http://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/blog/dyslexics-get-it-right
I have often thought that Aidan's way of reading and spelling makes so much more sense. Why can't the English language be more sensible and logical.
Maybe we could go back to step one and rewrite everything using Dyslexic common sense, in a way that is what a lot of text talk is, just writing things down how they sound.
Wednesday 26 December 2012
Monday 17 December 2012
After a positive approach I feel its time for another moan
Right the OTs ( lovely old and lovely new OT) have both said that Aidan should be getting OT sessions in school. In fact lovely old OT spent a large amount of time teaching myself and the LSA exactly how to do his OT. Knowing how precious OT time is that should give you an idea of how important it is for him to do these excercises.
In fact the last statement said activities of his OT programme should be incorporated into his daily school life, and where possible he should have 10 minute one to one or small group OT sessions.
Guess what at some stage his OT was stopped at school, and he is currently having no OT sessions at school.
I thought about fighting this one, but as he is being seen by lovely new OT on Wednesday, this is one battle that I am going to leave for another day, enough chasing, arguing and fighting for a few days.
In fact the last statement said activities of his OT programme should be incorporated into his daily school life, and where possible he should have 10 minute one to one or small group OT sessions.
Guess what at some stage his OT was stopped at school, and he is currently having no OT sessions at school.
I thought about fighting this one, but as he is being seen by lovely new OT on Wednesday, this is one battle that I am going to leave for another day, enough chasing, arguing and fighting for a few days.
Party, party, party, the eagle has landed
Yes the Ed Psych referral is winging its way towards the depths of some NHS waiting list. Right at this second I don't care that it may take decades before he is seen, and I don't care if they can help him or not. I am just so glad that the paperwork is heading to its rightful home.
Lovely new OT managed to get a brief outline of the assessment sent out to the SENCO, how great is she. It states that the Ed Psych referral is needed "due to continued difficulties with his academic learning, especially..... for advice with regards to his dyslexia, processing information and handwriting"
As soon as the OT outline hit the doormat I was on the phone to the SENCO, and found out that she is happy with this reasoning, so she phoned the Ed Psych referral helpline ( who knew that such a thing existed). They gave her whatever advice they gave her, and she finished filling out the forms.
Apparently they can't send out the DRT assessments and the other information about him without my approval, so as soon as I finished work I did my roadrunner impression, and with wheels spinning headed to the school at the speed of light to sign anything she saw fit to put in front of me.
Come on Mr Postman get your backside in gear and deliver that piece of gold dust for us.
Lovely new OT managed to get a brief outline of the assessment sent out to the SENCO, how great is she. It states that the Ed Psych referral is needed "due to continued difficulties with his academic learning, especially..... for advice with regards to his dyslexia, processing information and handwriting"
As soon as the OT outline hit the doormat I was on the phone to the SENCO, and found out that she is happy with this reasoning, so she phoned the Ed Psych referral helpline ( who knew that such a thing existed). They gave her whatever advice they gave her, and she finished filling out the forms.
Apparently they can't send out the DRT assessments and the other information about him without my approval, so as soon as I finished work I did my roadrunner impression, and with wheels spinning headed to the school at the speed of light to sign anything she saw fit to put in front of me.
Come on Mr Postman get your backside in gear and deliver that piece of gold dust for us.
News to me...
Apparently in his last spelling assessment at school Aidan had failed to make progress and had actually gone backwards, God help us.
No one had told me this until I happened to notice it on his form today, so his spelling age according to the school is now 6, while he actual age is 9.5.
I am telling myself that the school assessments generally suck, so just to ignore this backwards step. Sadly he still finds spelling to be such a hardship, we still try so hard with him. This week he has a set of "igh" words to try and teach him that sound and a set of u_e words. As usual after a few days he gets the idea, but forgets it just as quickly.
Who needs spellings, I am sure he will be using text type spellings by the time he is an adult, and the spell it exactly as it sounds is pretty much his current method, so he will be set. Maybe I should stop telling him off and start encouraging him to say and write soz, and other such annoying text talk. Sadly its still annoys me to death to hear him talking like some illiterate teenager.
No one had told me this until I happened to notice it on his form today, so his spelling age according to the school is now 6, while he actual age is 9.5.
I am telling myself that the school assessments generally suck, so just to ignore this backwards step. Sadly he still finds spelling to be such a hardship, we still try so hard with him. This week he has a set of "igh" words to try and teach him that sound and a set of u_e words. As usual after a few days he gets the idea, but forgets it just as quickly.
Who needs spellings, I am sure he will be using text type spellings by the time he is an adult, and the spell it exactly as it sounds is pretty much his current method, so he will be set. Maybe I should stop telling him off and start encouraging him to say and write soz, and other such annoying text talk. Sadly its still annoys me to death to hear him talking like some illiterate teenager.
Thursday 13 December 2012
An Interest in reading, you what!
I am trying not to get over excited, but after over 5 years of trying to install an interest in looking at words in any way shape or form in my son, or even the willingness to pick up a pen, we finally have a little progress.
Obviously its a priority just to teach him to read, but I also want him to love reading, and the learning will certainly be a lot easier if he actually willingly starts to look at and write words in his own time.
On his bedroom floor I found one of his long neglected jotters open and now containing 3 lines of writing. I couldn't read a word, but who gives a monkey about this. I saw it and wanted to shout like an over excited toddler, he actually with no prompts or fights or persuasion picked up a pen and attempted to write down his thoughts.
Then over the last week he has suddenly started hunting for the longest word he can find. He is not hugely interested in reading the words, but is very keen to find a longer word. His current longest is congratulations at 15, and is looking out for a better one.
Finally driving to school he asked me why a van had the words "burnt tree" on the back. Now this may not seem like a huge thrill to most parents that have a 9 year old, but until very recently he would have really struggled to read the ur sound in burnt, and so would not have worked been able to work out what that word said. Even more important is the fact that he saw a word and made that choice to read it. Rock on Aidan!
Obviously its a priority just to teach him to read, but I also want him to love reading, and the learning will certainly be a lot easier if he actually willingly starts to look at and write words in his own time.
On his bedroom floor I found one of his long neglected jotters open and now containing 3 lines of writing. I couldn't read a word, but who gives a monkey about this. I saw it and wanted to shout like an over excited toddler, he actually with no prompts or fights or persuasion picked up a pen and attempted to write down his thoughts.
Then over the last week he has suddenly started hunting for the longest word he can find. He is not hugely interested in reading the words, but is very keen to find a longer word. His current longest is congratulations at 15, and is looking out for a better one.
Finally driving to school he asked me why a van had the words "burnt tree" on the back. Now this may not seem like a huge thrill to most parents that have a 9 year old, but until very recently he would have really struggled to read the ur sound in burnt, and so would not have worked been able to work out what that word said. Even more important is the fact that he saw a word and made that choice to read it. Rock on Aidan!
Friday 7 December 2012
I think I may have a little scream so cover your ears
Let me start off by saying this is no ones fault, its just good old bad luck.
I have been very keen to get Aidan's referral to the Educational Psychologist in the pipeline, but after waiting several months it became clear today what exactly has been going on.
The SENCO at the school is brand new to the post, and took over the job just before the Summer, and I believe she also has a class on a part time basis. So she has obviously had a heck of a lot of work and learning to fit into a very small amount of time.
I was aware that she was not keen to make the referral, as I assume she has never made one before, and she was not sure why she was making it. So fair play, as a professional you can't randomly go shooting off referrals with no understanding of the reason behind them. I can imagine that the Ed Psych would ripe her to piece if they phoned to discuss it and her response was ummmmmm.
Anyway the lovely OT that felt it was necessary had spoken to her and I was under the impression that the paperwork was sorted. Anyway turns out that SENCO was waiting for a report that as far as I was aware the OT never actually said she would send.
