The class teacher has been absent for the last two days - and I am rather happy with the little I have seen of the substitute teacher. I don't recognise her from previous occasions - perhaps she is someone the principal knows? Anyhow I was impressed with the following small stories:
Tues - I discussed with Hannah that she could take her beyblade to school but they were NOT for int eh classroom - recess and lunch ONLY. I went up tot eh classroom to organise a couple of things with her bag then went into the classroom to let her know what I had done. She wasn't expecting me ... obviously. THe teacher was at the front of the room with the children sitting at her feet - except Hannah who was hidden in an opposite corner playing with her beyblade. I went in and took it off her. I reminded her of the rules we had discussed. Then I tried to get her to stand up and join her peers. She squatted and I was just trying to think through the quickest strategy to try and get her up there with the rest of the class when the teacher called her name and very ably diffused the situation. She said she needed a helper because she had a special job that she needed help with - well little brat was up at her side in a shot. And I left the room smiling.
Then I went and picked her up after school. She chatted about her day (her speaking is really improving!). Then as we were leaving we passed the principal. A quick word with him revealed that she had received a principals award sticker today - for completing a cloze passage on her own.
Today I help with a literacy program outside the classroom (I help kids from higher grades than Year 1). When I am done I usually pop my head in on Hannah and check to see if she needs to be taken to the toilet. Today when I went in she was sitting at her desk working away alongside her peers - on a slightly modified activity. The teacher had just been about to ask her to describe her work. I explained my presence there and the teacher then quickly showed me the work Hannah got a sticker for yesterday - and commented on what a good effort it had been. WOW. Now that is all it takes to make me happy... I am not wishing any harm on Hannah's regular teacher (cos Hannah loves her) but should she need more time off work... if they have this sub teacher again - well I would be very pleased.
Then because Hannah's ST is recovering from surgery I went and masqueraded as a speechie. Little brat did very well. I think she is having a great day.
I also had a chat with one of her aids - she was telling me what a great time Hannah had had on the school picnic the week previously - and how good the middle school buddy was with her. She also told me that she had been at a fundraiser with another school (a HS) - to raise money so a young girl with Down Syndrome in Thailand could go to school to be educated. It reminded me how very lucky Hannah is - even though sometimes it seems like we have chosen a hard road with this mainstreaming gig - I am so very glad that we get to make that choice. It is a basic human right and I hope and pray that we can improve things here so that we become leaders for others to follow - because there are children around the world with disabilities who deserve so much more than they are currently getting.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Sunday, May 22, 2011
onwards
Things have been continuing to show signs of improvement. Last week we kept Hannah home on Monday as she was a little off colour. On wed at school I helped with multilit as I do and then because Hannah's ST has had to go for surgery unexpectedly I 'did' (or tried to) her speech session with her myself. It seemed a good way to maintain routine and to keep the focus on her speech a bit. The principal said it would be ok. I showed her aid how to record her voice saying encouraging things on a sightword app that I really like. Hannah tends to get 5 wrong first go compared with 10 correct first go - so I am working on that with her. I like the app because you can simplify it to a choice of 2- 4 or later when her accuracy rate improves I can change it to a choice of 6-8 (I think).
She also came home one day very proud of herself because she had obviously shown her teacher what was on the ipad - I think it is the first time that the teacher has actively looked at what educational apps are on it - so that was a huge leap forwards - one of our goals from our last meeting was to make the use of the ipad more focussed and educational rather than babysitting. I know they did this because Hannah came over and showed me where my murder mystery books were on it!
Then on the weekend I was at a party and one of the mums there was saying that she has had a meeting with the principal and has another this week - her son is in Hannah's class - with no 'special needs'. She said that the principal mentioned the need to reconfigure the room so that the teacher could set up activity stations and group work etc - this is the model that I prefer for the twins cos I think it provides better differentiation of work to suit the individual needs of the children (and child centred learning) rather than the ridiculous rows of desks that are in the room now - that sit at odds with every other kindy-year2 classroom int he school.
