7 days to go

Well the therapies have ended and so has the swimming intensive. I had been going to take the twins out for the day but I think they need a day at home to relax. SO now - the pecs book is made but the uniforms aren't labeled yet. The presentation for staff is basically done although it will need a last minute edit. For this week I want the kids to enjoy being at home and to look forward to school. I have Adelaide's list of good books about strting school - I will try and find them - if not I do have a couple here too that I can use. Oh and haircuts are needed - if those blasted lice have gone.

10 Days to go

Preparing for kindy -
On the weekend we took the twins to the Powerhouse Museum. they loved it. Hannah got a bit wild and tired running riot but she also loved the 80s music - good girl that she is! Now it is time to encourage focus on tehrapeutic play and school enhancing routines. I have had mixed success with breakfasts - Hannah just doens't like to eat too early in the morning but I also know she doesn't eat much at school (well she didn't at preschool) so I still have a few strategies to try to get her used to the idea that breakfast is important. Tv in the morning still needs refining - but that is more my slackness - Kit insists on getting up at 6am and it is just too easy for us to leave him in front of the tele while we catch a bit more sleep - which makes it hard to turn the tele off a little later - jsut as Hannah gets up.

Hannah had a good OT session today then we visited a friend of mine and her 2 kiddos. We all went to the park and that was a lot of fun. There were a couple of awkward boys (about 12yo) I guess - poor darlings - it really is a most unattractive stage - yet they nice boys and Kit and the other 2 kids with us had soon engaged them in a game of chasings. Later on 3 girls arrived - 2 13 yo? and another about 8 I guess. Hannah thought that was cool and approached them for a cuddle and was pretty quick in trying to boss them around. Until then she had stayed apart playing on the swing so it was nice to see her join in with others. They all sat together on the small slide - which would have made a great photo!

DH is out at a work do so it feels good to be able to put some happy tired kids to sleep and then to sit up with a little time for me. Tomorrow Hannah has a 30 mins swimming lesson with a special needs instructor then we are meeting a friend who has 2 kiddos - (one about the twins age with DS) for a play at an indoor centre - all good gross motor!

The OT today commented on how much stronger her upper body strength was - must have been all the digging in the sand on holidays - oh and pushing the grown ups out of the way! She has another OT session on Wed and speech on Thursday. I have left Friday free and not much is happening at the start of next week - cos then it is school.

I still have to label their uniforms, make a pecs book for Hannah to use at home - as part of her prep to use it at school.

I am pleased with how she has grown over the holidays. She is getting more confident and is more keen to engage in play with other kids although she still needs a lot of encouragement with that.

She has also been doing lots of help with cooking - on Sunday she and Kit helped me make hotcakes for breakfast and then their father make pizza for dinner. Cooking has lots of skills that they really enjoy - measuring, stirring, talking about what we are doing. We also played a game of snakes and ladders - to try and get Han so familiar witht he dice that she recognises the 'look' of 3, 4, 5 etc without actually counting them (which she can do quite well) and that was fun. I won! It's tough love here in the Dock, if they want to win that way they have to play Grandpa.

They also played for ages iwth playdoh on the weekend and set up an elaborate picnic/birthday party. They have been using the wonderful dollshouse that Pop made Hannah as the setting for playing too - they have a campervan each and set off from the house for a picnic - it is too cute really.

Kit has had a hideous dose of lice so I did Hannah and myself as well yesterday - now I thought that that was something I wouldn't have to worry about until they were actually at school - not as part of the 'getting ready' activity programme!!

Routine

Well we had a chaotic and very busy Christmas here. Hannah had a seizure a week or so beforehand which really scared me however the EEG was 'normal' and so slowly we are getting on with things. I still listen carefully when she is in the bath and while we were away I supervised all water related activities even more carefully than usual - she has 3 days of swimming lessons (30 minutes) coming up - and I will make sure I mention it to the coordinator.

After a hectic Christmas where all 'therapy' was incidental rather than timetabled we went away for a week with another family. Hannah ADORES their 2 children (13 and 11) and also played happily (and assertively!!) with one of their girlfriends who came down for a visit. DH took the twins for the rest of their school shoe requirements just before we went away. I took some therapy work away with us - with the new school term fast approaching I felt I needed to start the old 'routines' again. Hannah was compliant and enjoyed the few sessions we had - mostly focussing on speech (drills for dyspraxia as well as some phonics work) and a little bit of writing, getting her to say her name and address etc. Her drawings were really improving too - she did a great one of Ben 10 and the omnitrix where without prompting she gave him arms and legs as well as a pretty reasonable face.

Yesterday was our first day back home with their father back at work. We did grocery shopping ten han had her first ST session for the new year. She was a little scatty but not too bad considering she has ha d abit of a break. Today I think I'll try and focus on some OT stuff - I have some theraputty for her to use and she hasn't done cutting and pasting for a while so I might get onto some of that too - it is overcast today so not a great day for outside craft which I know they'd both like.

I have started to plan what I might say tot he teachers about han - it has only given me one sleepless night so far which I think is pretty good considering!! I have also enrolled in Uni - a bit disabppointed to realise that by applying for a postgrad certificate instead of masters that the pain of all that work and assessments is going to cost me more!! (UGH)I had thought it might be useful to get a piece of paper at the end of this year (for employment purposes - in case I look to find work in spec ed field) and as the courses are the same as for the masters I never considered tat the costs might differ - oh well - you live and learn I guess.