You get the idea, its the usual special needs communication confusion and chaos.
So SENCO and I have spent the last few weeks trying to chase the lovely OT ( yes that is actually her name, or maybe I made it up, not sure, but she is lovely).
I did wondered what was going on after leaving many messages and getting no reply.
So today I got a call from his NEW OT. Apparently lovely OT unexpectedly had to go on early maternity leave, so NEW OT has been dumped with a pile of cases, no knowledge of the kids she is caring for and no handover.
After our telephone call today I was well impressed, and may soon start calling her NEW lovely OT. She has never met Aidan and so does'nt feel comfortable advising the SENCO on him, so she has rushed through a brief assessment appointment for 2 weeks time.
Then once she has spent some time with him, she should be able to advise the SENCO about the referral, who will then be able to send the paperwork, which will then bring with it the appointment, and then the Educational Psychologist will see him and solve all our problems.
He he he no I have no got mental, I appreciate that the Ed Psych may not help much, and Dr Sue (from the DRT ) is worried that it may just bring more useless paperwork into play, with no real help. I am prepared for this, but with count down to senior school ticking away like a bomb I will pin my hopes on anything, anything at all!
I have been very keen to get Aidan's referral to the Educational Psychologist in the pipeline, but after waiting several months it became clear today what exactly has been going on.
The SENCO at the school is brand new to the post, and took over the job just before the Summer, and I believe she also has a class on a part time basis. So she has obviously had a heck of a lot of work and learning to fit into a very small amount of time.
I was aware that she was not keen to make the referral, as I assume she has never made one before, and she was not sure why she was making it. So fair play, as a professional you can't randomly go shooting off referrals with no understanding of the reason behind them. I can imagine that the Ed Psych would ripe her to piece if they phoned to discuss it and her response was ummmmmm.
Anyway the lovely OT that felt it was necessary had spoken to her and I was under the impression that the paperwork was sorted. Anyway turns out that SENCO was waiting for a report that as far as I was aware the OT never actually said she would send.
You get the idea, its the usual special needs communication confusion and chaos.
So SENCO and I have spent the last few weeks trying to chase the lovely OT ( yes that is actually her name, or maybe I made it up, not sure, but she is lovely).
I did wondered what was going on after leaving many messages and getting no reply.
So today I got a call from his NEW OT. Apparently lovely OT unexpectedly had to go on early maternity leave, so NEW OT has been dumped with a pile of cases, no knowledge of the kids she is caring for and no handover.
After our telephone call today I was well impressed, and may soon start calling her NEW lovely OT. She has never met Aidan and so does'nt feel comfortable advising the SENCO on him, so she has rushed through a brief assessment appointment for 2 weeks time.
Then once she has spent some time with him, she should be able to advise the SENCO about the referral, who will then be able to send the paperwork, which will then bring with it the appointment, and then the Educational Psychologist will see him and solve all our problems.
He he he no I have no got mental, I appreciate that the Ed Psych may not help much, and Dr Sue (from the DRT ) is worried that it may just bring more useless paperwork into play, with no real help. I am prepared for this, but with count down to senior school ticking away like a bomb I will pin my hopes on anything, anything at all!
Monday 3 December 2012
Kids!
I have spent most of the weekend looking for Aidan's homework sheet.
Aidan ( on Saturday) - Where is my sheet that I brought home with the ch sounds
Me - Are you sure you brought it home
Aidan - yes I was working on it in daddy's car
Then repeat this conversation later on during Saturday and repeatedly on Sunday.
Roll on Monday and my many attempts to go through all the kids homework sheets and other places where the worksheets may be.
After no joy I sent him to school with instructions to tell the teacher that we just can't find the sheet.
At 3:30 out he marches from school, so I ask what the teacher said, to which he replies.
Aidan - The sheet was in my drawer all the time, as the teacher wanted to see it I told her that I had left it at home.
Me - So shall we get it done tonight.
Aidan - no I left it in my drawer
What can I say!
Aidan ( on Saturday) - Where is my sheet that I brought home with the ch sounds
Me - Are you sure you brought it home
Aidan - yes I was working on it in daddy's car
Then repeat this conversation later on during Saturday and repeatedly on Sunday.
Roll on Monday and my many attempts to go through all the kids homework sheets and other places where the worksheets may be.
After no joy I sent him to school with instructions to tell the teacher that we just can't find the sheet.
At 3:30 out he marches from school, so I ask what the teacher said, to which he replies.
Aidan - The sheet was in my drawer all the time, as the teacher wanted to see it I told her that I had left it at home.
Me - So shall we get it done tonight.
Aidan - no I left it in my drawer
What can I say!
Sunday 2 December 2012
Maybe I will always find something to moan about
Aidan has a new SENCO in the school, and its taken a while for her to get the extra help set up and in place.
Now some things she did very quickly like lending Aidan a talking tin:
http://www.earlyyearsathome.co.uk/Sensory/Auditory/Talking_Tins.aspx
These are great, very easy for him to use, and they give him the chance to record a short thought that he is having or even to record the teacher is he can't write down an idea quickly enough.
However the weekly homework has only just started over 3 months after the return to school. Hence I have spent the last few months whinging and the lack of homework rather a lot.
Skip to last week and home he comes with, his usual 10 class spellings, his weekly maths homework, a reading book, a workbook to use alongside the book, more spellings, about 8 worksheets based on a phonic sound, sentences and words to write out. Now this is alongside the touch typing and toe by toe he does everyday at home, his work towards his cub badges, his school topic work and his daily OT excercises.
Now I have moved very rapidly to moaning about him having too much homework. I am generally a very happy and positive person, so I think I need to get a life and stop moaning about homework ( both the lack and the excess of it).
Now some things she did very quickly like lending Aidan a talking tin:
http://www.earlyyearsathome.co.uk/Sensory/Auditory/Talking_Tins.aspx
These are great, very easy for him to use, and they give him the chance to record a short thought that he is having or even to record the teacher is he can't write down an idea quickly enough.
However the weekly homework has only just started over 3 months after the return to school. Hence I have spent the last few months whinging and the lack of homework rather a lot.
Skip to last week and home he comes with, his usual 10 class spellings, his weekly maths homework, a reading book, a workbook to use alongside the book, more spellings, about 8 worksheets based on a phonic sound, sentences and words to write out. Now this is alongside the touch typing and toe by toe he does everyday at home, his work towards his cub badges, his school topic work and his daily OT excercises.
Now I have moved very rapidly to moaning about him having too much homework. I am generally a very happy and positive person, so I think I need to get a life and stop moaning about homework ( both the lack and the excess of it).
Diagnosis?????
I have always hated labels, and I 100% believe that a child will live up ( or down) to the expectations you have of them. In particular I feel my blood boiling when I hear an adult jump in to explain that a child is shy or a fussy eater, err yes they have repeatedly heard an adult refer to them in those terms, so they start to take that into their own sense of identity.
However conversely I have always been a huge fan of having conditions diagnosed, and then being able to give the child the best support possible. I certainly did not jump for joy when Aidan was diagnosed, I am not sure how I felt, and I think most mums experience a mixture of feelings upon hearing those words.
Looking back I am now glad that we know more about how he sees the world, and that he is not just a lazy little toad. I am even more glad that we have been able to find and give him so much support. I know he is still behind, but I am very aware that without the diagnosis he would be in a completely different situation, and probably heading towards a special school.
So is a diagnosis a good or bad thing?????
However conversely I have always been a huge fan of having conditions diagnosed, and then being able to give the child the best support possible. I certainly did not jump for joy when Aidan was diagnosed, I am not sure how I felt, and I think most mums experience a mixture of feelings upon hearing those words.
