Morgan's Sweet Teacher

This is Teacher Deanna. She was Morgan's lead teacher this last year as well as the summer school program. She'd hate it if she knew I was posting this picture. She wasn't feeling well that day, so she looks tired, but otherwise is just the cutest person!

Deanna truly cares about each child she works with. She is firm, but also very motivating for the kids. Morgan liked her a lot. As a parent, she was also great to work with and listened to all of our concerns as well as being open to suggestions we had. She also put up with my random emails and calls to school when I wanted to check in on how Morgan was doing or feeling.

She has younger twin brothers with severe autism, so obviously this inspired her desire to work with this population. It was such a blessing to be able to have her as Morgan's teacher this last year. We're sure we'll see her around school next year as she has promised to "stalk" Morgan in her new class and keep updated on how she's doing.

Promotion

Morgan has had a promotion, of sorts, for her preschool class next year! At the end of each school year the teachers get together to evaluate the progress and status of each student. It was previously thought that Morgan would stay with the same teachers for her integrated class as well as for her intervention class. Upon further discussion it has been decided that Morgan will have new teachers for both!

The teacher she had in her integrated class this year did not give a lot of time to the six students with IEPs, including Morgan. The lead teacher and aides from her intervention class were also involved in this class to keep the students on track and prompt them if needed in transitions and social situations. The teachers have decided that Morgan is ready for more independence and will do well in a class that will have less aide support. The new teacher for this class is more invested in the IEP students and can give her assistance as needed. There will also be aides in this class, but the lead AIM program teacher will not be available to be in this classroom as her teacher from this year.

They also made this decision based on the kids they have who are at a higher-functioning level socially. Morgan's intervention class currently will consist of herself and another little boy who joined her class recently. Oddly enough, this boy was in her first preschool class in Liberty Lake so she knows him already! He recently received an Asperger's Syndrome diagnosis, which is on the high end of the autism spectrum. It's so nice to hear that Morgan can be placed in a class with greater independence and they acknowledge that she is making progress with her social skills. Last year there were only two kids in her intervention class as well, but by Thanksgiving the class was full.

Her new classes will also be during the "afternoon" session which is from 11:15 am - 3:15 pm. This will require adjusting to a whole new schedule for our family. Previously with Piper in preschool next year for three mornings a week...I thought that I would get a little break while they were BOTH in school, but it is not to be. Instead I will be dropping Piper off at school, bringing Morgan home to meet the bus...then back to Piper's school to pick her up and then later in the afternoon, meeting Morgan's bus again. The positive side of it is that with Piper at school early I will get some good one on one time with Morgan to concentrate on our RDI goals...that did not exist previously as we always have Piper to contend with.

Overall we are so proud of what Morgan has accomplished this year in school and we loved the teachers and therapists we were able to work with! It is an amazing program and we are looking forward to getting to know our new team next year. Morgan does have five weeks of summer school with her current teachers...starting next week. It is a great bridge for the summer and retaining skills along the way.

A Name Surprise

Morgan has been learning to write her name all school year. Each day she brings home a slip of paper where she has written her name over a light tracing of the letters the teacher has provided. At the beginning of the year her name was only slightly legible, but has improved vastly since. More recently she has been writing her name independently, as you see below. She has been doing this for a few months, so when she did this I did not take a picture of it on it's own. This particular day I randomly asked her if she could write Piper's name too...



Well, would you look at that!! She CAN write Piper's name! I was so surprised and proud of her. For a girl with challenges with her fine motor skills, I had no idea she could do this.

Here's my girl looking quite proud of herself. Sorry for the blurry pic...it was the only one where she didn't make her goofy smile.

Then, I decided to ask her if she could write my name, Mama. Well, of course she can! Look below the "Mo" in her name.

Finally, this one was more challenging for her. If you look just to the right of the tail of the "g" in her name, Morgan wrote "Daddy"...sort of. Close enough! What a superstar!!