This week is the school athletics carnival and I am a bit nervous - last year's was such a blast - I wonder how Hannah will go this year?
She also came home one day very proud of herself because she had obviously shown her teacher what was on the ipad - I think it is the first time that the teacher has actively looked at what educational apps are on it - so that was a huge leap forwards - one of our goals from our last meeting was to make the use of the ipad more focussed and educational rather than babysitting. I know they did this because Hannah came over and showed me where my murder mystery books were on it!
Then on the weekend I was at a party and one of the mums there was saying that she has had a meeting with the principal and has another this week - her son is in Hannah's class - with no 'special needs'. She said that the principal mentioned the need to reconfigure the room so that the teacher could set up activity stations and group work etc - this is the model that I prefer for the twins cos I think it provides better differentiation of work to suit the individual needs of the children (and child centred learning) rather than the ridiculous rows of desks that are in the room now - that sit at odds with every other kindy-year2 classroom int he school.
This week is the school athletics carnival and I am a bit nervous - last year's was such a blast - I wonder how Hannah will go this year?
Sunday, May 15, 2011
One week in
One week in and I am not sure what it is - but Hannah had Monday off school (she had a febrile seizure on the way) and then Tues, Wed, Thurs and Fri - was bubbly and happier than usual at the end of the school day. On one of those days she told me with great joy and pride that she had done work on the board for her teacher. I know we have a long way to go but I feel reassured that the principal is providing support to his teachers and that Hannah is already experiencing small benefits... let's hope the benefits keep growing!
Monday, May 9, 2011
Meeting
Well we had our meeting with the new principal today. It went for just over an hour - so I can't say he isn't interested in hearing what we have to say and in making adjustments for Hannah - he wanted to talk about what a mainstream school could deliver... He has a logical approach - took notes and at the end ran through the things that he was going to follow up on. Whilst being supportive of the classroom teacher he has clearly recognised that she is floundering - and has said that he will work with her on this area. He also made it clear that it won't happen overnight.
Things that were discussed:
Physical environment. The classroom is small and the furniture mismatched etc - new furniture will be bought that hopefully will create a more functional environment. (One where the ridiculous rows of desks goes I hope and sets of group activity stations will be set up instead)
The use of a peer buddy will be investigated a bit further. - I gather that means he will find out how she is being used at the moment and see if that is the best model.
Strategies for the teacher - he will be discussing being more firm with her - she is too lenient at the moment. Also involving Hannah more in the class activities - eg pointing to pictures or words in the story book, using the 'green mat' etc. Using rewards system for compliance (we did stress that Hannah is actually a very compliant little girl - for a 6 year old!lol)
He has worked a lot with kids with autism and schools with satellite classes etc and has a really positive attitude towards disability. He is going to look at helping the teacher use visuals similar to what he is used to with the kids with ASD - pics as palmcards.
He is concerned about Hannah's timetable in the afternoons where there is no aid time and she is given a lot of free (and sometimes unsupervised) playtime. Will discuss with librarian ways of getting her included in the library wordprocessing sessions. I mentioned the colourful stickers we could trial on the keyboard to allow her to log in - and maybe then let her go to a website where she can work self sufficiently or modify what the others are doing so she can be included.
We discussed using the ipad as a tool - that is being more directive in HOW and WHEN she can use it. I showed him a couple of the 'best apps' and mentioned how they could be used to facilitate group sessions.
The communication book - the teacher is going to be reminded to make use of this - and he will be looking at it to see the history from kindy through to the present time.
I reiterated that my preference was for aid time to be used IN the class alongside her typical peers.
He asked our attitude about the twins being separated - to which we made it clear that we did not think they needed to be specifically separated.
He also said that the special needs teacher at the HS they are a feeder for is very good... nice to hear! I hope she stays. He also mentioned that he is planning to be there when Hannah has finished year 6 so hopefully he will be able to continue to see her about. So he is planning to be there for the long term which is great.
So lots of food for thought. I think we are on the same page - and now it is about building up that partnership and getting results for Hannah and by default some of the other weaker kids in that class...