Looking back I am now glad that we know more about how he sees the world, and that he is not just a lazy little toad. I am even more glad that we have been able to find and give him so much support. I know he is still behind, but I am very aware that without the diagnosis he would be in a completely different situation, and probably heading towards a special school.
So is a diagnosis a good or bad thing?????
Does being embarrassed make you a bad mum?
This is a question that came up about us mum that have a child with special needs. Does having those feelings of being embarrassed by your child at times make you a bad or an uncaring mum?
This got me thinking. I am proud of Aidan beyond words, he is amazing and makes me proud every single day of my life.
However there are moments when reading comes up in everyday life. When Aidan is struggling with something you would expect a 9 year old to be able to read I all to quickly jump in to read it for him or to justify his struggling to the stranger.
I know in part I do this to protect him, but I also do it to stop the stranger looking at me and judging me as a parent. Now is this bad, or just a natural reaction?
This got me thinking. I am proud of Aidan beyond words, he is amazing and makes me proud every single day of my life.
However there are moments when reading comes up in everyday life. When Aidan is struggling with something you would expect a 9 year old to be able to read I all to quickly jump in to read it for him or to justify his struggling to the stranger.
I know in part I do this to protect him, but I also do it to stop the stranger looking at me and judging me as a parent. Now is this bad, or just a natural reaction?
Friday 23 November 2012
NO NO NO!
http://dyslexicsurvivor.blogspot.com.au/
This blog has had me crying like a baby tonight.
This lad and his mum sound so amazing, but I don't want this for Aidan.
I know I can't change it, he will always struggle with words, BUT I DO NOT WANT THIS FOR HIM.
Some days I feel very accepting, and I try hard to love his dyslexia as a part of who he is, but after an hour of screaming and fighting because he doesn't want to do his reading. Followed by the blog reminding me about how he will struggle in the future, and how I will not be able to be there to protect him all I can repeat is that I DO NOT WANT THIS FOR HIM.
For tonight I do not accept his disability, I do not accept how society views him as less simply because he struggles to read, I do not accept this different life than I had hoped he would have, and I DO NOT WANT THIS FOR HIM.
This blog has had me crying like a baby tonight.
This lad and his mum sound so amazing, but I don't want this for Aidan.
I know I can't change it, he will always struggle with words, BUT I DO NOT WANT THIS FOR HIM.
Some days I feel very accepting, and I try hard to love his dyslexia as a part of who he is, but after an hour of screaming and fighting because he doesn't want to do his reading. Followed by the blog reminding me about how he will struggle in the future, and how I will not be able to be there to protect him all I can repeat is that I DO NOT WANT THIS FOR HIM.
For tonight I do not accept his disability, I do not accept how society views him as less simply because he struggles to read, I do not accept this different life than I had hoped he would have, and I DO NOT WANT THIS FOR HIM.
Saturday 10 November 2012
Just having a little wonder......
Have things changed much in the real world of dyslexia over the last 20 to 30 years?
Let me tell you a story, my baby brother ( he is over 30 now but is still a baby to me) was an amazing child, so bright, so social and so charming. I remember when he was about 7 and he brought some hens, and promptly looked after them and sold the eggs to his teachers. Now how clever is that!
Anyway he never really got the school thing, and ultimately started skiving off from about the age of 10, by the age of 12 he was pretty much working full time on the farm and would not head to school ( even at gun point he would still have been reluctant).
He was a bright lad ( and obviously still is), but he could not read to save his life, and don't even get me started on his spelling. However he never got a diagnosis, he just dropped out of the system and never had the opportunity to reach his full potential. I am no expert on spelling, but reading his texts or online messages can certainly be a challenge!
So how have things changed over the last 20 or so years, it can be a little easier to get a diagnosis, we know more about dyslexia, there is ( sometimes) more support in school, and perhaps more of these amazing kids get that chance to fly. However on the other end of the scale I still hear of children who are not getting a diagnosis or whose parents have to find the money to pay a fortune for one. I still hear about children who are left stumbling in the abyss ( and we have felt like this has certainly happened to Aidan at times). I still hear those comments and views that dyslexia is an excuse for poor parenting, thick children, lazy children, and not a real condition ( for crying out loud). And now we force children to stay in school for longer, even if they would be better and happier in the world of work.
I know those working in the area of dyslexia are passionate, knowledgable and generally often amazing. So what stops those giant leaps, surely we should be further on now in helping these children.
Let me tell you a story, my baby brother ( he is over 30 now but is still a baby to me) was an amazing child, so bright, so social and so charming. I remember when he was about 7 and he brought some hens, and promptly looked after them and sold the eggs to his teachers. Now how clever is that!
Anyway he never really got the school thing, and ultimately started skiving off from about the age of 10, by the age of 12 he was pretty much working full time on the farm and would not head to school ( even at gun point he would still have been reluctant).
He was a bright lad ( and obviously still is), but he could not read to save his life, and don't even get me started on his spelling. However he never got a diagnosis, he just dropped out of the system and never had the opportunity to reach his full potential. I am no expert on spelling, but reading his texts or online messages can certainly be a challenge!
So how have things changed over the last 20 or so years, it can be a little easier to get a diagnosis, we know more about dyslexia, there is ( sometimes) more support in school, and perhaps more of these amazing kids get that chance to fly. However on the other end of the scale I still hear of children who are not getting a diagnosis or whose parents have to find the money to pay a fortune for one. I still hear about children who are left stumbling in the abyss ( and we have felt like this has certainly happened to Aidan at times). I still hear those comments and views that dyslexia is an excuse for poor parenting, thick children, lazy children, and not a real condition ( for crying out loud). And now we force children to stay in school for longer, even if they would be better and happier in the world of work.
I know those working in the area of dyslexia are passionate, knowledgable and generally often amazing. So what stops those giant leaps, surely we should be further on now in helping these children.
Please please please let just one referral be smooth....
So we have a letter from the SALT confirming that they have the referral paperwork ( at last) and he is now on the waiting list.
However its been many many weeks since the Educational Psychologist paperwork headed off and we have heard nothing.
I am not unrealistic, and I certainly don't expect an appointment until Aidan is about 30 or so. However I did expect an acknowledgement that he is on a waiting list somewhere. So I will have to head back off to the school soon to find out what is going on, and who to chase to find out if the paperwork has been received.
I am worried that the Ed Psych may not help as much as I hope, one of the specialists did comment that this is just likely to bring us another piece of paper and no practical help, but I am ever hopeful and optimistic.
I love the NHS and our educational system, and would defend how lucky we are to the hills and back. However I am so fed up of waiting and more times than not being forgotten. I can't think of a single health or educational support issue within the whole family that at some stage has not lost a referral or an appointment. Arggghhhh I am turning into a real cynical grumpy old cow.
To end on a positive note thank you NHS, DRT and education for all those good things you have given us.
However its been many many weeks since the Educational Psychologist paperwork headed off and we have heard nothing.
I am not unrealistic, and I certainly don't expect an appointment until Aidan is about 30 or so. However I did expect an acknowledgement that he is on a waiting list somewhere. So I will have to head back off to the school soon to find out what is going on, and who to chase to find out if the paperwork has been received.
I am worried that the Ed Psych may not help as much as I hope, one of the specialists did comment that this is just likely to bring us another piece of paper and no practical help, but I am ever hopeful and optimistic.
I love the NHS and our educational system, and would defend how lucky we are to the hills and back. However I am so fed up of waiting and more times than not being forgotten. I can't think of a single health or educational support issue within the whole family that at some stage has not lost a referral or an appointment. Arggghhhh I am turning into a real cynical grumpy old cow.
To end on a positive note thank you NHS, DRT and education for all those good things you have given us.
I hope I am not the only one that is pants sometimes
Its been a hectic month, you know the type of month when the little darlings bring home every bug they can find. When you add to that the fact that they kindly share these with me, its no wonder that I have stumbled a little.
