IEP etc.

I was exhausted this morning when it was time to rise and shine, and Julia too took extra time to get out of bed. She had some trouble getting ready for school and mid-way through her breakfast, she got angry and needed some holding time. We cuddled and worked out some anger before we left for school. Once we finished, she was willing to brush her teeth, put on her coat, and get out the door. She offered some protest and ended with telling us she was scared of school. Once she got to her classroom, she was ready. Her behavior report showed a pretty good day for her -- she threw something at one of the boys in the lunch room, but besides that she had all smiles on the page which is pretty good for a day that started out rough.

David and I headed for Julia's IEP meeting this morning -- a meeting which lasted 3 hours. Last year, when we did this meeting, I was still reeling from Julia's diagnosis and what we could do. I had read about autism but had very little idea of how to move Julia ahead in all the areas addressed in an IEP. There was just too much information for me to digest, and I was so sad that my girl was so far behind her age peers. This year, I did feel some disappointment that she was not progressing as quickly as we would really like, that she was still far away from being a typical 8 year old, but I am learning to take Julia as she is. Our school team still impresses me with their skill and devotion. I am so thankful that we are all on the same team, all working for Julia to learn and develop.

One of our SECs told me today in the playground that this was the easiest time in the school life of a special needs kid to get what you want and need. I am storing that in my brain with the knowledge that the time to be warrior mom may come down the pike.

Julia will get a new teacher for next year but some of her support staff will be the same. Her social and behavior goals remain more or less the same, mainly because her behavior since we've started attachment therapy has regressed some. Everyone is excited to have Marilyn visit next week and talk about trauma/attachment and how to deal with it in the classroom.

Julia is on the cusp on reading -- something that I knew but it was nice to hear it said. Her math is still way off but she is more willing to sit down and do it in general and inparticular with me. And generally her willingness to do work and follow directions is improving. We will get some pull out to work on reading and math and I hope that that helps her move ahead academically. Her new teacher is very much into inclusion but is willing to try the pull out for academics with Julia.

I had to ask the question -- what could be forcast about Julia's learning. She is still doing Kindergarten work. How long will it take her to get through it and will it always take her years to get through any grade? Of course, there is no answer but Christy stressed her moving forward and I have to agree. I see Julia growing in may areas and I am happy with this growth. Right now, I feel we are moving forward in so many areas -- making up for lost time, reprogramming that little brain and heart, learning to learn and play, trusting adults and listening -- and I can be patient.

Julia's montra this morning was "Listen to my teacher. Make Christy happy." She told me she didn't like Christy's sad or mad face. I told her she could change that face by listening, and Julia really seemed to make the connection.

Yes, I can be patient.

Last night, I went to hear a lecture by Dr. Eric Carter who is a researcher at UW working on ways to maximize support for kids on the autism spectrum and with cognitive differences. He is finding tht the use of peer support -- kids supporting kids -- during the school day and for extracurricular activities is an incredible way of helping kids with school work plus social behaviors and inclusion. In addition, he is finding that the typical peers also benefit greatly from the pairings, including raising grades for peers who were working on the C/D/F plane. I was very excited by this and I have wild thoughts about what we can do with our playgroup next semester.

Now to get some funding.