Things that were discussed:
Physical environment. The classroom is small and the furniture mismatched etc - new furniture will be bought that hopefully will create a more functional environment. (One where the ridiculous rows of desks goes I hope and sets of group activity stations will be set up instead)
The use of a peer buddy will be investigated a bit further. - I gather that means he will find out how she is being used at the moment and see if that is the best model.
Strategies for the teacher - he will be discussing being more firm with her - she is too lenient at the moment. Also involving Hannah more in the class activities - eg pointing to pictures or words in the story book, using the 'green mat' etc. Using rewards system for compliance (we did stress that Hannah is actually a very compliant little girl - for a 6 year old!lol)
He has worked a lot with kids with autism and schools with satellite classes etc and has a really positive attitude towards disability. He is going to look at helping the teacher use visuals similar to what he is used to with the kids with ASD - pics as palmcards.
He is concerned about Hannah's timetable in the afternoons where there is no aid time and she is given a lot of free (and sometimes unsupervised) playtime. Will discuss with librarian ways of getting her included in the library wordprocessing sessions. I mentioned the colourful stickers we could trial on the keyboard to allow her to log in - and maybe then let her go to a website where she can work self sufficiently or modify what the others are doing so she can be included.
We discussed using the ipad as a tool - that is being more directive in HOW and WHEN she can use it. I showed him a couple of the 'best apps' and mentioned how they could be used to facilitate group sessions.
The communication book - the teacher is going to be reminded to make use of this - and he will be looking at it to see the history from kindy through to the present time.
I reiterated that my preference was for aid time to be used IN the class alongside her typical peers.
He asked our attitude about the twins being separated - to which we made it clear that we did not think they needed to be specifically separated.
He also said that the special needs teacher at the HS they are a feeder for is very good... nice to hear! I hope she stays. He also mentioned that he is planning to be there when Hannah has finished year 6 so hopefully he will be able to continue to see her about. So he is planning to be there for the long term which is great.
So lots of food for thought. I think we are on the same page - and now it is about building up that partnership and getting results for Hannah and by default some of the other weaker kids in that class...
Friday, May 6, 2011
Homeschooling
A friend of a young man has journeyed int he mainstream as far as she is able for the moment - her blog http://educatingandyb.blogspot.com/ might be of interest to some of you - I love reading about how she is learning to homeschool - and also I get to pick up ideas and strategies to try in a simpler form for little brat. I am not ready to homeschool at present but should the teenage years get too tricky - if it is necessary (ie in Hannah's best interests) and we can afford it - then I would not say no to the idea.... Good on ya Narelle and ANdy - you are both inspirational.
On the other front - DH went to the P&F meet and greet with the new principal last week. He said that he emphasised his Spec ed credentials - to quote Phil - he 'said it was his 'thing'" - lol I am not sure exactly what that means but am holding on to a glimmer of hope for our meeting with him this week - ostensibly it is to discuss the school ipad - I am hoping we can help give Hannah something closer to the inclusive experience we signed up for and that was going so well last year rather than this parallel universe we find ourselves in this year...
On the other front - DH went to the P&F meet and greet with the new principal last week. He said that he emphasised his Spec ed credentials - to quote Phil - he 'said it was his 'thing'" - lol I am not sure exactly what that means but am holding on to a glimmer of hope for our meeting with him this week - ostensibly it is to discuss the school ipad - I am hoping we can help give Hannah something closer to the inclusive experience we signed up for and that was going so well last year rather than this parallel universe we find ourselves in this year...
Monday, May 2, 2011
Same old Same
Well it's week 2 and I am already having ranting conversations in my head - so I guess it is time to offload. Again.
School open day was this morning. I have to somehow come to accept that this is just not going to be Hannah's year for great strides. I wish I had a crystal ball to make sure that next year would be better.
It started yesterday. I spoke with Kit's teacher - and watched her interact with hannah. Then Hannah's old kindy teacher was there. I witnessed very clearly the sort of interactions that I think hannah needs. I haven't seen that with her Year 1 teacher yet. I'm still waiting. Hoping like a fool. I console myself with the knowledge that Hannah likes her. That she spontaneously says her name and wants to give her presents etc.