I was so looking forward to October, it was September that had terrified me, with Cat starting in year R, Alex heading into Year 1, Aidan heading into Year 5, Elliot starting properly at the child minders, restarting my toddler group after Summer break, and my return to work after maternity leave.
However September went relatively smoothly with just a few hiccups. While I was focusing on getting through September and really really looking forward to having a rest the following month, it never occurred to me that October might turn out to be the month from hell.
So sadly for a while now I have been too busy, ill or just plain tired to give Aidan's extra help the attention it deserves. Does anyone else go through these phases when such an important thing has to take a back burner for a little while?
Anyway I have reduced my hours back down to just over 20, and am determined that when Aidan gets back from his sleep over tomorrow, that we will crack on with renewed vigor, so watch out toe by toe, touch typing, school work, OT excercies and all the rest of them here we come!
I was so looking forward to October, it was September that had terrified me, with Cat starting in year R, Alex heading into Year 1, Aidan heading into Year 5, Elliot starting properly at the child minders, restarting my toddler group after Summer break, and my return to work after maternity leave.
However September went relatively smoothly with just a few hiccups. While I was focusing on getting through September and really really looking forward to having a rest the following month, it never occurred to me that October might turn out to be the month from hell.
So sadly for a while now I have been too busy, ill or just plain tired to give Aidan's extra help the attention it deserves. Does anyone else go through these phases when such an important thing has to take a back burner for a little while?
Anyway I have reduced my hours back down to just over 20, and am determined that when Aidan gets back from his sleep over tomorrow, that we will crack on with renewed vigor, so watch out toe by toe, touch typing, school work, OT excercies and all the rest of them here we come!
Tuesday 6 November 2012
And again my heart breaks......
As he gets older Aidan is becoming more and more aware of how different he is from his peers.
Over the holidays their task was to create a piece of art work showing the river they had visited for their last school trip.
Aidan wanted to give a good feel of the river so he painted a large picture with loo roll added to the blue paint to give the river texture, and gravel added to the brown paint for the rivers edges.
Its a great picture, but obviously because of his coordination issues it does not match that of his mates.
He was reluctant to take the homework in, and after a few days he admitted that he felt his work was rubbish, and silly in comparison.
All that work and effort, and he is left feeling like that!
We had a chat and a big moan about how rubbish it is being normal, and we talked about if he wanted to just draw a picture to take in, but he declined the offer. He has a deadline for the work to be in tomorrow, so lets see if he willingly takes it in
Over the holidays their task was to create a piece of art work showing the river they had visited for their last school trip.
Aidan wanted to give a good feel of the river so he painted a large picture with loo roll added to the blue paint to give the river texture, and gravel added to the brown paint for the rivers edges.
Its a great picture, but obviously because of his coordination issues it does not match that of his mates.
He was reluctant to take the homework in, and after a few days he admitted that he felt his work was rubbish, and silly in comparison.
All that work and effort, and he is left feeling like that!
We had a chat and a big moan about how rubbish it is being normal, and we talked about if he wanted to just draw a picture to take in, but he declined the offer. He has a deadline for the work to be in tomorrow, so lets see if he willingly takes it in
Sunday 4 November 2012
Whats great about your child.......
Us mums who have a child that has dyslexia are so often flooded with all the information about what they can't do and how they struggle. I know sometimes I think I will sink under the worry and all the negativity.
However here is Aidan's top 10:
1 - He is very social
2 - Witty and a little bit cheeky
3 - generally exceptionally well behaved
4 - very tolerant ( especially of his siblings)
5 - very grown up
6 - extremely helpful
7 - great fun to be around
8 - talkative
9 - increasing in his independence every day
10 - passionate about so many things, especially anything that involves either listening to stories or tree climbing and ropes.
So please post a comment, share your child's top 10, something that makes them special, or even just a time that they have made you smile...........
However here is Aidan's top 10:
1 - He is very social
2 - Witty and a little bit cheeky
3 - generally exceptionally well behaved
4 - very tolerant ( especially of his siblings)
5 - very grown up
6 - extremely helpful
7 - great fun to be around
8 - talkative
9 - increasing in his independence every day
10 - passionate about so many things, especially anything that involves either listening to stories or tree climbing and ropes.
So please post a comment, share your child's top 10, something that makes them special, or even just a time that they have made you smile...........
Mummy and Aidan heading on a special night out to see Farm Boy at the theatre. We both really enjoyed the two man show. I has a little panic when I realised it was just two actors and only a stationary tractor in the middle of the stage, and no intermission.
However Aidan loved it and was transported away to the world that Michael Morpurgo had created for him.
Its so cruel how much he loves stories and yet this is a world where a huge part of the joy of stories will always be denied to him.
Anyway great play, great lad, great fun, what more can I say!
Friday 2 November 2012
and the results are in......
Its apparently been a little over a year since the DRT started working with Aidan. So their report this time compared his ability levels with those when he did the activities a year ago.
Well as always it seems to be a mixture of good and bad news, why can it never just be all really good news, that would be so nice.
His reading has come on well, with an increase of 18 months during the year, so that's good, but that only brings us up to a reading age of 7.10, which is still about 18 months behind his actual age. However its progress so yippppppeeeeee!
The real issues are his spelling and also the difference between his abilities in non academic areas and his reading and writing. His spelling has hardly changed in the year and is stuck at about 2 years behind. The lovely Dr Sue has suggested trying to encourage him to use the letter names rather than phonic sounds for the irregular words.
This makes a lot of sense, for example when he spells come, he always spells it cum, which makes sense if phonics were logical, so she has asked him to try and learn these by saying the names eg cee oh em ee. Lets see if that helps.
On his general ability he is about 2 to 3 years ahead of his age, so this worries me. How frustrating must it be to think as a 12 to 13 year old, but to be able to express yourself on paper as a 7 year old. That 5 year difference has got to kick in at some point, surely he can't go on forever being such a star at school, that frustration comes out at home, but I am just awaiting and dreading the day that it moves to the school.
Well as always it seems to be a mixture of good and bad news, why can it never just be all really good news, that would be so nice.
His reading has come on well, with an increase of 18 months during the year, so that's good, but that only brings us up to a reading age of 7.10, which is still about 18 months behind his actual age. However its progress so yippppppeeeeee!
The real issues are his spelling and also the difference between his abilities in non academic areas and his reading and writing. His spelling has hardly changed in the year and is stuck at about 2 years behind. The lovely Dr Sue has suggested trying to encourage him to use the letter names rather than phonic sounds for the irregular words.
This makes a lot of sense, for example when he spells come, he always spells it cum, which makes sense if phonics were logical, so she has asked him to try and learn these by saying the names eg cee oh em ee. Lets see if that helps.
On his general ability he is about 2 to 3 years ahead of his age, so this worries me. How frustrating must it be to think as a 12 to 13 year old, but to be able to express yourself on paper as a 7 year old. That 5 year difference has got to kick in at some point, surely he can't go on forever being such a star at school, that frustration comes out at home, but I am just awaiting and dreading the day that it moves to the school.
Sunday 21 October 2012
Off for another appointment tomorrow
Aidan has been a star this weekend doing his toe by toe and typing with his nanna while I have been away.
Its amazing how much he fights me when he needs to do a task, and yet he just gets on with it for other people. I know we have been tackling the reading thing for many years now, so he is bound to have negative associations with me and reading, but its soooo frustrating.
Anyway he is off to the DRT tomorrow, so fingers crossed for some progress.
Its amazing how much he fights me when he needs to do a task, and yet he just gets on with it for other people. I know we have been tackling the reading thing for many years now, so he is bound to have negative associations with me and reading, but its soooo frustrating.
