Labels

My oldest child has some special needs. We have known from the beginning that he would struggle in some areas. Almost from day one, we were aware that ADHD was a probability... Then we learned more about his OCD... A couple of years later we started learning about frontal lobe problems...

Each step of the way, we have had testing. We have tried to research our hearts out and make sure that we could find out everything we could about each issue. We have had more conferences with teachers than I could care to count... I have tried to be as proactive as possible.

Two weeks ago, I met a teacher from a local school. She showed interest in my kid... Asked a lot of questions... Had ideas to help him and make sure that he had a future... Having never met my oldest, she asked if he had Aspergers Syndrome... Had never thought of this diagnosis

I immediately hit the computer and started searching and reading. I contacted both the psychiatrist and the psychologist... I requested more testing and meetings.

The more we read and the more we talk about it, this random meeting with a complete stranger is changing our lives.

This fall, my oldest will change schools. He has attended the same school for six years... He is scheduled to graduate in two years...

But

This lovely lady has offered to help my kid

It has taken a few weeks to warm up to the idea, but now my kid is happy about the change. We are going to move to a vocational track and get him a trade... This is going to give us hope and a chance for a great future!

So I am writing this to try to implore you to not be scared of labels... We may not always like them, but if used correctly they can help. My son's new label is going to help us get him the assistance that he needs. His label will ensure that he will get federal assistance with getting a job, keeping a job, and learning to budget his paychecks and such.

Labels can be blessings

life will change for her...

"there it is, Mom... there is the place where my life will change..."

 

I told you that things were changing... Well, on Thursday morning, I took my two teens to tour a local public highschool... I had one child that was so excited, and the other child was nervous.

 

My girl has wanted to leave her charter school for awhile. She wants a larger scene with more music and more opportunities. She wants to move away from the clicks that have defined her life for five years and move into a more diverse group of people.... She understands that it will be different. She know there will still be clicks - but when you have had the same 100 kids in your class for five years, she is ready for a "different" set. She seems to grasp the idea that 1800 kids in her new high school will be very different than the 400 that she was headed towards...

 

During our tour, we visited the media center. She was able to go into the office and see the student services area. She toured the auditorium. We saw the computer classrooms and the cafeteria... but near the end of the tour, we headed down a hall that I recognized as the "music area". We could hear the dance class leaping around and the band warming up... My girl saw the chorus room and ran to the window...

 

"there it is, Mom... there is the place where my life will change"

 

 

I am making the right choice for my kid...

I pray that she finds her niche quickly and as painlessly as possible....

changes

Six years ago we started a new journey... We chose to send our oldest child to a charter school. It was the first year that the school was open. We had several people suggest that we wait to see how the school preformed - but we knew that we could always leave, yet it was going to be very difficult to get in to the school. He was number 37 on the waiting list... and just a week before the school opened, he got in. He started 5th grade there, and one year later, our daughter started 4th grade there too.

The oldest is in the high school building now, the middle is enjoying her final year of middle school there, and the youngest is presently in 1st grade in the elementary building.

We do not have huge problems with the school. The teachers are well educated. Our special education teachers who help our oldest child, have been above average at almost every turn.

Yet, I am faced with the fact that as a parent I need to send my children to the school that will BEST meet their individual needs... If this means that I am in car line for 1.5 hours like I am right now, then I will do it. Three different schools and three different calendars would be hard, but I will do it.

My middle child wants to sing and perform. She wants a strong nucleus of friendships that will help her enjoy all the moments of high school. She seems to desire to have a lot of the similar experiences that I shared in high school. I want these for her too! So, she will be returning to public school....

My youngest enjoys his charter school but asked me last week, "Mom, when will I go back to MY school?" It cracked me up - too sweet. He loved his teachers and his friends. He was comfortable there. He will succeed in a large setting. He desires to learn as much as someone can offer him. He wants to rule the world one day, or at least the zoo that he is planning to start in Durham County... So, we have applied for him to return to his year-round school... we will find out in two weeks if he will be able to go there.

Then the oldest...

He does not want to leave his school. He has about three friends there. He is barely passing, but is passing all of his classes. He feels safe with less than 400 students in the entire building. He has three resource teachers who are fighting for him.

 

but

 

He is in a school that is solely college bound. There is nothing in place to help a student who needs vocational training or support finding a job and getting set up with his future....

 

This past Tuesday night, I had an accidental meeting with a wonderful teacher. I went to an open house to learn about the opportunities for my daughter... yet I found a "exceptional children's coordinator" standing at a table with no one speaking to her... after a couple of questions, I had a strong hope for the future and what all was available for my oldest son....

 

So, he may change schools too....

 

stay tuned - big changes are coming to the Subletts... two people who have been Baptist forever are attending and enjoying a Methodist church... three children who attend a small charter school are considering large public schools as a better choice for them...

 

All my life I have struggled with change. I like the "same-o same-o" all of the time. I order the same thing every time at most restaurants. I own clothes for more than ten years at a time. I drive cars until they die. I live across the street from where I was raised, so I have lived in the same neighborhood for almost 38 years....

 

But I am learning that change can be great too...

 

Lord, lead us where YOU would have us to be - guide us and help us make things work for our children in order to provide them with the best foot toward their future...

 

amen