My Kid is a Damn Nutter

[Clodfobble]

The best thing to do is talk to the produce guy at your grocery store. You ought to be able to get a feel for how seriously they take the process of vetting their organic suppliers. For example, one of our produce sources is a kind of enhanced CSA (we are given a certain amount of flexibility in what we want to order from the local farms each week, it's not completely on the whims of what's available.) A lot of the stuff they include isn't actually certified organic, because the process to get certified is suprisingly expensive. But this thing is run by a bunch of dedicated hippies who have personally visited each farm they source from, and confirmed for themselves that organic practices are in use even if the certification isn't in place yet. Likewise, they have refused farmers who are certified, but have other practices the hippies disagree with for one reason or another. I have decided I trust these people with my food, and certifications don't have to enter into it.

[Pico and ME]

Ha...I like your store. My store employs stupid 20yr olds. Its a waste of time to ask them any question.

ETA: Ummm, not all 20 yr olds are stupid, like most the ones that post here.

[skysidhe]

I can't drink too much aspartame either. My son has no problems with it though, but he can't have too much sugar. He monitors that pretty closely. He also has the gift of being able to stay up all night on a diet coke. ( gift = sarcasm ) I just wish it worked like that for me.

[Sundae]

I have to write a Social Story for Tiger this week (my homework)
Searching the internet for examples - yes, I'm struggling.
Then I thought to search the Cellar and of course this thread came up.

Hurray for the Cellar!
Still struggling though.
His autism-spectrum diagnosis is generally accepted but not medically/ officially confirmed. His "Statement" is mostly about speech and language issues, although it does touch on food and social skills. But he's certainly "high functioning".

So the suggestions made by his Speech Therapist aren't completely appropriate. I'm going to try to talk to Mrs P (teacher) before next Thursday (next appointment) because I know she's familiar with both Social Stories and the cub.

This is all about giving me a toolbox of skills for when they cut his hours with the ST so I need to understand this, as opposed to getting it right once and getting a pat on the back.

[Clodfobble]

When social stories are done right, they're awesome. Most of them suck. See PM...

[Griff]

Sundae, I'd limit the story to one situation at a time. I haven't done a lot with them but we have one successful bathrooming story in place right now. The child didn't feel safe using bathrooms away from home, so the story keeps coming back to "I'm safe".

[Sundae]

Gotcha. Thanks.

[Sundae]

Griff, part of my trouble is coming up with an appropriate story.
Tiger doesn't seem to fit into the right boxes.
I'm not criticising the idea, or the system, it's just the stories I've read are all over the place. That's a technical term.

Clod sez some of those on the web aren't the best examples.
She's going to email me some that worked.
When I have a good example, I'm sure I'll be able to apply the idea better.
I will become A Teller of Stories.

Thanks for your input.
I really shouldn't have wasted half a day "out there", I should have started at home.

[skysidhe]

Originally Posted by Sundae Girl

I will become A Teller of Stories.

Thanks for your input.
I really shouldn't have wasted half a day "out there", I should have started at home.

I agree with you! You are a great story teller.

Social stories are short, concrete,relevant.

They can be about sharing, helping, saying please, a specific feeling, waiting in line at lunch, what do do when the bell rings, being quiet in the library, any any thing you think is will apply to his situation.

[Clodfobble]

We mostly only used them to help him know what to expect in a new situation, rather than to teach a specific skill. But either way, most generic ones are just bad cartoons and imperative statements, and that ain't gonna cut it.

[Sundae]

The school Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Co-ordinator had a scheduled meeting with me today.
To help me with the Social Story and have a general catch up.
She came into the classroom, took away the instructions I'd been given AND the draft copy of the Story I'd written, and said she's get back to me tomorrow.
I had actually asked for her help, not a critique, I'll get that off the Speech Therapist on Thursday.

The SENDCO hasn't even looked at the notes I keep on the Tiger. No-one has. I could be writing down any old shit. "Tiger was happy today! It was all, like, double rainbows! Yay! I'm not sorry about his finger!"

Clod, you helped me realise it was about learning to use the format, not immediately coming up with a necessary Social Story. Because at present I'm not sure that's up to me. Although you'll see that given the above, I am ambivilant as to where the boundaries are drawn.

Mrs P just read the exmaple and nodded and said (sounding dubious to me) "Okaaaaay."
But what can I do?

I love my job.
I love the school.
This is a challenge and I will overcome it.
Just as a minor moan, I kinda wish I'd been able to come into this without being known to the staff (apart from the fact I wouldn't have the job!)
I feel I've been dunked a little bit.
No spare time to interact with the teacher/ TAs unless I start before they do - and that is their downtime before the day starts anyway. And no real time for questions/ discussions except my halfhour lunch, which would be fine by me - except shovelling in food - but given their other commitments, not really fair on them.