Anyway he is off to the DRT tomorrow, so fingers crossed for some progress.
Tuesday 16 October 2012
Its a crime how hard it can be to get that diagnosis!
I agree with those that dislike labels, and I certainly hate the idea of using a label to tell a child who they are and what they are or are not capable of.
I am a great believer in the idea that kids become what you tell them they are, if you tell them they are naughty then they behave like a naughty child to live up to that label.
However in the arena of special needs I think a diagnosis can bring with it so many positive points. How can you begin to help someone if you have no idea what their issue is. So many mums and dads that have gone before us have struggled hugely, and the improving understanding and all of that knowledge and experience should be harnessed and used to the advantage of our children.
Aidan was diagnosed at 7, before that we were stumbling in the dark,was he lazy, was he just not concentrating, was he being naughty? Should we force him to read? Why was he so angry and frustrated as soon as he saw his reading book and words.
Once he was offically dyslexic we could start on our journey to understand how he saw the world of words and how we could help him to reach his potential.
We were lucky and got the diagnosis through the school SENCO, but I have heard stories of people waiting years ( even into adulthood) to get a diagnosis, and stories of schools and professionals saying that a families only option was to pay hundreds of pounds to go private for their child's diagnosis.
Dyslexic children in general are amazing and so full of potential so why are we not making the path to diagnosis as easy as possible, and then quickly supporting these kids to have the chance to reach their full potential!
I am a great believer in the idea that kids become what you tell them they are, if you tell them they are naughty then they behave like a naughty child to live up to that label.
However in the arena of special needs I think a diagnosis can bring with it so many positive points. How can you begin to help someone if you have no idea what their issue is. So many mums and dads that have gone before us have struggled hugely, and the improving understanding and all of that knowledge and experience should be harnessed and used to the advantage of our children.
Aidan was diagnosed at 7, before that we were stumbling in the dark,was he lazy, was he just not concentrating, was he being naughty? Should we force him to read? Why was he so angry and frustrated as soon as he saw his reading book and words.
Once he was offically dyslexic we could start on our journey to understand how he saw the world of words and how we could help him to reach his potential.
We were lucky and got the diagnosis through the school SENCO, but I have heard stories of people waiting years ( even into adulthood) to get a diagnosis, and stories of schools and professionals saying that a families only option was to pay hundreds of pounds to go private for their child's diagnosis.
Dyslexic children in general are amazing and so full of potential so why are we not making the path to diagnosis as easy as possible, and then quickly supporting these kids to have the chance to reach their full potential!
Friday 12 October 2012
Those evil little numbers, letters and words
There are certain words, letters and numbers that I will hate till my dying day.
These poor letters and so on can't help it, and I am sure they don't do it deliberatley, however the person who created them should have a red hot poker bashed around their heads.
Over the years many of these have challenged us, in particular the classic b and d, who on earth thought that was a good idea!
Then we had the god awful number 5, argggghhhhhhh! That one took so many years of practice that I don't even want to think about it.
Those ones are generally now sorted, although occassionally they still rear their ugly backwards heads. Our current challenges are:
for some reason he reads wh words with a th and the other way around.
then we have the number 9 ( and occassionally his mate the number 7).
We have tried so many things to get these set in his head, so if you have any magic solutions do let me know!
These poor letters and so on can't help it, and I am sure they don't do it deliberatley, however the person who created them should have a red hot poker bashed around their heads.
Over the years many of these have challenged us, in particular the classic b and d, who on earth thought that was a good idea!
Then we had the god awful number 5, argggghhhhhhh! That one took so many years of practice that I don't even want to think about it.
Those ones are generally now sorted, although occassionally they still rear their ugly backwards heads. Our current challenges are:
for some reason he reads wh words with a th and the other way around.
then we have the number 9 ( and occassionally his mate the number 7).
We have tried so many things to get these set in his head, so if you have any magic solutions do let me know!
Thursday 11 October 2012
A big fat arrrggghhhhhhh!
So we had parents evening tonight. Aidan's teacher seems lovely, and is trying her best for him, so don't worry I am not about to enter into a session of teacher bashing.
My issue tonight exists in the system:
- The assessment of his reading mainly looks at comprehension, as a bright boys he understands most things, so surprise surprise his reading is showing up as being pretty much where it should be for a kid of his age. How comes he is coping with reading books at the same level as his 5 year old sister, and the independant age assessments are showing him to be years behind.
- Add to that the fact that there seems to now be very little interest in his spelling, even though he can't spell several of the Year R key words.
- Add to that the fact that you can't read his handwriting ( he is 9), and yet because he is making the minimum required improvement, apparently its ok, as long as he is making some progress. Surely he needs to be helped to make even more progress than your average child, how can he go to secondary school with writing like this!
- Add to that the fact that his extra help is now pretty much fully focused on phonics assessments and support. However the experts have suggested that he needs to learn whole words as he struggles with the phonic things. I know there is a big focus on phonics now, but surely there are other ways to learn to read.
Currently hanging all my hopes on the lovely Toe by Toe.
My issue tonight exists in the system:
- The assessment of his reading mainly looks at comprehension, as a bright boys he understands most things, so surprise surprise his reading is showing up as being pretty much where it should be for a kid of his age. How comes he is coping with reading books at the same level as his 5 year old sister, and the independant age assessments are showing him to be years behind.
- Add to that the fact that there seems to now be very little interest in his spelling, even though he can't spell several of the Year R key words.
- Add to that the fact that you can't read his handwriting ( he is 9), and yet because he is making the minimum required improvement, apparently its ok, as long as he is making some progress. Surely he needs to be helped to make even more progress than your average child, how can he go to secondary school with writing like this!
- Add to that the fact that his extra help is now pretty much fully focused on phonics assessments and support. However the experts have suggested that he needs to learn whole words as he struggles with the phonic things. I know there is a big focus on phonics now, but surely there are other ways to learn to read.
Currently hanging all my hopes on the lovely Toe by Toe.
Wednesday 12 September 2012
Ed Psych
I am no expert on special needs, in fact the more time I spend in this arena, the more I wonder if anyone actually knows what they are talking about!
Sorry thats just me being grumpy, we have had lots of great support, but sometimes everything seems just so slow and in bits. Why can't we all just have a lovely flow chart.
Diagnosed with dyslexia - Assessment, Try thing A, B and C, Referral to...... ( and so on)
Most of the success we have had seems to be due to someone mentioning something or a passing comment, rather than a nice clear cut path for us to follow.
Anyway I did not come on to rant, I came to make an update. The ed psych referral paprework is done, and is flying off to wherever these things go, so we are now in the very long waiting process to actually see this mythical person who actually may understand what is going on and be able to support us more.
I have to admit I am not even certain what an Ed Psych will be able to offer us ( or even what they really do if I am honest). However we have been told by our lovely and very much trusted OT that this is the next step, so follow her blindly I will!
Sorry thats just me being grumpy, we have had lots of great support, but sometimes everything seems just so slow and in bits. Why can't we all just have a lovely flow chart.
Diagnosed with dyslexia - Assessment, Try thing A, B and C, Referral to...... ( and so on)
Most of the success we have had seems to be due to someone mentioning something or a passing comment, rather than a nice clear cut path for us to follow.
Anyway I did not come on to rant, I came to make an update. The ed psych referral paprework is done, and is flying off to wherever these things go, so we are now in the very long waiting process to actually see this mythical person who actually may understand what is going on and be able to support us more.
I have to admit I am not even certain what an Ed Psych will be able to offer us ( or even what they really do if I am honest). However we have been told by our lovely and very much trusted OT that this is the next step, so follow her blindly I will!
Tuesday 11 September 2012
Touch typing
Aidan's OT and the school's previous SENCO both felt that it was likely he would never get the full knack fo the writing thing. So we had two great suggestions:
1 - focus on non cursive writing, so he will be able to fill out forms as an adult, lets be honest in his lifetime when else is he really ever going to need to pick up a pen.
