Re: HELP! School problems again...long

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

We have been in a very similiar situation. Could you possibly spend a day in the classroom "observing"? That is basically what I did. I did not want to tell on the person who had given me the information (I certainly would not want to hinder any more information coming my way) so I spent a day in the classroom(which was not very pleasant, as the teacher was not thrilled that I was there). I asked as many questions as I could possibly ask to "extract" the information that I had been told without anyone knowing I already knew the answers. This is much easier than you might think. We only had to do this one year as we have been blessed with wonderful teachers ever since. But with that one visit to the classroom, I was able to find out exactly what was going on. I am not sure if that helps any or not but there is hope....we had only the one teacher with a problem but I have found most are truly wonderful!

Heidi

[Guest guest]

Hi again ,

I also thought of that I would want to know the behaviors because when J.D. was rested on the weekends, we would work with him with coping skills because when he is too tired and I am sure Miranda is probably the same way, there is no reasoning with him. Our biggest problem in high school was when J.D. was learning coping skills and to recognize his melt down before he got to the point where he could could not realize he was too tired, the teachers would go by their judgment call and not listen to him. I tell them that I am his mom and I cannot always tell just be looking at him.

Good luck.

Darlene

[Guest guest]

Hi again ,

I also thought of that I would want to know the behaviors because when J.D. was rested on the weekends, we would work with him with coping skills because when he is too tired and I am sure Miranda is probably the same way, there is no reasoning with him. Our biggest problem in high school was when J.D. was learning coping skills and to recognize his melt down before he got to the point where he could could not realize he was too tired, the teachers would go by their judgment call and not listen to him. I tell them that I am his mom and I cannot always tell just be looking at him.

Good luck.

Darlene

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I'm so sorry you and Miranda are going through this. Been there, done

that...and it was miserable.

You said you'd love for her to be out of this teacher's class, but there

isn't any alternative. What about the regular classroom? I know you

said they are working beyond her level in there, but if she has a

one-on-one aide (does she?) the aide should be able to adapt things to

her level and help her, with advice from a special ed consulting teacher.

Shoot, even if the academics are not on her level, wouldn't she get more

out of it than standing against the wall?!

Just a thought. Hope you can come up with a solution.

-- Mom to:

Emilie (16), mito--complex IV, cp, ld

Kaitlin (16), cp, asthma, a few autonomic symptoms

Ian (20) migraines

....and wife to Tim, who has a heart of gold

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I'm so sorry you and Miranda are going through this. Been there, done

that...and it was miserable.

You said you'd love for her to be out of this teacher's class, but there

isn't any alternative. What about the regular classroom? I know you

said they are working beyond her level in there, but if she has a

one-on-one aide (does she?) the aide should be able to adapt things to

her level and help her, with advice from a special ed consulting teacher.

Shoot, even if the academics are not on her level, wouldn't she get more

out of it than standing against the wall?!

Just a thought. Hope you can come up with a solution.

-- Mom to:

Emilie (16), mito--complex IV, cp, ld

Kaitlin (16), cp, asthma, a few autonomic symptoms

Ian (20) migraines

....and wife to Tim, who has a heart of gold

[Guest guest]

,

If you have an IEP, and I hope you do, then your child should have a special ed teacher/case worker that oversees her IEP. I would ask the aide to report to the sp. ed. teacher the same things she has told you and let the special ed teacher speak with the regular ed teacher.

If you don't have an IEP, call for one. In the meantime you should speak with the aide again and let her know you will need to speak to the teacher. I understand you don't want to cut off a source of information, but you need to address this. Perhaps you could go in and talk to the teacher on the ruse of wanting to know how it is all going, and at this time you could give her written literature about mito. Perhaps she needs more information and will listen, let's hope.

If the reg. ed teacher continues to see everything as behavioural, speak to the principal. Perhaps you could change teachers.

cara

HELP! School problems again...long

Can anything just be easy??? We are back on the school battle. I had a conversation with Miranda school Aide/Nurse last night. She was very upset to talk to me about the things she did. First of all the teacher made it clear to her that this was between her and the the Aide, that I 'need not be involved'. ( that's where the fuming on my part began!)

I guess what started all this was the fact on Friday Miranda was having a very difficult time being agreeable getting her into the school. On regular days she goes from 9am to 1pm and on days when she has specials(gym, art, music) she goes in at 11 and stays till 3:30. Friday was a specials day. I hate to always blame Miranda's behavior on health but I truly feel 90% of the time it is the cause. Miranda had been sneezing a coughing a bit more than usual and she just kept saying she was not going to school. I persisted in telling her she was because once she is there she is usually okay. I have made it clear that if she were to continue to have problems, I would be called and come and get her.

So, trying to make a long story short as possible, Miranda was late getting to class on Friday due to the fact she was fussing and crying. Her nurse was very helpful in getting her settled and the school social worker saw there was a problem and stepped in also.

