I got a call from the school yesterday to inform me that Walker has been chosen to win an award. They look at all the kids who are on an IPRC to see who has had the greatest improvement and Walker won hands down! :yahoo:

Walker was put into the IPRC program 2 years ago due to a severe speech and language delay. He was tested at 1st percentile just before he started school at the age of 4 and we have worked through much therapy. One set of testing for the IPRC process was to see where his strengths lie and he was found to be at 25th % for verbal (after a couple of years therapy) and at 95th % for non-verbal. It turns out he is a mighty smart cookie, which we always knew. ;) A very small percentage of kids have such a gap between verbal and non-verbal skills, but thanks to the program Walker is in and all his hard work, that gap is closing.:party0049: He has not been tested recently, but the improvement is obvious.

He has regular classes for all but language. He attends his regular school in the morning and is taken to another school for speech and language only in the afternoon. It is the most amazing program and he has come ahead light years. He has been accepted into the program again for next year, even though he is doing so very well now they will give him one more year to see if he will fully catch up. I am so happy about that as I know of kids who have left the program still behind after only one or two years. It seems the potential in Walker is what has bought him one more year there.

So, he has been chosen from his entire school and will get his award in May. I am so proud of him I could just burst!

If only the teacher he had for SK was still around to see this. She was so nasty and would not believe it was just speech and language delay in Walker and kept on labelling him as ADHD. When we had the meeting and learned how intelligent Walker is and that no evidence of ADHD was found I heard her audibly choke. :smt036 It was a glorious moment and I was doing backflips when she retired for the next year.

Anyway, I am strutting around like a peacock right now and can hardly wait to tell him. He is so shy and will take it in stride probably, but I want him to be as proud as we are of his accomplishments.:hug:

:yahoo: :yahoo: :party21: :party21: That's great news, Leigh!!! I"m so excited for you both!

I, too, wish his former teacher could see this. Doesn't it make you feel wonderful to prove an "expert" wrong?!:smt041

:yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: WTG, Walker!!!:yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

That's so awesome, Leigh, to see all the hard work pay off!!!

:yahoo: :yahoo: :party21: :party21: That's great news, Leigh!!! I"m so excited for you both!

I, too, wish his former teacher could see this. Doesn't it make you feel wonderful to prove an "expert" wrong?!:smt041

Unfortunately, yes I am taking great pleasure in this. What I really wanted was for her to be supportive and to see that is was speech and language at the root of Walker's problems, but she only saw a child who did not fit into her mold. It was awful and she had my then 5 year old so upset he told me he hated school and did not want to go. :sad2: Not something you want to hear from a child that young. It was a blessing when she retired. It was so odd when parents compared notes about this teacher as they either absolutely loved her or could not stand her. There was NO grey area at all. Weird. Anyway, once she left it was so much better for Walker and he has been in the speech class ever since. He now embraces learning and loves school, especially his speech class where he has some great friends and loads of support. It will be so hard for him to leave the program at the end of next year, but I know he will be ready to do so and I am sure he will be fully mainstream by then.

Leigh, I'm so proud for him too that I could burst and I'm not his mother. :hug:


WTG Walker.... :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

You have every right to be strutting around like a peacock!!!! :smt041 :hug:

WTG Walker congrats

Leigh! That is so great!!! Perhaps you should take a photo of Walker with his award and drop the old teacher a note with the news. She should be happy for him if she's worth anything.

WTG Walker! :yahoo:

:smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041 :smt041


Yaaaaaaay Walker! That's awesome Leigh!

And I totally wish you could find that cruddy old teacher and let her know about this. It's sad that these days people are so quick to blame everything on ADHD. My nephew does have ADHD (evident in his poor handwriting, fine motor skills) but after getting on meds and getting help at school he was still having problems. Well, they gave him so more challenging work to do and it turns out he is gift so part of his acting out is from boredom! So they are going to do some further testing (which they have to do in increments of 15 minutes b/c of his ADHD) so they can determine if it's appropriate to move him up a grade. This brought a lot of relief for my sister and BIL, they still need to work on controlling his impulses and improving his fine motor stuff but at least they know there is more to it than just the ADHD, my sister was at her wit's end.

That is just great news that he is doing so well Leigh. What a proud mama moment for you!