2- focus on teaching him to touch type, so he can more easily get all those thoughts out and recorded.
As someone who is a bit old fashioned I love a bit of beautiful penmanship. However its clear that the progress with handwriting is painfully slow, so there does come a point when we need to focus our energies a little on the priority areas.
Strangely when he copies non cursive letters his letter formation is just lovely, unlike the spider scrawl of his cursive letters. We just now need to keep pushing him to get to a point where he can write these letters withour copying them.
At the moment we are using Typing tourament with him, which went down great for the first week or so. We are trying to get him to do 5 or so minutes every night. I also have to admit that we are using shameless bribery, with the promise of £100 if he completes every step of that program ( no we are not rich, but hopefully the money will appear by the time he eventually gets there)
Sadly the usual anger and frustration has started with the touch typing, as he has got to a stage now where he needs to remember how to do more than just 5 or 6 letters, and he is finding it really hard. I think he has been attempting the same test and drills for about 2 weeks now. I just keep telling myself that the more he practices then the more information is going in, even if it annoys the hell out of him.
1 - focus on non cursive writing, so he will be able to fill out forms as an adult, lets be honest in his lifetime when else is he really ever going to need to pick up a pen.
2- focus on teaching him to touch type, so he can more easily get all those thoughts out and recorded.
As someone who is a bit old fashioned I love a bit of beautiful penmanship. However its clear that the progress with handwriting is painfully slow, so there does come a point when we need to focus our energies a little on the priority areas.
Strangely when he copies non cursive letters his letter formation is just lovely, unlike the spider scrawl of his cursive letters. We just now need to keep pushing him to get to a point where he can write these letters withour copying them.
At the moment we are using Typing tourament with him, which went down great for the first week or so. We are trying to get him to do 5 or so minutes every night. I also have to admit that we are using shameless bribery, with the promise of £100 if he completes every step of that program ( no we are not rich, but hopefully the money will appear by the time he eventually gets there)
Sadly the usual anger and frustration has started with the touch typing, as he has got to a stage now where he needs to remember how to do more than just 5 or 6 letters, and he is finding it really hard. I think he has been attempting the same test and drills for about 2 weeks now. I just keep telling myself that the more he practices then the more information is going in, even if it annoys the hell out of him.
Toe by Toe
http://www.toe-by-toe.co.uk/
My oldest lad is 9 and we have struggled for many many years with his reading and writing. He is a very bright boy, and he just seems to understand so many complex things, until you write them down on paper, then he is immediately lost.
When he was 7 they diagnosed dyslexia and since then we have been on such a hard and painfull journey. I know so many people say that they love their child as they are, and that they would not make their disability disappear if they could. Well I would kick his dyslexia to hell if I had that power. I hate to see his tears, I hate to see his frustration, I hate to see people assuming that he is thick and I hate the impact it has on his self esteem. I love him more than words, but his dyslexia should go jump!
He was a part of a Dyslexia Research Trust piece of research, and they are still supporting him now. One of their suggestions at the last visit was to try the Toe by Toe book. We have only been using the book for about 2 months, so he is still working his way through it. To be honest some days he is happy to do it, other days he screams and fights. However I do believe that breaking the reading down the way that they have is making a difference to him.
The book really helps to imbed reading concepts into their minds, and the idea of learning the concept, practicing it on nonsense words, and then moving on to real words really helps to drive it home. Its also very positive, you don't use crosses (and Aidan has certainly seen enough of those in his life), and they get lots of chances to get the three ticks they need for each word/ sound.
This is not a book that you leave them in a corner to work at on their own, the whole concept is to work side by side with them, and to take it step by step. It certainly takes some patience and plenty of work, but nothing worth having comes easy.
I don't think he will suddenly learn to read, but anything that makes a difference is good by me.
In conclusion:
A great support for any children that are not clicking with the reading thing - 10/10
Read more book reviews at :
http://fourferalchildrenbookreviews.blogspot.co.uk/
DRT
http://www.dyslexic.org.uk/
The dyslexia Research Trust rock.
They took on Aidan as part of their blue glasses study a few years ago, which was great for us as he got to try out the blue glasses without the usual huge cost that goes with this. Sadly for him the glasses did'nt seem to make much difference.
However Dr Sue and the Trust have willingly carried on seeing him and assessing him every 3 months or so.
Their assessments, ideas and support have been priceless, so if you have a child with dyslexia look them up, if you think the world needs to understand more about dyslexia then send them a donation.
They are a great bunch of people doing a very important job.
The dyslexia Research Trust rock.
They took on Aidan as part of their blue glasses study a few years ago, which was great for us as he got to try out the blue glasses without the usual huge cost that goes with this. Sadly for him the glasses did'nt seem to make much difference.
However Dr Sue and the Trust have willingly carried on seeing him and assessing him every 3 months or so.
Their assessments, ideas and support have been priceless, so if you have a child with dyslexia look them up, if you think the world needs to understand more about dyslexia then send them a donation.
They are a great bunch of people doing a very important job.
Year 4
From the school point of view Year 4 seemed to be a bit of a "nothing major happening" year. His teachers were ok, he had some support at school in place and he was coping ok.
I certainly think he would have progressed more with more support, but sometimes the constant chasing and fighting gets so tiring.
I certainly think he would have progressed more with more support, but sometimes the constant chasing and fighting gets so tiring.
OT
I have to admit that I was very sceptical about the OTs input and her ability to actually make a difference to Aidan. See what a huge grump I am.
Even after his appointment with the Paediatrician I still thought that his coordination issues were very minor, and wondered if it was worth the effort to address them.
Well roll on sports day and having to go through one of the most painful and proud moments of my life. Imagine the scene of about 15 children lined up to start a skipping race.....
And they head off, with four laps to do, Aidan immediately struggles to hold the rope, and has just got his first skip in as the others are finishing their second lap. He is about 3 or 4 skips into the race when all the rest of the field have finished. My heart is breaking for him, and yet he does not stop, he does not falter, he keeps going.
The other parents and kids get bored, stop clapping and head off to chat amongst themselves. Leaving Aidan skipping his heart out alone in the middle of a track with a very long way still to go.
There I am cheering and clapping him with all my might, with tears in my eyes and I desire to just run up and cuddle him till all his problems go away. Then I notice that his class teacher ( who was great) is the only other person who is still clapping and pushing him on.
It felt so lonely to be stood there and then his teacher shouted something and got the parents attention back to help clap him over the finish line.
Now I know that skipping is not something that matters in life, but it illustrated that when he has no diversion tactics in place to hide his problems that he is just so vulnerable.
The problems he has with coordination extend beyond skipping, and the OT headed into school to assess him and to write up a programme to help him.
I can't talk for all OTs but she rocks, she clearly cares and very clearly wants to make a difference to Aidan. Anyone who actually makes even a tiny bit of effort to help him is forever in my good books.
She has assessed him, given us fine and gross motor skills programmes, made suggestions to every query I have ever made, calls me after every session, writes loads of reports and has come into school to teach me and his TA how to do his therapy.
So we now have a tool box full of various everyday items for him to use, and lots of other excercises to try to fit into our day. I won't lie some days we just don't get time to do any therapy, but I think every little helps, so we really do try our best.
Even after his appointment with the Paediatrician I still thought that his coordination issues were very minor, and wondered if it was worth the effort to address them.
Well roll on sports day and having to go through one of the most painful and proud moments of my life. Imagine the scene of about 15 children lined up to start a skipping race.....
And they head off, with four laps to do, Aidan immediately struggles to hold the rope, and has just got his first skip in as the others are finishing their second lap. He is about 3 or 4 skips into the race when all the rest of the field have finished. My heart is breaking for him, and yet he does not stop, he does not falter, he keeps going.