Key goals for the next 2 weeks:
try for 30 minutes sitdown work a day -
including theraputty; cutting; pasting; hand strength like tug o war etc
speech drills (Nuffield skills); Ants in the Apple - recognition of letters and sounds; regocnition of written number symbols 1- 10; Expressive language - name, address and school; writing of her name (tracing over master sheet given out by the school at kindy orientation).
As usual reading of books is a daily event not specifically included in this 30 minutes.
Greater time allowed for dressing self and putting on her own shoes etc.

I am sure there is more but these are my current priorities.

Her T & A is scheduled for the first full week of term - not best timing I know - I will try and find out how ling she may need to be off school for that too. At least she will have 3 days prior to 'settle in'. She is very excited about school and looking forward to it.

Friends

One of my concerns for Hannah is developing friendships with her peers. She tends to prefer older kids. SHe lacks confidence with ehr peers. For example if she is on a ride or swing and antoher child joins her - she'll get off. At the moment we have a friend staying here with her 3 year old daughter. Her DH and other 2 girls are staying close by (yes the joys of trying to accommodate all your family on holidays!!) tonight we had the whole family over for dinner. Hannah was watching Astroboy on the portable dvd in her room - we had to bribe her out for dinner. She wanted to leave the table as early as she could - I told er she could leave the table to show the girls her dolls house (fantastic Christmas gift from her Pop) but not to watch more tv. I wasn't sure if she would - but thought it was worth a try. Well it definitely was. She showed the girls and before long she was in one of the bedrooms with them gigling and mucking about. They had some playdoh, played hide and seek, she got her Dora doll out for them, she clearly showed thee two eldest girls (4.5 and 6) that she wanted to dance. They had a go on the trampoline - now here she finds it really hard - she LOVES the trampoline but hasn't the balance to cope with other kids jumping - well my wordy - she really gave it her best shot and God bless them - they did too although of course their natural exuberance won out in the end - it was enough for me to see Hannah really try and stand up to be part of the group on the trampoline - even though I knew she'd be scared at their robustness. I suggested they all hold hands and that worked really well for a little while.

In the end Hannah was crying when the 2 older girls had to leave to go home. She freely gave them each a hug. A great play date for her. I will really ahve to try early on in the kindy year to sus out likely girls and see if I can't arrange for a playdate at home - somewhere where I Hannah is comfortable - in order to facilitate some peer friendships for her. I hope that there are a couple of little girls like today's visitors - they were lovely girls and fantastic for Hannah.

Help

I have been wondering on and off what to include in my talk with the teachers at Hannah's school - the principal (and I agree - in theory!!! yelp!!) thinks I should be present as well as someone from our EI provider - to talk to the whole staff about DS and Hannah in particular - so my contribution is to 'make it personal'. I was thinking powerpoint - hoping their staff meetings are in a place where this is possible. But I also want it to be informal. I want the staff to feel comfortable to coment and ask questions. I know some of them will no doubt already have experience with down syndrome.

Anyhow - I was thinking of starting with a lovely comment Sue left here (but I haven't found yet!!) about how I'd find a teacher who loved Hannah as much as I did - then maybe what sort of questions they might have that I hoped to answer in my presentation. The last bit I think could be about our expectations and dreams - for an inclusive education and for Hannah in particular. Maybe mentioning our 'inspiration' - people like Sarah who have graduated (Class of 2008) and a local girl who got her HSC this year. In the resources I thought I'd mention a few - like DSA NSW, our EI providers who support us as a family and in doing so the school, the CEO who support the teachers and school and in doing so us as a family, internet resources (yes Amanda I'm putting it out there a little!!) like Downsed and Teacher's Space and Learning to be Buddies etc and of course - them - or 'you' as professionals and the ones with experience. Is that too twee? I hope not cos what i'd like to leave them with is the quote "When a child is born with DS, the most important thing that has happened is that a child has been born." - Hence they are our greatest resource because although Hannah has 'special needs' she is first and foremost a child just like all the many and varied others they deal with on a daily basis.

Any alternative ideas or suggestions of how I could approach it - please!! I'll no doubt be pondering it all January - lucky I'm a teacher myself so I can view it a bit like my own lesson prep - imagining I am in class as usual - talking with my students and developing a conversation - which is how i usually operate. If I stuff one up there though - there is always a second chance - this one is so important to me.

Shoes

Story about School

I had a great time taking pics of the school to organise a booklet for the twins - put it as a powerpoint for the minute - they love it and are both fascinated by what they might do at school. Sucha simple thing but I thinka lot of kids would benefit - Kit was really enthralled and I am sure it will reduce his anxiety about the unknown. For Hannah it will help her find her way around and meet some of the expectations being in kindergarten means.

Now if anyone knows any good general books about going to school? I bought Hannah a Dora one for Christmas and the brats have one about a dinosaur and how to behave at school. If you know of any relaly good ones let me know as mid Jan I will probably be looking for some.

Ordered school shoes for Hannah yesterday - sizing for her (especially with her new orthotics) is atricky. I was actually after a little shoe she could wear with dresses for the Christmas/New Year party circuit - but givent hat non fitted ehr well I decided I might as well make do with some Mary Jane style school shoes - 2 birds, one stone!