Thanks, everyone. The funny thing is that Walker is a great kid, listens, and does not act out. He really is a great kid. This retired teacher just really had it in for him. She called me once and told me that she needed to talk to me about Walker's "abherrant behaviour". I cringed as I had mental images of Walker stripping himself naked and running amok (he was only 5 at the time, but what on earth could a 5 year old do that would be considered "abherrant"?). She told me he was sitting at circle time and was tapping another student on the shoulder. WTH? That was it. Uh, correct me if I am wrong, but MOST kids do that at some time or another!:favorites21: She hated that when he got overwhelmed he would give himself a time out. Just go to the other side of the room, collect himself and come back. The SLP program he was in found this to be astounding as it showed he knew when he was needing a break. No fuss, no muss, just a few minutes away and he would come back. Bear in mind that in a language laden class how hard it would have been for a kid with a tremendous delay. It would be akin to an English person being subjected to a 3 hour day of a foreign language with no subtitles or interpretation but the expectation you understand what is going on.

I got a note from her at least once to 3 times a week. I was so mad I was thinking of sending her a case of paper so the school board did not go broke with all the notes she sent me. She once sent me a note on some homework Walker did saying he did not listen and had to complete the work at home. It was a picture of things to colour in green. He left the leaves as it was autumn and the leaves were changing colour. I was happy he thought that way and she gave him a zero.:violent1: I got stuff like that ALL the time from her. No wonder Walker hated school.

Oddly, he had one day in English with this battleaxe and one in French with a teacher I rarely ever heard from as she adored Walker. He did better in French on the alternating days than he did in English. That speaks volumes.

As far as ADHD goes, not a chance for Walker. Curran on the other hand... maybe...:hairpull: lol

I got a note from her at least once to 3 times a week. I was so mad I was thinking of sending her a case of paper so the school board did not go broke with all the notes she sent me. She once sent me a note on some homework Walker did saying he did not listen and had to complete the work at home. It was a picture of things to colour in green. He left the leaves as it was autumn and the leaves were changing colour. I was happy he thought that way and she gave him a zero.:violent1: I got stuff like that ALL the time from her. No wonder Walker hated school.

Oddly, he had one day in English with this battleaxe and one in French with a teacher I rarely ever heard from as she adored Walker. He did better in French on the alternating days than he did in English. That speaks volumes.

LOL Leigh, you sound like my sister, she was getting notes or calls several times a week as well although in my nephew's case he was acting out.

I think that was pretty bright of Walker to actually not color the leaves b/c he knew they would be changing colors. I don't know too many 5 year olds that demonstrate that kind of logic. I think it's impressive personally.

And as for doing better w/the French teacher. Just goes to show how kids will thrive when they are with someone who they feel comfortable with and who wants to help them. Kids are very intuitive and if that teachers was giving off the same vibes to him as she did to you no wonder he didn't do as well in her class. It makes me sad to think how he probably was miserable when he had to be in her classroom. Poor Walker, I am so glad that he is finally getting good help and encouragement from the right people. And now it is really showing!

Woohoo, Walker!!!!

Leigh ... you need to start a trophy shelf! Those boys are going to load it up over the years!

:yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

WTG Walker!!!:yahoo:
Will there be acknowledgement of this or will it be mailed???? Aww he really needs to know he has done so well and this is an important pc of paper with his name on it...how wonderful!!!
As for teachers ..think back there was always certain kids teachers didn't like for no obvious reason...some don't like quiet kids for some reason my dd Jen was very shy and quiet and was often not treated well by teachers all threw school...i have had many conferences with teachers who like to point out what they think are flaws in my dd. ....I know how good it feels though to see your child who struggle to be awarded for their accomplishments...Eden was a struggling student and in remedial classes...she received a scholarship for most improved student.....and is on the Deans list in college....explain that...LOL

WTG Walker!!!:yahoo:
Will there be acknowledgement of this or will it be mailed???? Aww he really needs to know he has done so well and this is an important pc of paper with his name on it...how wonderful!!!
As for teachers ..think back there was always certain kids teachers didn't like for no obvious reason...some don't like quiet kids for some reason my dd Jen was very shy and quiet and was often not treated well by teachers all threw school...i have had many conferences with teachers who like to point out what they think are flaws in my dd. ....I know how good it feels though to see your child who struggle to be awarded for their accomplishments...Eden was a struggling student and in remedial classes...she received a scholarship for most improved student.....and is on the Deans list in college....explain that...LOL

As far as I know, we will attend a ceremony in May and he will be presented with the award. It should have him fairly freaked out that he has to go to the front for this. lol Plus, I have been told they will take a picture of him and the other recipients and have them shown on a screen in the room and I believe a write up will be done about him as well. It sounds pretty big and involves the entire school board. I am still waiting for them to give me all the details on it, but expect that in the next few days.

All it takes is a teacher to believe in a student and that makes all the difference in the world. I can remember teachers that hated me and the feeling was mutual. In those classes I found my marks were considerably lower and that really cheesed me off. Especially when they were in classes I naturally excelled at. Sometimes there is just too much subjectiveness in evaluation.