The other parents and kids get bored, stop clapping and head off to chat amongst themselves. Leaving Aidan skipping his heart out alone in the middle of a track with a very long way still to go.
There I am cheering and clapping him with all my might, with tears in my eyes and I desire to just run up and cuddle him till all his problems go away. Then I notice that his class teacher ( who was great) is the only other person who is still clapping and pushing him on.
It felt so lonely to be stood there and then his teacher shouted something and got the parents attention back to help clap him over the finish line.
Now I know that skipping is not something that matters in life, but it illustrated that when he has no diversion tactics in place to hide his problems that he is just so vulnerable.
The problems he has with coordination extend beyond skipping, and the OT headed into school to assess him and to write up a programme to help him.
I can't talk for all OTs but she rocks, she clearly cares and very clearly wants to make a difference to Aidan. Anyone who actually makes even a tiny bit of effort to help him is forever in my good books.
She has assessed him, given us fine and gross motor skills programmes, made suggestions to every query I have ever made, calls me after every session, writes loads of reports and has come into school to teach me and his TA how to do his therapy.
So we now have a tool box full of various everyday items for him to use, and lots of other excercises to try to fit into our day. I won't lie some days we just don't get time to do any therapy, but I think every little helps, so we really do try our best.
SALT
Now this one has been an ongoing disaster.
Aidan really struggles with certain sounds in particular c, t, g and d. We were getting support from the school, and they had been trying to encourage him to say the sounds.
However this just was not working, so we asked for a referral to SALT, and were told that this had been made. Over the following year and a bit I regularly asked about the referral and his therapy, and was told he had been seen and the school were doing the therapy.
Fast forward to a new SENCO ( and about 18 months after the initial referral) and it seems that it was never made and he was never seen, arggghhhhh!
Anyway the old SENCO has retired and I don't think it will help Aidan or anyone else to whinge about this, but it is beyond annoying!
So the new SENCO has kindly chased SALT and got them to put him on the waiting list while they awaited me coming in to fill in the necessary paperwork. Now the paperwork is done, the referral is sent and I have a letter confirming that he is on the waiting list.
Lets see how long this wait will be.......
Aidan really struggles with certain sounds in particular c, t, g and d. We were getting support from the school, and they had been trying to encourage him to say the sounds.
However this just was not working, so we asked for a referral to SALT, and were told that this had been made. Over the following year and a bit I regularly asked about the referral and his therapy, and was told he had been seen and the school were doing the therapy.
Fast forward to a new SENCO ( and about 18 months after the initial referral) and it seems that it was never made and he was never seen, arggghhhhh!
Anyway the old SENCO has retired and I don't think it will help Aidan or anyone else to whinge about this, but it is beyond annoying!
So the new SENCO has kindly chased SALT and got them to put him on the waiting list while they awaited me coming in to fill in the necessary paperwork. Now the paperwork is done, the referral is sent and I have a letter confirming that he is on the waiting list.
Lets see how long this wait will be.......
Specialist Pediatrican
At the end of Year3 the SENCO had some concerns about Aidan's coordination, this was something we had thought about in passing, but certainly did not consider to be a massive issue.
His handwriting did and still does look like a spider has run across the page with a bad case of diarrhoea, and he hated football, but other than that he seemed ok on the physical front. However once the SENCO had suggested that there may be an issue I decided to not delay, and got an appointment with both the school nurse and the GP. They listened and were both more than happy to make the referral for us.
As these things tend to go, we could not see an OT directly, but instead had to have him assessed by a specialist paediatrician first. After several months of waiting appointment day came, and we merrily headed off to the hospital expecting it to be a bit of a waste of our time.
The doctor was great and did a very comprehensive assessment of him. It very quickly became apparent that he just could not do certain physical tasks. For a while I felt guilty taht we had not spotted this earleir, but he is so good as hiding his issues, and who asks there kids to stand on one leg and then gets the stop watch out to time how long they can do it for. We are just normal parents doing our best, and I think it was forgivable that we were in a state of ignorant bliss about his coordination problem.
Anyway after a ton of questions and more tests she concluded that he was about 3 years behing with his gross and fine motor skills, so yet another referral was sent, this time to the OT department.
The NHS have been great to us over the years, so I am certainly not going to knock it, in fact I think its one thing that every single British person should feel great pride in. However I do feel like my life is sometimes just a series of waiting for referrals and appointments, wait, wait, and wait for it.....
His handwriting did and still does look like a spider has run across the page with a bad case of diarrhoea, and he hated football, but other than that he seemed ok on the physical front. However once the SENCO had suggested that there may be an issue I decided to not delay, and got an appointment with both the school nurse and the GP. They listened and were both more than happy to make the referral for us.
As these things tend to go, we could not see an OT directly, but instead had to have him assessed by a specialist paediatrician first. After several months of waiting appointment day came, and we merrily headed off to the hospital expecting it to be a bit of a waste of our time.
The doctor was great and did a very comprehensive assessment of him. It very quickly became apparent that he just could not do certain physical tasks. For a while I felt guilty taht we had not spotted this earleir, but he is so good as hiding his issues, and who asks there kids to stand on one leg and then gets the stop watch out to time how long they can do it for. We are just normal parents doing our best, and I think it was forgivable that we were in a state of ignorant bliss about his coordination problem.
Anyway after a ton of questions and more tests she concluded that he was about 3 years behing with his gross and fine motor skills, so yet another referral was sent, this time to the OT department.
The NHS have been great to us over the years, so I am certainly not going to knock it, in fact I think its one thing that every single British person should feel great pride in. However I do feel like my life is sometimes just a series of waiting for referrals and appointments, wait, wait, and wait for it.....
Behavioural optometrist
We were told by the SENCO that the Behavioural optometrist may be able to help, can these professionals make their titles sound anymore confusing!
http://www.babo.co.uk/what-is-behavioural-optometry/
Apparently its possible to get an appointment at the local hospital to see a Behav Optometrist, but the waits can go on forever. So luckily the SENCO knew a lovely lady who was able to see us, and who worked as a behavioural optometrist at a relatively local opticians.
I got the idea that she looked at how the eyes worked, but beyond that I didnt have a clue ( as usual).
She asked a ton of questions and spent a long time looking at how his eyes worked. The main conclusions were that he might benefit from tinted glasses, that his eyes were hugely light sensitive, and that they didnt track the words properly.
As a stop gap before getting blue glasses, she suggested using sunglasses, and tinted over lays. We tried the overlays for a while but they didnt seem to help much, however the sunglasses did seem to help a little. We were very lucky that the school were understanding and happily approved him wearing the shades during lessons.
We were given some worksheets to help him with his tracking and it was also suggested that we give him a ruler to underline the row he is on, and to lessen the amount for him to look at. The ruler does seem to help, but he is not great at using it.
We are due to go back for another appointment to see if anything has changed, as soon as I get my finger out and book one.
http://www.babo.co.uk/what-is-behavioural-optometry/
Apparently its possible to get an appointment at the local hospital to see a Behav Optometrist, but the waits can go on forever. So luckily the SENCO knew a lovely lady who was able to see us, and who worked as a behavioural optometrist at a relatively local opticians.
I got the idea that she looked at how the eyes worked, but beyond that I didnt have a clue ( as usual).
She asked a ton of questions and spent a long time looking at how his eyes worked. The main conclusions were that he might benefit from tinted glasses, that his eyes were hugely light sensitive, and that they didnt track the words properly.
As a stop gap before getting blue glasses, she suggested using sunglasses, and tinted over lays. We tried the overlays for a while but they didnt seem to help much, however the sunglasses did seem to help a little. We were very lucky that the school were understanding and happily approved him wearing the shades during lessons.