A Home Visit

On Tuesday, Morgan's AIM teacher as well as her OT (Occupational Therapist) came to our home for her parent-teacher conference. There has been no school this week to allow the teachers to do these visits. At the beginning of the school year Morgan's teacher from the integrated class came to our house to introduce herself. I believe they do these home visits to also assist parents in issues at home. If they share about how they conduct the class this can be adapted in many ways to the home. Also, I think it also helps the teachers get to know the individual child better, so they can enhance their learning experience.

Well, overall Morgan is doing really well in school. They said she is happy and flexible in her routine and her peers really like her....huh?! What?! Is this the same kid we have screaming at us at bedtime that she doesn't want to give her sister hugs and kisses goodnight and then when we close the door of her room she screams to give Piper hugs and kisses? The same kid that MUST watch Tinker Bell RIGHT NOW and has a fit if we say no? Hmmm. Well, we know enough about kids her age that this is not uncommon. Even for typical kids, at home they push the boundaries and up the demands. Really, it was great to hear that her behavior is so good at school. We can deal with the home issues, we know she has it in her to behave well and we do see it at home...but we know developmentally there's a place for the challenges as well.

Morgan's teachers showed us where she is at with her IEP goals. These are up for review/revising next week, so it was nice to have this meeting to give input on next year's goals. She has surpassed some goals and gotten close on others. We are really happy with her progress, especially these first few months of the AIM program. Whatever they are doing, and we are doing, it is really helping her progress.

They shared that she does well academically. Morgan does not have any "cognitive" goals on her IEP. This means that she is keeping par with typical kids on her overall understanding many processes and knowing facts. She can sequence pictures, match like objects, of course her counting, number recognition and such things have always been good. This gives me a lot of peace of mind as I hear the better "outcomes" for kids with Autism tend to be for the ones with average and above average intelligence. We have been reassured many times in the last few weeks that Morgan falls in this area of at least average intelligence.

Her fine motor skills are improving. She struggles the most with her "grasp" of writing instruments. She automatically wants to put her fist around it instead of holding it with the tips of her fingers. This is something we can work on at home as well. She is getting better with scissors on cutting straight lines, but will soon graduate to working on cutting shapes. The OT gave us a list of activities we can work on at home. I always have a hard time coming up with these things at home, to having this tool with really help.

I loved it most when they said her peers like her and like to be around her. I'm pretty sure this is mostly the kids in her intervention class. I didn't think to ask about kids in her integrated class. I'll have to ask in her IEP meeting. I shared one area I wanted to see added to her goal and that is working on pretend/imaginative play. She just does not do this much at all, individually and with peers. There is so much socially that is learned from pretend play...making up games, problem solving, role playing. Really, it is real life stuff. If they can help her to develop this area, it will help her so much.

I'm sure there is more that was said, but memory is failing me now. We are just so glad that Morgan has this wonderful program and such support around her at school. I know families struggle so much with school districts and the services available. We may encounter issues in the future, but we are grateful for what we have right now.

Project AIM Parent's Night

This week we were presented with the opportunity to attend a "Parents Night" for Morgan's school program. It is called Project AIM (Autism Intervention Model). It is also sometimes called Alternative Intervention Model because there is opportunity for kids with other developmental disabilities to benefit as well, though at this point I believe all the kids in Morgan's class do have an Autism diagnosis. This program is a part of the school district and I believe we are completely blessed that we live where we do and that this program is in place. I also received some confirmation of this from the professor we are working with on the research study. She is contracted to work with this program next year and thinks it is a great one. This means a lot coming from someone who's worked with hundreds of kids with Autism and many school districts.

Currently there are only two children in Morgan's class. Morgan and a little boy named Hayden. They offered childcare for the evening and as soon as I brought the girls in, Morgan spotted Hayden right away. Hayden looked up at her (from sitting on the floor) and asked "Is that you, Morgan?!" Too funny. That is just how Morgan talks sometimes, completely stating the obvious, but in a question form.

