I have written before about feeling like she wasn't wanted in the classroom and feeling like I was going to throw up every time I drove to the school to pick her up. I don't have those feelings anymore. I DON'T HAVE THOSE FEELINGS ANYMORE!!!! Amazing.
In fact, just this week I asked her teacher if she felt like this was a good fit and without missing a beat, she said, "Yes! I love having {bird} in my class!" How fabulous. There are 6 kids in the class, one teacher and two paras. Bird spends a lot of time in the general ed class doing the calendar and talking about the daily schedule, as well as reading and science. She also goes to a gym, art, and music class with them. Of course, the big difference is that in the ASD program, kids mainstream with support and the Mild CI kids went on their own (because they could). Since Bird couldn't mainstream alone, it was a huge barrier to her success in that environment. Now, it's alllllll happening!!!
Yes, there have been a few accidents at school. Yes, she gets overwhelmed and shy when typically developing peers call her name and say hi. Yes, she's had to leave the general ed setting a time or two for not being able to sit and pay attention, following rules. Still, she feels way more comfortable in her skin than she did before. She likes going to school and she likes the other kids in her class. She likes the therapists and the teachers. She can tell that I feel so much better, too. This is a WIN all around.
Now, obviously the school year is almost over. But, she'll remain in this program and in this classroom next year. The groundwork is laid and she's comfortable in this building and in this setting. So, I'm really hoping that next year will be an awesome year for her. Of course I'll just obsess over that all summer long....
