One of the most remarkable things about our daughter's last year in elementary school was the amazingly supportive social environment provided by the classroom teacher and our daughter's SEA. Her teacher was a young, hip gentleman with a passion for gardening and immense knowledge and skill. Her Special Education Assistant was a tiny, upbeat woman with tons of energy and a smile as big as the room. It is my impression that they did read, at my urging, the superlative book about Non-Verbal Learning Disorder by Sue Thompson called The Source for Non-Verbal Learning Disorder and realized how difficult social interactions were for our child.
It was obvious to me that our daughter's 7th Grade teacher worked to provide a respectful and open atmosphere in his classroom. He was aware of our daughter and her likes and dislikes and checked in with her regularly without taking anything away from the rest of the class. As an example, he altered the lighting of a class dance so that it would not affect her and cause a seizure. He was endlessly patient with her need to remove herself from a noisy classroom or her desire to move her desk around.
It became clear that our daughter's SEA worked every day not only to assure our daughter's academic progress but her social success as well. For a girl like our daughter, on the cusp of entry into high school, this was phenomenal. For example, her SEA used her own lunch breaks to initiate impromptu basketball games so our daughter could recruit the girls in her class to play and thus work on these social connections. She initiated and assisted in the making of a personal quilt as a memento of our daughter's year. And I know that our daughter spent less time in the school counsellor's office this year than any other year in elementary school.
You cannot put a value on folks like that--- they are the difference between an okay school year and a phenomenal school year. I did write the Assistant School Superintendent to tell him about these wonderful people. In a year of job action and budgetary restraint, they were amazing. Luckily our daughter has had great teachers and amazing SEA's throughout her time at our little country school. The difference this year was that our daughter was poised to utilize this perfect blend of student/SEA/teacher/school and create her own recipe for social success.
I am sure there will be tough times ahead...high school will be daunting. And no one with my daughter's learning differences will be an expert in the field of social relationships. The path ahead is an uphill one to be sure. However the stellar individuals who made our daughter's year outstanding have paved the way for more friendships and a lifetime of learning which will be a benefit to our whole family. As I wrote to the Assistant Superintendent: "I wish to pass this along to you so that you might let these fine people know what a difference they are making in a young girl's life." Enough said.
It was obvious to me that our daughter's 7th Grade teacher worked to provide a respectful and open atmosphere in his classroom. He was aware of our daughter and her likes and dislikes and checked in with her regularly without taking anything away from the rest of the class. As an example, he altered the lighting of a class dance so that it would not affect her and cause a seizure. He was endlessly patient with her need to remove herself from a noisy classroom or her desire to move her desk around.
It became clear that our daughter's SEA worked every day not only to assure our daughter's academic progress but her social success as well. For a girl like our daughter, on the cusp of entry into high school, this was phenomenal. For example, her SEA used her own lunch breaks to initiate impromptu basketball games so our daughter could recruit the girls in her class to play and thus work on these social connections. She initiated and assisted in the making of a personal quilt as a memento of our daughter's year. And I know that our daughter spent less time in the school counsellor's office this year than any other year in elementary school.
You cannot put a value on folks like that--- they are the difference between an okay school year and a phenomenal school year. I did write the Assistant School Superintendent to tell him about these wonderful people. In a year of job action and budgetary restraint, they were amazing. Luckily our daughter has had great teachers and amazing SEA's throughout her time at our little country school. The difference this year was that our daughter was poised to utilize this perfect blend of student/SEA/teacher/school and create her own recipe for social success.
I am sure there will be tough times ahead...high school will be daunting. And no one with my daughter's learning differences will be an expert in the field of social relationships. The path ahead is an uphill one to be sure. However the stellar individuals who made our daughter's year outstanding have paved the way for more friendships and a lifetime of learning which will be a benefit to our whole family. As I wrote to the Assistant Superintendent: "I wish to pass this along to you so that you might let these fine people know what a difference they are making in a young girl's life." Enough said.
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