I watch Kit's teacher provide a classroom setting that flows smoothly on from last year's mode. Group work, student focus balanced with whole class instruction. In Hannah's room the model is more traditional. Whole class instruction followed by individual work. The kids I know who have difficulties sit quietly. The others get called upon to 'read' aloud or write on the board. There is a high expectation that these kids will learn by looking, listening and osmosis. They don't seem to mind - they feel safe there. Hannah at first refuses to even sit with the group. When she does she rolls about at the front. Plays with cushions and a teddy bear. Safe knowing that she wont' be expected to even point to a word in the large story book. The teacher had a few small copies of the Big Book that she was reading - they went to the more able students. the above average. Why on earth not my daughter??? You know - the one who finds it hard to focus for long lengths of time? The one with poor eyesight??
So yeah I am pissed off too. The new principal 'observed' her yesterday afternoon. I am sure she was at her best (NOT). Can't wait to have that meeting - I bet he got the full low down on what she couldn't do from her teacher.
I guess I just have to remember to breathe. To take one step at a time and protect Hannah as best I can and hope that things don't get worse. Mainstream really and truly sucks sometimes.
As a side bug - in kindy the rooms are organised in groups. They are in all other Year 1 and 2 classes - except for Hannah's. Now I know as a teacher we all have our styles and things that work for us but for Hannah this one year switch must just be confusing and alienating. It reflects a classroom philosophy that I am not nearly as happy with. Opportunities for Hannah to work in a small group of peers are virtually nonexistent....what a waste of all the wonderful work done last year to involve all the class in Hannah's (and each others) learning... I am sure it works for some kids but I don't believe it works for a significant number of them. Time to count up the weeks left I guess...and BREATHE.
School open day was this morning. I have to somehow come to accept that this is just not going to be Hannah's year for great strides. I wish I had a crystal ball to make sure that next year would be better.
It started yesterday. I spoke with Kit's teacher - and watched her interact with hannah. Then Hannah's old kindy teacher was there. I witnessed very clearly the sort of interactions that I think hannah needs. I haven't seen that with her Year 1 teacher yet. I'm still waiting. Hoping like a fool. I console myself with the knowledge that Hannah likes her. That she spontaneously says her name and wants to give her presents etc.
I watch Kit's teacher provide a classroom setting that flows smoothly on from last year's mode. Group work, student focus balanced with whole class instruction. In Hannah's room the model is more traditional. Whole class instruction followed by individual work. The kids I know who have difficulties sit quietly. The others get called upon to 'read' aloud or write on the board. There is a high expectation that these kids will learn by looking, listening and osmosis. They don't seem to mind - they feel safe there. Hannah at first refuses to even sit with the group. When she does she rolls about at the front. Plays with cushions and a teddy bear. Safe knowing that she wont' be expected to even point to a word in the large story book. The teacher had a few small copies of the Big Book that she was reading - they went to the more able students. the above average. Why on earth not my daughter??? You know - the one who finds it hard to focus for long lengths of time? The one with poor eyesight??
So yeah I am pissed off too. The new principal 'observed' her yesterday afternoon. I am sure she was at her best (NOT). Can't wait to have that meeting - I bet he got the full low down on what she couldn't do from her teacher.
I guess I just have to remember to breathe. To take one step at a time and protect Hannah as best I can and hope that things don't get worse. Mainstream really and truly sucks sometimes.
As a side bug - in kindy the rooms are organised in groups. They are in all other Year 1 and 2 classes - except for Hannah's. Now I know as a teacher we all have our styles and things that work for us but for Hannah this one year switch must just be confusing and alienating. It reflects a classroom philosophy that I am not nearly as happy with. Opportunities for Hannah to work in a small group of peers are virtually nonexistent....what a waste of all the wonderful work done last year to involve all the class in Hannah's (and each others) learning... I am sure it works for some kids but I don't believe it works for a significant number of them. Time to count up the weeks left I guess...and BREATHE.
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