Maybe I will hunt her up after all. It would be great to see the look on her face. :evil4:

WTG Walker woohoo!

On the subject of ADHD; my youngest was labelled having ADHD after meeting with the *pediatric Specialist* at our local hospital. Hmmm she could make that assumption after only 10 min and no testing or questionnaire & my son sitting quietly & without one little peep? She then had the nerve to hand me a prescription for Ritalin!

Within those first 10 min, I had told her of my background & that I suspected that he was more along the lines of Aspergers. I declined the prescription & right before we left, when she finally decided to address my son, he promptly spewed all over her floor. I guess he had a bug...

My son was finally later on diagnosed with NLD and simple Tourrettes.

There are so many different diagnoses out there and many overlap each other or resemble each other, that it's not so easy to find the correct one. A parent's gut feeling should always be considered and a teacher should always keep an open mind & be receptive to a parent's concern. Though mind you, there are parents that are not in tune with their kids true reason for their kids behaviour. (There's always two sides to a story)

I too received several red notes from certain teachers regarding my son's behaviour. I wrote them formal letters (to be put in his school file) explaining on how to cope with Malcolm. Some teachers were phenominal but some were so closed minded & unflexible that they often threatened to expell him. Poor kid was often in detention with these teachers because he'd be so frustrated & would have meltdowns.

I often kept him home because he would be in tears begging not to be sent to school. After receiving letters from the school board (stating the law & fines for not sending a child to school), someone finally called me & I spilled the beans on the teachers. Now the school was finally receptive to my concerns.

I'm so glad that Walker is in a good program now. Keep it up Walker!

:smt041 Leigh, that's fantastic!!!!:smt041
:party0049: I am very proud of him and so happy for you!:party0049:

WTG Walker woohoo!

On the subject of ADHD; my youngest was labelled having ADHD after meeting with the *pediatric Specialist* at our local hospital. Hmmm she could make that assumption after only 10 min and no testing or questionnaire & my son sitting quietly & without one little peep? She then had the nerve to hand me a prescription for Ritalin!

Within those first 10 min, I had told her of my background & that I suspected that he was more along the lines of Aspergers. I declined the prescription & right before we left, when she finally decided to address my son, he promptly spewed all over her floor. I guess he had a bug...

My son was finally later on diagnosed with NLD and simple Tourrettes.

There are so many different diagnoses out there and many overlap each other or resemble each other, that it's not so easy to find the correct one. A parent's gut feeling should always be considered and a teacher should always keep an open mind & be receptive to a parent's concern. Though mind you, there are parents that are not in tune with their kids true reason for their kids behaviour. (There's always two sides to a story)

I too received several red notes from certain teachers regarding my son's behaviour. I wrote them formal letters (to be put in his school file) explaining on how to cope with Malcolm. Some teachers were phenominal but some were so closed minded & unflexible that they often threatened to expell him. Poor kid was often in detention with these teachers because he'd be so frustrated & would have meltdowns.

I often kept him home because he would be in tears begging not to be sent to school. After receiving letters from the school board (stating the law & fines for not sending a child to school), someone finally called me & I spilled the beans on the teachers. Now the school was finally receptive to my concerns.

I'm so glad that Walker is in a good program now. Keep it up Walker!

How fascinating that they just handed over a script for Ritalin without investigating. :angry7: Suppose that it is just far easier to deal with kids that way rather than having to actually work or such.

It is awful when you have to struggle so much with a kid who just does not fit a certain mold for teachers. It seems that if they are not in that mold they want them sitting there drooling on Ritalin or some such drug. I know very few kids who have really needed it and have heard of many who have been rather "forced" to start it or risk being expelled from school. Again, only in a few cases have the kids really been so bad in my humble opinion that they truly needed the drug. One friend kept her kid on the drug for school and took him off on weekends and holidays. What a great kid and such a nominal problem he had. Kudos to you, Lynne for fighting for Malcolm! :party0049:

I must say, I had a good laugh at the thought of his throwing up all over at that meeting. Too bad he did not get the pediatric "specialist". :smt036

Walker has never struck me as being ADHD in any way whatsoever. Curran might have those tendencies and I can see it in some ways. However, he is also just a busy child who eats life up and is extremely social. I think his "in your face" sort of socialness and phenomenal speaking skills turn some teachers off as he is constantly in need of communication. They seem to miss his genuine love of learning within all that. It seems I will have three boys who will not fit the mold at school. **bracing self for future battles** lol

You are right, Lynne. We need to trust our own evaluations of our children, too. ;)