Another thing that has been going on is that Miranda is having trouble staying focused on her work. When she starts getting to distracted the nurse will leave the room with her and walk down the hall with her and then come back to the room. She has said that this has been a big help in getting her 'back on task'. Needless to say, the teacher is also fuming about this saying Miranda just needs to stick with it and get over it. She feels Miranda is getting to much special attention and she really does not even see there being a medical issue! She now feels they should start using a behavior chart with Miranda for how she behaves when coming into school. If Miranda were to have a 'bad day' and fuss when coming in, she would have to stand at the wall for recess. ( and we are supposed to be watching for things that would add to her fatigue??!!) Most times Miranda just wants to stay in for recess anyway but I flat out REFUSE to make her stand by a wall. I should also add, Miranda is honestly a very quiet kid on almost all occasions. She does not have any more behvaioral issues than the next 6 year old!

Now, a bit of back ground on the teacher. She is new to doing learning support class. She previously worked with kids with behavioral issues, So I see her wanting to pull this into it as the blame. She admitted she has NO experience with medical needy kids. ( Miranda has confirmed complex V, completely G-tube fed, seizures. chronic lactic acidosis, Dev delays and learning problems, ect...)

So finally, here is my question. How do I deal with all this when the aide was told this was something that I was not supposed to be involved in without getting her in trouble?This teacher is very controlling and unpleasant. She makes it VERY clear she is the boss! I am at my wits ends here with this woman and I really don't know what to do anymore. Miranda is only 6 years old and this is her first year in school ( learning support Kdg) There really is no other class to place her in unless we would put her in a class with much lower functioning kids, and I don't think that would be good for her. I desperately want her to learn and excel in school. What do I do???

Letters By Anita____________________________________________________ IncrediMail - Email has finally evolved - Click Here Please contact mito-owner with any problems or questions.

[Guest guest]

Miranda does have an IEP. She is in a learning Support class. It's the learning support teacher that is giving me such much trouble! She does not spend much time with her regular assigned kindergarten class, as everything they do is to advanced for her. She has this class mainly to go to circle time and specials.

I actually did print out, and highlighted important points, info for her. We had a MAJOR talk today and she was not at all happy with me. She admitted that Miranda is not having any bad behaviors ( hitting, biting, spitting, or whatever) but her gripe is Miranda is not staying with her work. I think this is an insane thing to say since she is in a LEARNING SUPPORT class! This is not over yet!

-- HELP! School problems again...long

Can anything just be easy??? We are back on the school battle. I had a conversation with Miranda school Aide/Nurse last night. She was very upset to talk to me about the things she did. First of all the teacher made it clear to her that this was between her and the the Aide, that I 'need not be involved'. ( that's where the fuming on my part began!)

I guess what started all this was the fact on Friday Miranda was having a very difficult time being agreeable getting her into the school. On regular days she goes from 9am to 1pm and on days when she has specials(gym, art, music) she goes in at 11 and stays till 3:30. Friday was a specials day. I hate to always blame Miranda's behavior on health but I truly feel 90% of the time it is the cause. Miranda had been sneezing a coughing a bit more than usual and she just kept saying she was not going to school. I persisted in telling her she was because once she is there she is usually okay. I have made it clear that if she were to continue to have problems, I would be called and come and get her.

So, trying to make a long story short as possible, Miranda was late getting to class on Friday due to the fact she was fussing and crying. Her nurse was very helpful in getting her settled and the school social worker saw there was a problem and stepped in also.

Another thing that has been going on is that Miranda is having trouble staying focused on her work. When she starts getting to distracted the nurse will leave the room with her and walk down the hall with her and then come back to the room. She has said that this has been a big help in getting her 'back on task'. Needless to say, the teacher is also fuming about this saying Miranda just needs to stick with it and get over it. She feels Miranda is getting to much special attention and she really does not even see there being a medical issue! She now feels they should start using a behavior chart with Miranda for how she behaves when coming into school. If Miranda were to have a 'bad day' and fuss when coming in, she would have to stand at the wall for recess. ( and we are supposed to be watching for things that would add to her fatigue??!!) Most times Miranda just wants to stay in for recess anyway but I flat out REFUSE to make her stand by a wall. I should also add, Miranda is honestly a very quiet kid on almost all occasions. She does not have any more behvaioral issues than the next 6 year old!

Now, a bit of back ground on the teacher. She is new to doing learning support class. She previously worked with kids with behavioral issues, So I see her wanting to pull this into it as the blame. She admitted she has NO experience with medical needy kids. ( Miranda has confirmed complex V, completely G-tube fed, seizures. chronic lactic acidosis, Dev delays and learning problems, ect...)

