This year we get to experience “Team Teaching”

This school year, (which starts next week!!!), I will have all three children in the local public schools!!!  My 3, almost 4 year old son, is starting his second year of “preschool disabled” for his oral motor dyspraxia (layman terms, he has difficulty forming the words with his mouth).  My 5, almost 6 year old daughter, starts kindergarten!!!  And, Amy starts the fourth grade, at a new school, and in a new classroom setting for her.

Amy and the little dude, are both going to be in a Team Teaching classroom.  That means, that there is a general ed teacher and a special ed teacher in the class at all times, all day long!  (in little dude’s class, the teachers are actually both special ed, but, one will be considered gen ed).  Anyway, since we had Amy diagnosed earlier this year, she was pulled out of class during language literacy arts (or reading), for 44 minutes a day.  There was nothing bad about this, as she really progressed, during that one on one time, and was taught utilizing an Orton Gillingham based method of teaching reading.  She is now able to read first and second grade level books on her own.  So, when we sat down during her end of the year IEP meeting, I brought up if placing her in the Team Teaching class would be beneficial.  I felt it would be, since all the other parts of the school day require reading, and she isn’t a strong reader and struggles, and I thought, it would be perfect to have that person available to her all day long.  Well, I thought that the team (notice, I feel out of the team, as they never listen to my suggestions) threw that idea out, and suggested placing a special ed teacher in with her only during the 88 minutes of Language Literacy Arts, daily, and then allow her to muddle through the rest of the day.  Ok, this really didn’t make much sense to me, but, I was just happy that they were giving her services, and if a problem arose during the year, I could definitely fight for more assistance in the classroom.

Well, when the class lists came out last week, I immediately came home and pulled up the teachers web site.  All our teachers have an e-board.  Well, I noticed that there was also a welcome note from Amy’s special ed teacher from the end of 3rd grade, and started to put 2 and 2 together, and realized that she WAS placed in the team teaching class!!!  I know, that CST should have told me their decision, and I plan on calling them and also changing her case worker, as she is nasty and has poor communication skills with all the parents that I have spoken to, including me.  I spoke to this Special Ed teacher, and yes, I was so happy to find out that Amy will have access to special education ALL DAY LONG!!!!  She is one of 7 students that this teacher has, and I am thrilled!  I have been trying to get her into that Team Teaching class since first grade, after realizing her struggles in kindergarten, but, because she needed other assistance that wasn’t generally provided in that class, she was never placed in there, until this year.  So, I am really hoping for some wonderful improvements this year. 

AND THIS IS THE FIRST YEAR, SINCE KINDERGARTEN THAT AMY IS EXCITED TO GO TO SCHOOL!  Yes, she is almost 10, and is starting to worry more about what to wear, she wants her hair perfect, and cannot stop talking about going to school.  I am just so relieved that she is finally interested in the entire school thing, as she knows that she won’t be lost anymore, or very little. 

As for Little Dude, well, this is his “PRE K” year, and even though he is 2 years younger than his sister, he technically could go to kindy next year.  I don’t see him going to kindy, but, then again, it is at the same school he goes to now, and I can always have him do kindy 2x, right?  He will most definitely need speech for a couple more years anyway, so, why not?  And, him being in a TT class with up to 16 students only, is only going to prepare him more, and they know the curriculum, and what the kids need to know for kindy.  So, this is an exciting year for him, too!

My kindergartner was fortunate enough to get a very animated, energetic and loving teacher.  I have known her teacher for 5 years, and am absolutely thrilled that she is in this class.  She is reading some sight words, and knows her letters and their sounds and numbers.  She can count over 100 and is doing simple addition and subtraction.  I know that she will be challenged this year, and if there were a gifted and talented program in our school, she would probably be there.  But, I know that they use small group instruction for reading and this year, they are doing so for math, too, and she will be able to work at a faster pace if need be. 

So, Team Teaching and a new school year here we come!  I hope it is as successful as I am hoping it to be!

Our summer library trips

I have been doing everything possible to encourage Amy to want to read, this summer.  She is finally able to read a beginner reading- maybe up to second grade level book.  She has been spending alot of time in the American Girl Doll section, and finds those books easy to read.  So, I thought, when I was in second grade, I inhaled the entire “Little House” series.  So, we got the first book, and it was too hard for her.

