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Special Needs
Princess_Lily
member
wwyd & questions re: SPD/SID
Princess_Lily
member
DSs dx with sensory issues, specifically tactile.
He is enrolled in a 1x per week gymnastics class, where his participation is needed in circle time and teamwork activities...he is not in preschool so this is an area to encourage balance and social skills. Of all activities, gymnastics engages him the most.
Today was hard for him...we had an OT evaluation review 2hrs before class started, and the a/c broke in his gym class. He wouldn't sit for circle time, he hid when I tried to get him back to the circle...I give him two options, to participate or sit on the mat. When I reminded him, he would hide and then scream so to not go to time out...I had to step out of the class once because he was in a full on meltdown.
DH said I should have left, that I was pushing him too much. However, if I keep taking him out, that's what he wants and therefore he will learn if he kicks & screams that he will get what he wants. I want him to know that participation is required of him during class.
Would you have left the class early? When do you just say, "its not working today"? I dont want to quit the class, but I keep quietly walking in to guide him back. His OT (he is in OT 1x per week) said to keep guiding him back to participate...but today I had to take him outside to stop him from yelling.
I cried today...it was very emotionally draining for me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lastly, would you tell his gym teacher about his Sensory Issues, and maybe give a brief breakdown in writing over what his needs are, since it is a classroom? Would you do this for other activities throughout the week (library storytime, sing-a-long class, etc).
How do I protect his medical privacy at the same time though? Since all of these activities are private businesses...not regulated by the department of education.
His activites are as follows (He does not go to preschool):
Mon: Free Play Activites
Tues: Sing-A-Long Class (1hr.)
Wed: ST & OT (1hr. total)
Thurs: Gymnastics Class (1hr.)
Fri: Free Play Activities
This discussion has been closed.
Re: wwyd & questions re: SPD/SID
Is this a new class? Or do you think he was just tired from the OT eval? Does he usually do better in the class? My DD has SPD (tactile sensitivity and vestibular issues), and some days are just hard. DD's tactile and balance stuff always get worse when she's tired. She spilled water on her clothes twice at preschool last week, and she only had one change of clothes. When I got there to pick her up she burst into tears. I felt terrible--her teacher was trying so hard to make her feel better
Honestly, though, the only thing that helped was a nap.
I'd just try to let it go, and see how he does next week. Sometimes my DD is exhausted after her OT sessions, so it could have just been an off day.
He has a speech delay, so he didn't request to be signed up for gym. However he does enjoy the tumbling and balancing offered in the Open Play and voiced how he wanted to go to gym after his third week of being in gym class. So he understands the concepts of what he is doing and will follow direction upon execution of said task, however, it's difficult for him to execute class participation 70% of the class period.
The idea of signing him up for the activities was to provide the socialization/mental stimulation in lieu of preschool. We will be enrolling him in school - as early as summer and no later than the Fall 2013. We don't want him to enter mid-year because he is at a disadvantage by not knowing the schedule/kids/teachers. There is a learning curve for everyone when any child start in Summer/Fall.
Auntie, so then you are suggesting to speak with the head of the class to discuss his SPD dx and why the difficulty is present in the class, correct? Then, go from there based on her response?
I think you should have left early from gymnastics. The air conditioner was broken and that is already uncomfortable as it is.
It must have been too much for your DS to have OT and then gymnastics, too.
I had three appointments in one day OT, then speech and then behavioral for DS. That was not the best mixture because by the time we got to speech he did not want to cooperate. I would try to keep all therapies and athletic activities on separate days.
I think you mentioned in an earlier post that you had tried two different preschools and they told you they couldn't handle your DS. What types of preschools were they? I'm just wondering if there's a preschool that he could attend part-time 2 days/wk or something like that. A preschool class would probably have a more regular routine than a gym class, and I think kids with SPD tend to do better if they know what to expect from a given situation.
It's still early in the year, and the benefit of enrolling him a bit later is that the other kids in his class DO know the routine, so the teacher can give him a little extra attention if needed. Last year when my DD started her threes class the first 2-3 weeks were very chaotic because a lot of the kids were attending school for the first time and were having trouble with the separation. The crying can be contagious sometimes. If the other kids are settled and happy and able to follow the routine, that actually might be a better environment for a sensitive kiddo to adjust to.
Have you had him evaluated by the school system to see if he qualifies for services through the school district?
There isn't a preschool around here which offers 2x per week 1/2 days. There are 5x per week 1/2 day options though - which is what these two were, but remember we didn't have a dx yet at the time.
Our school district does not offer preK, however I will be looking into a public school for next fall so he could have the special help he needs.
We didn't go through the state, by the time we got a dx (@ 3yrs, 4mo)...and there is a substantial wait list to apply. We're paying out of pocket for his current therapy sesssions right now.