a gift

All our kids are gifts. I think most of us don't stop to put it into words though. I remember when we were going through the trauma that was finding a 'good' school for the twins one of my dearest friends kept saying that Hannah would be a wonderful asset tot he whole school community (wherever she went), a gift in fact. Well two years into the mainstream journey I can absolutely see her point. And here is one simple story about that.... Hannah has a 'wonky walk' as I describe it - she can unbalance and trip a bit more easy than her regular peers. Year 1 classroom was upstairs and so 2 middle school girls were asked to help out by taking her up in the lift - in the morning and the recess/lunch breaks and then at the end of the day. ANy additional trips downstairs are usually only with her class and so she manages the stairs. These girls have been awesome.

They have developed such a lovely relationship with hannah. They are patient with her when she is reluctant to go to class, they sometimes seek her out to play with before school and they bring her little gifts sometimes too. So it is no wonder that she adores them. When we were on holidays O/S she would often say she wanted to come back to Paris with her buddies. (they are of course very beautiful young women too - so please forgive my crude attempt to capture their personalities while protecting their identity. The last day of school arrived a week ago on Friday. We'd got the school report, sung carols int he church, given Christmas gifts and cards... this day was movies and picnics to end the year. It was mufti so Hannah had chosen her own ensemble. While on the playground waiting for the morning assembly I noticed that her shoes were on the wrong feet. I told her and she sat down to change them over. As part of the giving her greater space and independence I moved away where I could watch her - I was hoping to see that after she had fixed her shoes she would hear the music call to line up and go line up with her class without prompting. One of her buddies noticed her sitting on the ground and came straight over. She helped Hannah change her shoes then they raced back tot he line up for the assembly. During the assembly Hannah sat encircled in her buddies arms and sitting on her lap...now that interaction was a lot more about Hannah's buddy, leaving the primary school where she has thrived to head off to High School with all the excitement and fear that that entails. And I am glad that for those brief moments Hannah was able to give her comfort and peace. I know she will do great at High School but Hannah is going to miss her and her friend very much...

We have survived

The title says it all really. It has not been a great year of inclusion for Hannah. Enough said. Maybe this is what to expect every year. God I hope not. In her 'Maths' book - there are 3 worksheets - incomplete at that. That's it. A whole year of work...it is better than her spelling book. It is blank - except for a /5 written in red on the first page which never ever got used. I know that Hannah has done a lot of work. I am actually pleasantly surprised by how well her maths is coming along - but all those measures are in the Resource room they are not in the class room. You know who next years great hope is? I already had a meeting with her earlier in the year when she was acting principal - and I was so very stressed and frustrated at what was not happening in the classroom - and I just went blllllllllllllllllluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuueeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Barely drawing breath with strategies that I would love to have seen tried but that never were. Anyway we have her next year At least she knows what to expect from me. She is a lovely calm and organised person. Understated but definitely not to be underestimated. She also LISTENS. Fingers crossed. What has been happening well is the continued acceptance of Hannah as Hannah by the other children in the class. She recently did the school swimming program which she loved. Her reading is progressing - slowly but surely. Her communication and confidence are improving also. I am hoping to do a few bits of work with her over the holiday to keep her reading level from falling. In an unusual decision I asked that the twins be kept in the same class next year. I had many reasons for this. Mostly I remember how hard it was earleir in the year when Kit could tell how unhappy and worried we were but was unable to help at all because he wasn't in the room - that is one of the key things having a child with communication difficulties. Her communication book is still the first thing I go to each afternoon even though her class teacher barely writes in it. There are other benefits though. I am hoping that it might encourage a bit more ongoing play between them at home - keeping some common experiences for them that might be good in developing their relationship at home. They have a lovely relationship but there are increasing differences due to gender and developmental levels. Not a problem but I think it would be nice to foster some common interests between them where I can. I definitely do not want Kit feeling responsible for her - even though he is!! I am vowing that I will not ask him directly how Hannah is for at least the first 5 weeks of term. Unfortunaltely just yesterday when they found out who their teacher and classmates would be one wonderful boy came racing up to me on the playground and said "You won't have to worry about Hannah next year because Kit is in the same class". Her best friend (a lovely young boy - Z) is in a different class - so apparently on the way home this first young boy was telling his mum that Zs turn was over and it was his turn to help look after Hannah next year. So yes we survived but it wasn't alone. There was an enormous amount of work put in by the support staff, the principal, Hannah's buddies, the other kids in the class and even the class teacher (I hope! and think) tried her best. Still I really would like to set up an INCLUSIVE class experience for Hannah next year...Here's hoping...and preparing...