It is trial and error, finding something, that doesn’t look like a “baby” book, one that has chapters, and is “cool” enough for a soon to be 4th grader to read.  There are only so many AG Doll books.  I hope that her next teacher can help us find something.  We also tried the Hank Zipster series.  These are books written by Henry Winkler (aka “the Fonz”), and based on his reading struggles in school.  (he is dyslexic)  Too hard.  I thought that it would be something that she could relate to.  We do have books that I bought, and if we read them together, we can both help her through it.  They are “Lily and the Mixed Up Letters”, “Thank you Mr. Falker” and a book for kids, about a kid “It’s called Dyslexia”.  Yes, I want Amy to really understand that she has been given this gift, that she is smart, and that her brain is special.  I want her to know, that she will be able to read more easily, but, it is going to be a lot of work to get there.

It used to make me sad.  I was reading on my second day in kindergarten.  On my first day, I saw that 2 or 3 girls could already read, and I wanted to be able to read.  I went home, and told my mom, an elementary teacher, that I wanted to read just like those girls.  She sat down with me, and we opened up the infamous “Dick and Jane” books, and I was off and reading almost immediately.  I have to put some thanks out to Sesame Street- seriously, I am first generation Sesame Street, and I am proud to say, I am a mere 6 months older than that show!  I learned all my letters, their sounds and numbers and how to count watching Cookie, Bert, Ernie, Big Birt, Oscar and the gang.  We didn’t have Elmo, we had Mr. Hooper!  So, all tv isn’t bad!  But, I was upset, when my own daughter, couldn’t even understand the concept of letters and numbers, at the age of 5, while watching Sesame Street with me.  Even back then, I knew that this was a learning disability.

Our middle child, is entering Kindergarten this year.  She is doing fantastically, with her numbers, and letters, even adding 1 and 2 to numbers.  She can count way over 100.  (she is going to be bored stiff this year, this is all first grade work!)  She is even starting to read.  She will pick out certain words, in a sign or an ad and tell me that one word.  For example, and Ad can say:  Good Enough for you, but, made for your dog.  she will point out and say dog.  It just blows my mind, that she is doing this, and we really haven’t sat down, and worked on reading.  (she kind of refuses- but, I am not worried, she will be reading very soon)  She just knows!  She asks how to spell things, and writed them down.  I missed all of this with her sister.  We didn’t go through this seek and discover phase of learning.  It was always a struggle, a brick wall was always in our path.

When we get books out, my kindergartner to be, gets the same series as her sister, the AG Doll books, and will sit, and look at that one picture on the page, and then she pretends to read.  She really isn’t, but, she sits there and pretends to!  It is very cute!  I suspect that by December, she will be actually trying to read those words, and not just pretend. 

I know that you shouldn’t sit and compare one child to another.   I hope I am not really doing that, I hope that I am pointing out to the differences, that I have seen.  I am also super relieved, that I won’t have to fight the school to get special ed services for this one.  Though, we don’t have a gifted and talented program, I am hoping that the reading system that they use, will allow her to be challenged and learn at her pace, and not be slowed down by her peers.  I hope that she is challenged in Math, I do know that she will have to work on pace with her peers, there…I hope that her teachers realize her potential, and offer her chances to challenge herself, and not to be bored.  So, now, I am on the opposite end of the spectrum!  I will know by Friday of this week, whom they both have for school (the class lists come out that day).  I will then be able to contact her kindergarten teacher and ask her to challenge her. 

Amy’s summer special ed teacher, just told us on Thursday (her last day of summer school- oh, sorry ESY), that she took a position at another school.  She lives over 30 miles from our town, and I don’t blame her, with the travel time, and the cost of gas.  I was hoping she would be Amy’s teacher, as she knows her well, now.  I hope that they get someone in there, that is certified in the Linda MoodBell Lips program that Amy has been learning.  She is doing well with this method, and I don’t want to change things around, and she needs to have someone who is CERTIFIED teaching it.  So, I will be on top of that, as the new school year approaches, too.