We were given some worksheets to help him with his tracking and it was also suggested that we give him a ruler to underline the row he is on, and to lessen the amount for him to look at. The ruler does seem to help, but he is not great at using it.
We are due to go back for another appointment to see if anything has changed, as soon as I get my finger out and book one.
Omega 3
http://www.dyslexic.org.uk/aboutdyslexia11.htm
We started Aidan on an Omega 3 supplement nearly a year before his move to Junior school, and didnt notice any obvious difference.
Then the SENCO suggested that we might try a supplement with a higer dose of Omega 3. We followed the suggestion, and waited. Everyone seems to think that it usually takes over 6 months for the supplements to have their full impact.
I have always wondered about this one, as Aidan loves fish, and we have always had fresh fish atleast once a week, alongside a very varied and healthy diet.
However I am willing to give anything a go, although it would be much nicer if the supplements were free on prescription, rather than having to come out of our wallet.
It was later at the DRT that Dr Sue gave us the more specific guidelines about the high dose that was more likely to make a difference. He has been on these for a while, and I still would not like to say if they have made any difference. However we are covering all our bases and continuing to give him his daily dose.
He currently had a liquid Omega 3 supplement from Boots which he likes the taste of, and which he only needs to take 5 ml of per day to meet the requirements set out at the DRT.
We started Aidan on an Omega 3 supplement nearly a year before his move to Junior school, and didnt notice any obvious difference.
Then the SENCO suggested that we might try a supplement with a higer dose of Omega 3. We followed the suggestion, and waited. Everyone seems to think that it usually takes over 6 months for the supplements to have their full impact.
I have always wondered about this one, as Aidan loves fish, and we have always had fresh fish atleast once a week, alongside a very varied and healthy diet.
However I am willing to give anything a go, although it would be much nicer if the supplements were free on prescription, rather than having to come out of our wallet.
It was later at the DRT that Dr Sue gave us the more specific guidelines about the high dose that was more likely to make a difference. He has been on these for a while, and I still would not like to say if they have made any difference. However we are covering all our bases and continuing to give him his daily dose.
He currently had a liquid Omega 3 supplement from Boots which he likes the taste of, and which he only needs to take 5 ml of per day to meet the requirements set out at the DRT.
Diagnosis - year 3
So he started in Year 3 at Junior school and it was pretty obvious that he was not like his peers. However I was still holding on to the hope that it might one day all just start to click.
Sadly that click never happened, and so I headed for a meeting with the school SENCO. She had assessed him, and what she had found pointed very strongly towards a dyslexia diagnosis. So after a long chat and lots of questions, she finally delivered the fateful blow that she was officially diagnosing him as dyslexic.
This was certainly not a shock, but I don't think its ever nice to hear those words. Especially when you have no idea what it really means and how you can actually help your child.
Luckily this was also the year that Aidan had an outstanding teacher, she had a passion for supporting children that have special needs, and its very much thanks to her that he made progress during this year.
Jumping forward to now...
We have a meeting with Aidan's SENCO tomorrow, so it will be very interesting to see how proactive she may be this time.
Thursday 6 September 2012
Into yr R, and a moan about them starting school so early
I don't object to children being in childcare, and its positively good for them to be away from their families for portions of the day when they are 4 or 5. It just seems silly to be formally educating them and expecting so much from them at such a young age.
What happened to them being children, having fun and learning those all important social skills.
Some kids may be ready to start formal learning at this age, but in my experience the majority could do with another year or two under an early years type structure, where they get to learn what they want to, when they feel ready, and they learn this through play.
Anyway Aidan started Year R, and loved the play part, the socialialising bit, and the new sense of independence. This all sadly came with a push to learn his phonics.
It was clear from very early on that he was'nt getting on with his phonics and reading quite as well as the other kids his age. I completely understand that 5 years ago it was very difficult to diagnose dyslexia at such a young age, but it seemed to be assumed that he just needed pushing, and would catch up at some point.
His school do a reading scheme, and when he struggled the main advice was to put him back a few books, which just led to him being bored and even more frustrated. For a mellow boy its amazing to see the Jekyl and Hyde type change that happens in the house when he is asked to do homework.
This daily struggle continued on throughout infant school. Aidan is a very bright boy, and he managed to hide alot of his struggles for a long time.
Fast forward to junior school year 3..........
What happened to them being children, having fun and learning those all important social skills.
Some kids may be ready to start formal learning at this age, but in my experience the majority could do with another year or two under an early years type structure, where they get to learn what they want to, when they feel ready, and they learn this through play.
Anyway Aidan started Year R, and loved the play part, the socialialising bit, and the new sense of independence. This all sadly came with a push to learn his phonics.
It was clear from very early on that he was'nt getting on with his phonics and reading quite as well as the other kids his age. I completely understand that 5 years ago it was very difficult to diagnose dyslexia at such a young age, but it seemed to be assumed that he just needed pushing, and would catch up at some point.
His school do a reading scheme, and when he struggled the main advice was to put him back a few books, which just led to him being bored and even more frustrated. For a mellow boy its amazing to see the Jekyl and Hyde type change that happens in the house when he is asked to do homework.
This daily struggle continued on throughout infant school. Aidan is a very bright boy, and he managed to hide alot of his struggles for a long time.
Fast forward to junior school year 3..........
Monday 3 September 2012
In the beginning...
Aidan was born in 2003 during a hot Summer, but fortunatley just before a major heat wave hit the country.
He was, and is the cutest little fella ( and I am not biased). He may not be perfect, but he has the kindest heart of anyone ever.
As a baby he was a demanding little man, loving cuddles, and not sleeping through for the first night until after his second birthday.
However he had constant ear infections from about 6 months, which involved huge amounts of puss seeping out of his head every hour or pretty much everyday, so who can blame him for not sleeping.
At 18 months he needed an adenoidectomy and grommets. One of the worst moments of my life was holding him in the anaesthetic room, first when they tried to find a vein, and then when they gave up and forced the mask over his face.
The grommets did very little to help, and it was only after 2 adult doses of a very strong antibiotic ( that left him rough rough rough), was the ongoing infection finally beaten.
At the 2 year check the health visitor was concerned about his speech, but as he had only just had his ears sorted I was not suprised that he was playing catch up.
He was an active toddler and young child, constantly sticking his nose into everything, and obsessed with eating anything that didnt move.
Sitting still was a definite no go area, and he had no interest in using pens or anything that involved letters or numbers.
He was one of the younger ones when he started school, but we had no concerns, as he seemed so bright, and made friends without even trying.
So at age 4 off he headed into school year R.......
He was, and is the cutest little fella ( and I am not biased). He may not be perfect, but he has the kindest heart of anyone ever.
As a baby he was a demanding little man, loving cuddles, and not sleeping through for the first night until after his second birthday.
However he had constant ear infections from about 6 months, which involved huge amounts of puss seeping out of his head every hour or pretty much everyday, so who can blame him for not sleeping.
At 18 months he needed an adenoidectomy and grommets. One of the worst moments of my life was holding him in the anaesthetic room, first when they tried to find a vein, and then when they gave up and forced the mask over his face.
The grommets did very little to help, and it was only after 2 adult doses of a very strong antibiotic ( that left him rough rough rough), was the ongoing infection finally beaten.
At the 2 year check the health visitor was concerned about his speech, but as he had only just had his ears sorted I was not suprised that he was playing catch up.
He was an active toddler and young child, constantly sticking his nose into everything, and obsessed with eating anything that didnt move.
Sitting still was a definite no go area, and he had no interest in using pens or anything that involved letters or numbers.
He was one of the younger ones when he started school, but we had no concerns, as he seemed so bright, and made friends without even trying.
So at age 4 off he headed into school year R.......
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