[tri-med] Feeling Good :-)

Sorry - I have been away from my e-mail for a couple of days, and really
wont get back to mail for another two or three so my apologies to all who
are waiting for things from me. (I really need to get this submission
finished!!)

But I did want to post some "good news" about Alex.
I never got to post Alex's report card last year but it was excellent all
things considered. He met all his academic goals and was working around the
middle of the class. I really cant ask for more.

This year his year is being split again. For those unacustomed to composite
classes, that means that there are too many students for the year to make a
single class so the government in their wisdom assign the school half a
teacher. Of course thats useless - so that when the school has two years
(grades) like that they take some of the kids from one year and some of the
kids from the other year and combine them. Remember our schools are MUCH
smaller than US schools - Alex's school caters for around 450 children from
kinder to high school (the first 7 years of school life)

At Alex's school this means they have a composite 1/2 class. Meaning (in
plain english) that half the class are children from year 1 and half the
children are from year 2. Usually they select the children that are
struggling from the higher year and the children that are doing really well
from the lower year so that theoretically they are working about the same
level though each year are supposed to be working on their own curriculum,
just in parallel.

My good news is that Alex isn't in the composite class!!! He is in the
straight year 2. For me thats great in that his teachers perceive him to be
working at an age appropriate level, but also, and perhaps more importantly
for me, they are basing his placement on academics not his medical issues.

Physically placing him in the composite class would have been easier on the
staff as that classroom is (well it can be) wheelchair accessible (for those
days when he needs his chair) and had more "space" for the aides to have a
separate area to tend to Alex. It would also have been a little closer to
the new clinic room that they are building (still hasn't happened yet) for
both Alex and Brandon (the little boy who has osteogenesis imperfecta, plus
a brain tumour and is g-tube dependent and has a porta cath).

This is sooooo soooo different to his kinder placement!!!! and its sooo
nice!!!! I will never, ever, ever forget that year and will ever pray that
we never have another year like it!!!

He will still be getting reading assistance, but only because of his high
risk and their acknowledgement that he is doing so well because of the input
he has gotten over the years from home. They want to take the pressure off
me with regards to that home input. He will also be getting 2 or 3 sessions
a week from the itinerent teacher for hearing (really she plays speech
pathologist), plus they have referred him to the "new" physical disability
therapy team for PT, OT and Speech!!!!! We will have to see how much they
will give him (we have had to go back to the CP component of the trisomy to
be eligible) but its so nice that the prinicpal told ME about it and
suggested it!!!!

His new teacher is scared (of course) but he has the same two teachers aides
as last year, with the same arrangement that they will job share the 10 day
working week. That means of course that I havent had to train anyone this
year (YEAH!!!) The application for an air conditioner has gone in, the
clinic is being built, and all appears well so far at school!!!!!! The only
downside is that one of his friends is not in his class this year, but on
the plus side one of his friends who wasn't in his class last year is this
year!!!

To whoever is in charge up there - thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!!! Keep your
fingers crossed that this year stays as good all year!!!!!!

Oh and one of Alex's aides (the one who has a son with muscular dystrophy)
is also starting an official Riding School for the Disabled in my area and
she has asked if Alex would sign up!!! (I think she also wants me on the
committee - but that I will have to think about, I have already taken on
another "job" this year). To date I have just been taking Alex to a local
stable and the guy who owns it just gives us a horse and handler and I do
the "therapy". Again it will be so nice not to have to play therapist in yet
another aspect of the masters life!!!

Soccer registration is this weekend, there is a new karate school opening
near me and the owner is a local football hero with a reputation for helping
out disability groups, so I may be able to get Alex in (need to check with
his cardiologist), plus I am thinking about swimming again........... I
think life will be busy this year - lets hope it stays positively busy with
no (ok - I'll hope for just little) crisis!!!!!!

A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a
song.
-- Chinese Proverb

Keep Looking for Rainbows!!!
Karen, Mum to Alex (7, T-18 mosaic)
Sydney, Australia
http://members.optushome.com.au/karens
http://www.trisomyonline.org


                  Building ___ooOOoo__ Rainbows
                       www.trisomyonline.org
                  Families Helping Families On-line

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