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Post by Gillian on Apr 6, 2004 12:36:48 GMT -5
Well, another fiasco at school this morning with my 8 year old. He has been having lots of problems at school lately - melt downs, anger bursts. I am thinking he may have sensory integration disorder and am currently trying to get that looked into.
Anyway, the last week or so has been much better. He has really been working on trying to block out the background noise he finds so difficult and asking to go to the quiet room to work. All this is helping a lot. This morning was supposed to be a field trip to the local Art Museum. So, of course, we spend the morning chatting about how much fun that will be etc, etc. I drop him off at school - all smiles - an hour later the phone is ringing. He is in meltdown because they told him he wasn't going on the trip!!! They do not forewarn me or him of this. What do they think is going to happen? I pulled him out of school. I am so angry. What bonehead decided to tell him this minutes before they left??? I think they feared he was going to go into meltdown at the museum. I am waiting for a phone call from school to explain this screw up. The Principal assumed we knew. Well, we didn't. I had just been praising my son for using coping skills and getting his behaviour under control. He, no doubt, now thinks 'What's the point?'. I am sooooo mad. Aaaaaugh! Thank heaven there is only a few weeks of school left.
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Post by NativeLI on Apr 6, 2004 14:08:29 GMT -5
I wish I knew what I could say to you...My heart aches for what you and your son just went through. I honestly don't know how I would handle it.
Maybe you should take him out on your own for a reward for his good behavior the past week. tell him you guys will have a better time alone than with a whole class! Then scream at the boneheads at the school. They screwed this one up royally.
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Post by Gillian on Apr 6, 2004 16:13:54 GMT -5
Yes, I think I will. I feel like we've just been catapulted back to square one. Anyway, they phoned me back to say this was the Art Teacher's Field Trip (not his class teacher) and that she had told him he wasn't going (although they admit they didn't tell me). He say's she didn't tell him that. So, I am guessing that whatever she thinks she said definitely did not get through because he made no mention of it to me and she definitely messed up by not giving me a heads up on what's happening. Needless to say there is a MEETING coming up. Grrrrrrrr!
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Post by LurkNoMore on Apr 13, 2004 13:18:02 GMT -5
That is horrible...he must have felt awful being left out of a field trip that he was looking forward to. It breaks my heart that some teachers can be so cruel. The easiest thing would have been for them to contact you to see if you or his dad could chaperone... Is this one of the reasons you are thinking of homeschooling? Good luck!
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Post by Gillian on Apr 20, 2004 11:22:46 GMT -5
Yes it is. School is still not going well and we are now just counting down the days until school is over (a little over 4 weeks). I am in a total quandry as to what to do really. Hopefully over the summer I can get a handle on whether my son has the sensory integration disorder that I suspect. I never thought I would be wishing for the end of school so badly!
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Post by willoweezie on Apr 20, 2004 11:38:28 GMT -5
Gillian, I'm currently looking into SI problems as well... school has been a remarkable fiasco for us too. My daughter gets very easily frustrated and distracted in the classroom, and therefore has a hard time getting work done there. I'm trying to find out how to get her assessed (wither thru the school system or outside) and whether there are resources at school to help therapeutically if this is indeed part of her problem. I completely agree with all previous posts that pulling your son from the field trip was a horrible thing to do! What a crushing blow to a kid... If there were any way possible for me to homeschool, I think I'd consider it too. Good luck with getting thru the year! The end can't come soon enough for me either! I feel your pain!
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Post by Gillian on Apr 20, 2004 19:49:12 GMT -5
Well, today my son totally lost it at school. I mean 'nuclear meltdown'. Tomorrow he goes to the local Mental Health Dept. for a crisis evaluation. He's home now but very hyper. I don't know if he's ill in some way that we haven't picked up on; he has the sensory integration disorder and it's gone nuts; or there is some other problem. I'm at the end of my rope. I only hope the evaluation people tomorrow come up with something. It's all so weird because before Xmas he was this wonderful, bright cheery kid - now he's a total mess. In a way I hope I'm right about the sensory integration idea because if not, what is it? Today, of course, my husband left on a business trip - Aaaaaaaaugh! School, needless to say, is not happy!
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Post by LurkNoMore on Apr 20, 2004 21:56:45 GMT -5
I'm sorry to hear what you are going through!
Is your son on medication? If so, what kind? Has anything changed since b-4 Christmas?
Sorry to play "20 questions" but sometimes "talking" it all out gets some answers.
Good luck on the eval tomorrow...
Keep us posted.
I'll be thinking of you...
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Post by Gillian on Apr 21, 2004 15:32:06 GMT -5
Okay, we have had the 'crisis evaluation'. The person we saw was very nice and my son felt comfortable talking with her - which was great. The short version is that many different things are pushing his frustration button in the classroom. The classroom is not structured enough for him. They need to let him go to the Counselor whenever he asks (even if it is disruptive). He definitely has a sensory problem and maybe ADD aswell. I need to have a meeting with school to put this across. They suggested I keep him home for a couple of days and get some class work from school for him to do. This got a frosty reception from the Principal but I didn't offer an alternative so that was that. The WRAP person from school called and offered to accompany us to our next meeting with the therapist (next Tuesday) but I declined (much to her annoyance) as we already use the therapist with our older son.
So that's where we stand right now. Tomorrow I'm going to get him into our usual doctor just to rule out an illness we are not aware of. And on it goes. At least we are moving forward (albeit with the wrath of the school following us). They are so p'd with me. They think I am holding him at home in spite. Oh I don't care what they think anymore. Aaaaaaugh!
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