Wednesday, May 11, 2011

ARD, mateys!

I should be working on my Powerpoint presentation on retinoblastoma and chemotherapeutics that I have to present in the recording studio tomorrow morning , but I wanted to write a quick summary of KayTar's ARD meeting and plan for next year while it is still fresh.

*She will be in a mainstream classroom for 1st grade, as she was for Kinder.

*She has still qualifies as OHI (other health impairment), AI (audiotory impairment), and SI (speech impairment, but only in articulation). Funny how she has retained the same labels that she entered the district with 3 years ago, but she is a completely different child!

*She will continue to receive speech services to work on articulation (th, l, r sounds mainly). She has some oral motor issues that make certain sounds tough for her, but she's doing really well. This morning she said "Wheat Thins" and it was spot on!

*She will continue to receive health services from the nurse (who we love to pieces), including meds, glucose checks, tube feeds, and rest when necessary.

*She will have a trial with a word processor to deal with her fine motor fatigue (per the teacher and OT evaluator's recommendations)

*She still doesn't qualify for OT or PT in the district, so we will continue working on those privately, which is fine with me. The PT who evaluated her this year was also the PT who assessed her at intake 3 years ago, and she said she really enjoyed getting to see how far she had come in that time. She's come a looooong way for sure!

*She will have social skills goals/training next year (this is new). I fully agree with the need for these. Her goals will be 1. Listening/obeying authority figures . 2. Interacting with peers successfully. 3. Respecting personal space.

*She scored off the charts for expressive language and above average in all language tests. She scored age appropriate for math, and at a 1st grade level. Her reading comprehension is at a 4th grade level.

*Excessive absences will not count against her.

*She will have preferential seating again, so her functioning right ear will face the teacher. She isn't having any issues with her auditory impairment affecting her in the classroom thus far, so we aren't pushing for the FM system at this point.

I think that about covers it for the ARD! We are so thankful that we have had nothing but GOOD experiences with the special education teams we have worked with. They genuinely care for KayTar and try to provide the appropriate services for her every year.

Two more unrelated medical notes:

1. KayTar is being referred to the headache clinic for her continued headaches (she had another over the weekend).
2. Her anorectal manometry testing is scheduled for the beginning of June. Fun times...or something. ;)

Okay, back to the grind now...tomorrow I will be FREE!!

PS: If you need a good laugh, read these...not appropriate for children. ;)

4 comments:

Kim said...

Just want to tell you that I followed the link to the autocorrect...OH MY WORD!!! I have spent the last few hours...yes hours reading these. I have laughed so hard I couldn't speak! Thank you for sharing this little gem, I needed to laugh and to laugh hard!!!

By the way in reading about Ktars health stuff... I am finding some simularities in my munchkin. Im curious what prompted the g-button? Meaning what made the final decision for you.? My little one, Miss T has Down syndrome, sensory disorder...mostly auditory, and feeding issues. She only eats; chicken nuggets, mini tacos, spaghetti, the occasional dorito, cheeto, chips ahoy cookies,,,, but her main favorite is Lays Classic chips...oh and pediasure, strawberry,,, the only one she will drink :) I also put her reflux meds in it, oh and fiber 1tbsp a day. She also has nystagmus pretty strong...they say she will "outgrow it".

Interesting I thought because I haven't heard of any other child having even one of the same type of feeding issues. We just started feeding clinic and I have to say it scares me. I don't want food to be anymore of an issue then it is now. Sometimes I wish she had a g-button. I know I shouldn't but it seems that it would take some of the pressure off of her "not haveing a balanced diet", and the guilt I feel for not pushing veggies etc. Oh she is still uses the sippy cup and doesn't use a regular cup yet.

Anyway Thank You for that Link... I really needed it :)

InTheFastLane said...

So much progress!!!!
I am sure she will continue to be loved in 1st grade.

painted maypole said...

how far you've all come! :)

Anonymous said...

As a former teacher (had to go out on medical disability)I don't know that special seating is possible. As a teacher is important to move around the entire room. I never stood in the same place more than I few minutes at a time. It's important that the teacher will allow her to move to another part of the roome at her discrestion (KayTar not the teacher). Either another desk or a table of wherever she needs to be if she can't see or hear the teacher well. Just something to consider.