The day my son started kindergartden I had an eerie feeling that this was going to be a VERY trying year. He had some issues in Pre-K with not wanting to sit still, and wandering off to centers during circle time, but I knew that the beast that was public school, was not going to tolerate such freedom. I was scared for him. I was scared for myself. But I had hope that with some direction, discipline, and love it would all work out. I had NO idea what kind of ride I was in for.

It all started about the second week of school. I sent an email to my son’s teachers to give them a heads up and saying hey, my son doesn’t take to change well and may take longer than the average child to adjust. I relayed the fact that he went from getting an hour of recess a day to fifteen minutes, and that he went from being able to nap an hour a day to no nap at all. I also wanted to open the door of communication; to let the teachers know that me and his father were here for them and would support them in any way we could. I was hoping that email would be enough to set the stage for understanding, but I think I am the one who failed to understand.  I don’t think I realized that sometimes teachers are overwhelmed, underpaid, frustrated, and some even repressed.  That some teachers just don’t have time or room for understanding.

To shorten the story, my son had LOTS of issues starting out.  Telling the teacher no, talking over her during story time, rolling around on the floor, kicking chairs, wrestling with his friends (a little too rough I might add), doing headstands, flips, cartwheels, playing with the water in the bathroom, playing with his food at lunch, and so on and so on.  I can only imagine the frustration his teacher must have been feeling.   I was devastated and embarrassed.  How could the little boy I love so much, cause so much chaos?  Something wasn’t right and I knew it.  My instinct told me…. something isn’t right.  Over the years I have learned NOT to ignore that voice of reason.

I hadn’t heard of SPD before, but I was talking to a friend of mine and told her what was going on with my little man.  She asked me if I had ever looked into the possibility of SPD and of course I had no clue what it was.  She told me to look it up and really consider having him evaluated.  So, I requested an evaluation through the school.  Then, it was confirmed.  My son, was a definite positive for SPD.  Okay. Now what? …continue reading

My son lives in the gap. You know this place — the one where the child’s issues are significant enough to impact their life (and yours!) but not significant enough to qualify for an IEP. As Molly wrote about in Duckery, these are the children that look like ducks to the casual observer but are really geese wearing duck feathers.

Hubby and I have been working with our son since before his first birthday to help him manage his particular sensory challenges. He was getting a reputation at daycare as a biter at 9 months of age. We bought him a chew stick and began feeding him apricots and prunes. The child LOVED these chewy items. He also loved crunchy carrots, which we have unfortunately had to eliminate due to an allergy. He struggled to fall asleep in his classroom – too much noise and way too bright. This was made worse by the fact that he was not on a regular sleep schedule at home either. At daycare, he loved playing with another boy who was a year older than him.  My son’s little 9 month old hands would quite literally reach out and pull this boy on top of him. After about 30 seconds the boy would sit back up, only to be pulled back on top by my son. This action would be repeated over and over again. …continue reading