So finally, here is my question. How do I deal with all this when the aide was told this was something that I was not supposed to be involved in without getting her in trouble?This teacher is very controlling and unpleasant. She makes it VERY clear she is the boss! I am at my wits ends here with this woman and I really don't know what to do anymore. Miranda is only 6 years old and this is her first year in school ( learning support Kdg) There really is no other class to place her in unless we would put her in a class with much lower functioning kids, and I don't think that would be good for her. I desperately want her to learn and excel in school. What do I do???

Letters By Anita Please contact mito-owner with any problems or questions.

[Guest guest]

Darlene,

Thank you so much for the reply. I actually did print out the info you sent and took it with me when I went to 'discuss' this problem with her. It kills me that these people are supposed to be here to help our kids!!! Thank you for the reply.

-- Re: HELP! School problems again...long

Good Morning ,

's advise is right on but unfortunately we have done all of those things and the school did not follow the IEP and that is why J.D. is home. We hired an attorney and it seems that it is easier to cite a school on not meeting a date than not meeting what is written into the IEP.

My heart goes out to you. Maybe you could have a meeting with the principal, the teacher and the aid. Maybe there is another school in your district that can be more suitable for Miranda. Sometimes the special education director and the principal plays ping pong so you might have to go to the superintendent.

I do know that the school even with an IEP required more energy than J.D. can produce. When he was "expected" to keep up physically this is when abnormal behavior comes into play.

I know that excessive sneezing can be one form of a seizure. Excessive sneezing is one of J.D.s signs of a melt down.

J.D. is 15 but you mentioning the standing by the wall just made my heart ache. When J.D. was in 4th grade and he could not cut out pieces of paper in art, the art teacher had him stand in a corner. He is 15 and still has a hard time with scissors.

I posted this past weekend part of an article from the MDA Quest Magazine about cognitive disabilities, mitochondria and brain function. It is great. If you need me to send it to you, let me know. Also, you can contact your local MDA office to get a copy, it is the December 2002 issue.

Stay focused and I do pray something will change for Miranda's best interest.

Darlene

Please contact mito-owner with any problems or questions.

[Guest guest]

I'm so in your court! What a pain!

HELP! School problems again...long

Can anything just be easy??? We are back on the school battle. I had a conversation with Miranda school Aide/Nurse last night. She was very upset to talk to me about the things she did. First of all the teacher made it clear to her that this was between her and the the Aide, that I 'need not be involved'. ( that's where the fuming on my part began!)

I guess what started all this was the fact on Friday Miranda was having a very difficult time being agreeable getting her into the school. On regular days she goes from 9am to 1pm and on days when she has specials(gym, art, music) she goes in at 11 and stays till 3:30. Friday was a specials day. I hate to always blame Miranda's behavior on health but I truly feel 90% of the time it is the cause. Miranda had been sneezing a coughing a bit more than usual and she just kept saying she was not going to school. I persisted in telling her she was because once she is there she is usually okay. I have made it clear that if she were to continue to have problems, I would be called and come and get her.

So, trying to make a long story short as possible, Miranda was late getting to class on Friday due to the fact she was fussing and crying. Her nurse was very helpful in getting her settled and the school social worker saw there was a problem and stepped in also.

Another thing that has been going on is that Miranda is having trouble staying focused on her work. When she starts getting to distracted the nurse will leave the room with her and walk down the hall with her and then come back to the room. She has said that this has been a big help in getting her 'back on task'. Needless to say, the teacher is also fuming about this saying Miranda just needs to stick with it and get over it. She feels Miranda is getting to much special attention and she really does not even see there being a medical issue! She now feels they should start using a behavior chart with Miranda for how she behaves when coming into school. If Miranda were to have a 'bad day' and fuss when coming in, she would have to stand at the wall for recess. ( and we are supposed to be watching for things that would add to her fatigue??!!) Most times Miranda just wants to stay in for recess anyway but I flat out REFUSE to make her stand by a wall. I should also add, Miranda is honestly a very quiet kid on almost all occasions. She does not have any more behvaioral issues than the next 6 year old!

Now, a bit of back ground on the teacher. She is new to doing learning support class. She previously worked with kids with behavioral issues, So I see her wanting to pull this into it as the blame. She admitted she has NO experience with medical needy kids. ( Miranda has confirmed complex V, completely G-tube fed, seizures. chronic lactic acidosis, Dev delays and learning problems, ect...)

So finally, here is my question. How do I deal with all this when the aide was told this was something that I was not supposed to be involved in without getting her in trouble?This teacher is very controlling and unpleasant. She makes it VERY clear she is the boss! I am at my wits ends here with this woman and I really don't know what to do anymore. Miranda is only 6 years old and this is her first year in school ( learning support Kdg) There really is no other class to place her in unless we would put her in a class with much lower functioning kids, and I don't think that would be good for her. I desperately want her to learn and excel in school. What do I do???

Letters By AnitaPlease contact mito-owner with any problems or questions.