Struggling with Finding Solutions for My Kiddo with Aspergers
By mommy of many™. Filed in Aspergers, children, family life, frustrating, kids, mom, parenting, schooling |Tags: aspergers, children, Doing the Dance of the Children, family life, kids, mom, Mommy of Many, mommyofmany, MommyofMany.com
Every time I’ve sat down to write about a zillion different topics, my mind wanders to the same one-Max. Max, my brilliant, stubborn, imaginative, frustrating, lil guy who’s locked in a complicated web of ideas, thoughts, outbursts, social struggles, compassion and Aspergers. When he puts his mind to something, amazing things happen and when he’s got his mind locked against something, NOTHING happens. He does best when he’s busy and his mind is working hard on solving problems. But you have to be very careful of how things are presented to him. If he gets an inkling that you’re asking anything extra of him, he will completely shut down and this boy is STUBBORN! But, if something extra is presented as a competition, he’s on it! Oh the games!
I’m frustrated right now because his outbursts are interrupting classroom time, but this is a tough thing to define. There’s no IEP for Max’s “disorder”. He went through the GATE testing, but no GATE classes are available to him.
Just a mommy’s rantings over the frustration of wanting your child to have the best schooling experience possible-one that fits what they need, where they make friends and participate appropriately and are guided where needed and challenged accordingly.
~sigh~
Now that I’m mostly settled in the new house and I know what to expect of my routine, it’s time to seek out what’s going to benefit Max socially and educationally. Sometimes parenting hurts my head.
Doing the Dance of the Children and Looking for the Right Music~
Thursday, September 15th 2011 at 2:47 pm |
Remind me to tell you about Destination Imagination.
Friday, September 16th 2011 at 1:35 am |
Sensory Integration Dysfunction. Look it up on google. Find a local therapist, on OT. If you cannot find one there, the one here in Great Falls studied Mary Kawar (google her too). She is brilliant. Come visit me and get an eval. I am serious. It will be the best thing you ever did. She/he will help you figure out what the outbursts are about. Trust me. (When I cried myself to sleep everynight over Sean’s shenanigans, Mary kawar helped us get our son back.)
For a lot of kids on the autistic spectrum (Aspergers is the high functioning end) their senses are not experienced like ours. They over or under react to everything, It is hard for them to get past it when they feel out of whack.
Friday, September 16th 2011 at 9:36 pm |
Since I read this post yesterday a reoccurring thought of mine is,:”Why doesn’t Max have an IEP? Or a 504 Plan?”
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act Max is entitled to a free and appropriate education from birth until he is 21 years old. I believe Asperger’s is a recognized disability. So, if an IEP is not appropriate, than my guess is that a 504 Plan certainly is. And.. if he’s having outbursts at school,a team will be created consisting of YOU AND teachers who are familiar with Asperger’s will design plans and behavior modifications specific for Max, his teacher and fellow classmates.
There is so much more to write about IEP’s/504′s but it’d be crazy long.. so if you’d like, Let’s TALK!
Friday, September 16th 2011 at 9:41 pm |
I misspoke/typed! It’s not the A.D.A… it’s the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act which provides that a free and appropriate education from birth to 21 is an entitlement for people who are disabled.