I get a detailed timetable every day, but usually my 1:1 time with Tiger is up to me.
Sometimes it's hard to gauge what time will be least distracting for him/ will make him most amenable. The class timetable is scheduled so group work/ reading and choosing time is split evenly. I have to shoehorn in time with the cub and still ensure he enjoys the sessions.

Good news there though. He has now started approaching me asking if we are working together. I think this might be because he does enjoy our sessions. I've made them as sensory as possible. And of course he appreciates routine. Sadly, I had to make some time up the other week because I was ill (well, I volunteered to) and he became used to me being available in the afternoons. Only one week, but it grieves me that he is now asking after lunch whether we will work together...

Anyway.
This all sounds like MOAN, MOAN, MOAN.
Maybe it is.
but maybe everyone needs a moan now and then.
This is something I am delighted to be working on, and I know it could never be a journey of a single step.
Everyone is friendly and would probably be horrified to know I'm probably not as secure as I appear.

[limey]

SG, no-one (and I do mean no-one) is as secure as they appear. Remember that.

[skysidhe]

This website has some examples. I find them too wordy but this one has great photos. It does state this is for an older verbal child. You could modify it, take the references to the other motorized objects out and just put labels or one short sentence.
http://www.child-autism-parent-cafe....restrooms.html


I like these. They are basic and you can tweak them.
http://www.polyxo.com/socialstories/

[Sundae]

Thanks for those Sky.
Also had great help from Clod via email.

Yesterday the SENDCO came and took my draft Social Story from me and as yet hasn't returned it.
Given that all I wanted to do was talk through it with her, this is not particularly helpful.
The good news is I thought about it and worked on it for a couple of days (on and off) so can rewrite it in an instant if I don't get it back before Tiger's Speech Therapist comes tomorrow.
I also have one I think is more relevant, and regardless of what the SENDCO says about the first one I will submit the new idea as a virgin product to the Speech Therapist. That way I get get her perspective from scratch.
I have a horrible feeling Mrs L will just dash in at the last minute with "corrections" which is not what I want at all.

[Sundae]

Guess what? Mrs L had in fact "corrected" my first draft.
And she had it to me by the generous time of 13.15. The Speech Therapist arrives at 13.30.
And she had split it into two separate issues, because she knew what I was trying to get at, but it was a bit jumbled.

The fact she split it into two issues - I will wear my coat outside, and I will share my toys and games - means she didn't see what I was trying to get at at all.
The coat statement was a descriptive sentence - Tiger loves his coat and associates it with the good things in life - mostly running and sometimes falling over. And being allowed to raise your voice.

The point was trying to get him to do some non-physical work with me before outside before he went on the obstacle course each day.

AND she used a completely different way of writing it out, using a single icon for every word, making it into a full page which looked like cave paintings. Which is NOT helpful as a preparation for going into a meeting with someone who has asked me to do it another way entirely.

So. Very cross.
Obviously the Social Story was jumbled to her, so it's nowhere near perfect. I wasn't expecting it to be. But I did not "submit" it for grading and certainly not to be rewritten, I asked to sit down and speak her her about it. Twice in 5 days. I have the benefit of working with Tiger daily - she made assumptions in her rewriting based on the statement made in July 2010. Not good practice.

I'm not saying she doesn't know her job.
I'm saying she doesn't listen.
And she doesn't work to a timeframe that is reasonable for other people.
I would far rather she had said, "I really don't have time this week. Can you speak to the ST at your appointment. I'll schedule a catch-up with you the week after, so if you have any more questions at that point I can help."

AND.....!
(not about Mrs L this time) the Speech Therapist didn't show up either!
No word to me, but then the Office was empty all afternoon - for all I know the ST could have been trying to call me.

Oh and finally - I was promised worksheets for the cub.
I was supposed to get them as usual last Thursday but the ST forgot. Fine, it was a mistake, of course it happens. But she said she would put them in the post. I asked at the Office every day - nothing. In the end the secretary suggested I ask Mrs L, as it may have been in with the info she gets from County, which comes in a sealed wallet through the internal post (because it deals with sensitive issues for some children).

Mrs L said not to worry, she could get me some photocopied from the regular visiting ST.
Again, got them today at 13.15.
One workbook, way below Tiger's current competancy.
No, I don't expect her to be psychic, but if she didn't know she should ask. I'm in the same place every single day until 13.00 at least, I'm easy to find. It didn't occur to me that there are many different levels of worksheets. Of course there are. But I'm learning on the job.

I'm happy to work as hard as I can.
I just don't deal with frustration very well. And today I felt like I was playing Blind Man's Buff. In Wellingtons and gardening gloves.

My GRRRRR is now over.

I've been working on prepositions using a whiteboard and pen.
He likes my drawings and the stories we make up about them. So it's all a part and parcel of teaching pronouns anyway, talking about the Fat Old King and the Skinny Witch or the noisy female cat and the quiet male dog.

All out of my system.
Tomorrow is another day.

And after all in that extra hour I got the see the Jelly Party which I would have missed otherwise.