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Alisdair and Will started school on Wednesday. Alisdair has a new teacher. Three days in, and I'm already on a slow burn toward her.
See, I met with her before school started to check in, inform her of Alisdair's budding ADHD and how bored he can get, and generally make sure she checked in with the special ed teacher and that his IEP (Individual Education Plan) was put into place. I get some platitudes on how she will, but she's sure it'll be fine. Me, I'm seeing how she's going to have 30 kids in her class this year with no help, and I don't think fine is the word, but I let her know I was available to help whenever if she needed me.
Today, she sends a note home with Alisdair. Basically he has problems listening, problems focusing, problems being off in his own little world and forgetting where he was, and was "shooting off rockets" during Math. See, when he's bored, he pretends his pencils are rockets and makes them fly around above his desk. In this case, he's bored because he's mastered addition and subtraction, and his daddy's teaching him multiplication at home. Meanwhile, here at school, they're covering the basic numbers again for the benefit of the kids who haven't seen a number all summer and forgot. So yeah, he's bored. It was also rainy today, so they had no recess -- no chance for him to run around and work off extra energy.
She said "I hope his behavior improves next week." Well, unless they find a way to put him in a smaller class, let him run around, give him the attention needed to keep him on task, or start covering material he hasn't known for a year now, I personally don't see how it could. We've talked about it. It's just not altogether under his control, and I've not had the money to get him to a doctor to be tested and diagnosed formally for ADHD beyond the assessment the school gave last year. Nor do I want to resort to medicine straight off the bat just to keep him sedate in class. So I'm frustrated and pissed off, and so hoping I get to move in the next month or so, whether Seattle or just to the charter school in Wichita Falls. Anything but putting him through this.
Argh.
See, I met with her before school started to check in, inform her of Alisdair's budding ADHD and how bored he can get, and generally make sure she checked in with the special ed teacher and that his IEP (Individual Education Plan) was put into place. I get some platitudes on how she will, but she's sure it'll be fine. Me, I'm seeing how she's going to have 30 kids in her class this year with no help, and I don't think fine is the word, but I let her know I was available to help whenever if she needed me.
Today, she sends a note home with Alisdair. Basically he has problems listening, problems focusing, problems being off in his own little world and forgetting where he was, and was "shooting off rockets" during Math. See, when he's bored, he pretends his pencils are rockets and makes them fly around above his desk. In this case, he's bored because he's mastered addition and subtraction, and his daddy's teaching him multiplication at home. Meanwhile, here at school, they're covering the basic numbers again for the benefit of the kids who haven't seen a number all summer and forgot. So yeah, he's bored. It was also rainy today, so they had no recess -- no chance for him to run around and work off extra energy.
She said "I hope his behavior improves next week." Well, unless they find a way to put him in a smaller class, let him run around, give him the attention needed to keep him on task, or start covering material he hasn't known for a year now, I personally don't see how it could. We've talked about it. It's just not altogether under his control, and I've not had the money to get him to a doctor to be tested and diagnosed formally for ADHD beyond the assessment the school gave last year. Nor do I want to resort to medicine straight off the bat just to keep him sedate in class. So I'm frustrated and pissed off, and so hoping I get to move in the next month or so, whether Seattle or just to the charter school in Wichita Falls. Anything but putting him through this.
Argh.
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no subject
Date: 2004-08-21 08:20 pm (UTC)From:I know you are not going overboard on this. I think it may have come out wrong if you thought that. Let me explain better. I managed my bipolar disorder, which has components of ADD and ADHD, very well with behavioral modifications. In fact my Dr. says that I could teach classes on coping with this. If I stay organized I am less likey to have problems that cause a manic attack, etc. If the kid is having problems with ADD then the first thing to do is get them in a minimizing situation. Medication only helps you stay on track the rest is up to how you handle it. I HATE that schools don't do anything. Problem = more meds. It is often the same for adults. I have read books that tell you that you can't do certain jobs, and I therapist that told me that I should quit mine.
It smacks of lazyness on the part of the school for sure. In fact, it is a diservice to all children to shove them in a box and try to make them the same. People just aren't, and I hope that the charter school movement will help this.
no subject
Date: 2004-08-22 07:08 am (UTC)From:It just gives me hope that if they're willing to consider different ways of educating kids, that maybe they'll be more open to the idea of accomodating different needs for those kids as well. At least, that's what I'm hoping for.