Options
- Gifted. Jennefer presents Getting Some Answers about Firstborn posted at The King and I. Although Jennefer’s son was diagnosed with autism, she still questioned a number of his behaviors that did not make sense. Her son was eventually assessed and identified as gifted. This is an important step in Jennefer locating options for her son since “it is more likely they [the gifted] will underperform in school” and “these children are also more prone to low self-esteem.”
- Heading Back to School. Tracy Sherwood presents Never Too Late To Educate… posted at Love, Life and Aspie Antics. She shares her feelings about her children returning to school. She sent her son off to college, but still has two children remaining at home. Like the rest of us, Tracy will “…still be kept busy trying to secure services and resource for the little birdies left in my care.“
- No Public School Support. Pia presents When God Whispers posted at The Crack and the Light. Pia reveals her feelings after she “fired” her son’s school district upon realizing their association “…was like a relationship with an abusive spouse.” If you have fantasized about doing this, read an account from someone who actually did it!
- Residential School. Laura Schumaker presents Considering a Residential School posted at Laura Schumaker’s blog. This post is an excerpt from her book A Regular Guy: Growing up with Autism. Laura shares her difficult decision to find a residential school for her son. Her writing is very honest and emotional and she shares things such as “And here he was, three thousand miles from where he imagined he belonged, feeling rejected and abandoned, longing for a life he could never have.“
- Therapeutic Day School. Yuji Fukunaga presents End of a Dream Marks a New Beginning posted at Hanabi Boy. Yuji reflects on his feelings regarding his son attending a therapeutic day school for the past year. As Yuji had to leave his dream of mainstreaming his son behind, he came to realize that “…every end is a new beginning.”
To all readers, as you visit a blog to read a complete post, please take the time to leave a comment and let the blogger know your thoughts. They have all worked hard to bring a broad range of information to you. To all bloggers, thank you for your submissions and hard work! Everyone, please tweet this post, reference it on Facebook, and mention it on your blog.
Disclaimer: Please note, the opinions expressed in each referenced post in Best of the Best are entirely that of its author and the inclusion of these posts does not constitute an endorsement by me, Danette Schott.
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