We gathered in the "music" room and were asked to fill out cards, one for recent "successes" and one for "challenges." All the parents introduced ourselves and shared which classes our kids were in. Morgan's program consists of 2 1/2 hours integrated with the ECAAP program (Early Childhood Associate Apprenticeship Program: low income, but typical kids) and 1 1/2 hours of "intervention." There is another group where those time-frames are flipped, more time in intervention, less integrated. The teachers and therapists introduced themselves and shared the list of "successes" that  we shared. They informed us that the challenge cards would be shared with the staff and taken into consideration for each child.

I also learned at that time that two more children would be joining Morgan's class. As much as I love how much attention she was receiving (one lead teacher and two assistant for two kids), it is much better for her socially to have more kids to interact with. The two new students, are not surprisingly boys, as Autism tends to appear in many more boys than girls. The new boys' parents were understandably apprehensive, but by the end of the evening were pleased with what they saw.

Then we broke up into groups by class and went to tour the classrooms. We started in the "Move to Learn" area that they use to work on gross and fine motor skills as well as sensory issues. The physical and occupational therapists create a sort of obstacle course that can be changed up every few weeks. The kids start in a particular spot and have to wait their turn to make their way through the course. It's amazing that just being told they have to sit in a spot and wait their turn can require so many different skills sets. It's so hard for these kids to sit still, listen, then follow direction. What can be so easy to some typical children, can be so difficult for kids on the Autism Spectrum. And some areas are difficult for some and not for others. This can be the same case for typical kids, but it tends to be the extreme for kids with ASD. The course itself looked like fun and gave me some ideas of things we can do at home with her as well. I could tell Morgan probably really enjoys this activity.

After the Move to Learn areas we visited the ECAAP class. This is such a fun classroom. It is so big and filled with so many activities. I've learned this can be overwhelming for kids like Morgan...but in this case they have a great routine established and all of Morgan's teachers from her intervention class are in this class to help her if she needs assistance and redirection. There are 18 spots for three-four year-olds in this class, this includes twelve "typical" kids and six from the AIM program.

Morgan's teachers shared that during breakfast time she is always in great anticipation of drinking her milk. All the children have to wait until everyone has their food until they can start eating and Morgan needs to be reminded a few times as she tries to sneak sips. They also shared that when in the kitchen play area one of the other little girls wanted Morgan to play with her. I believe this was prompted by a teacher, but the little girl took the suggestion seriously and would not take a "no" from Morgan. Slightly reluctantly Morgan went with her and followed the directions of what the girl wanted her to do. I was so glad to hear all of this. Imaginative play is something Morgan does not do much of and to hear that this is really encouraged is great. She also needs some other kids in her life that can pull her into play situations. So many times kids just leave her out since she does not readily engage them.

Gosh, this is getting long. From there we went to the "intervention" classroom. They really pack a lot into the hour and a half time period! They have lunch there and each child is required to have a little of everything offered that day on their plate and even if they don't eat it. They encourage the children to touch it, kiss it and even sometimes try a little bite. Autism often results in picky eating habits in many kids due to sensory issues or just not wanting to try anything new (inflexibility). I've also recently learned that some kids are "stuffers," as they don't know how to regulate how much they put in their mouth before chewing. Hmmm...Piper's not on the spectrum (at least that we know at this point), but I'd say she's definitely a "stuffer." I'm going to have to ask for tips on that. Ha!

After lunch they have circle time and one-on-one time with the teachers to work on academics, language and other individual skills as outlined in their IEPs (Individualized Education Plan). In Morgan's case they are really working on her fine motor and social skills as she struggles in these areas. The lead teacher had such a sweet story about circle time. As it's just Morgan and Hayden right now they both sit in little cube chairs in front of the teacher as they do a little music, talk about the day and the weather, etc. I was surprised to see they both have weighted lap pads that they use when they sit. These pads help them to sit still and focus better. The teacher said one day they sat down and Morgan noticed Hayden didn't have his lap pad on. She went and got it and essentially "tucked him in" to his chair, saying "There you go, Hayden." I about cried! This is so sweet and caring. Morgan cares about her friend and wants to help him. I love it!

Overall it was a great, informative evening. I came away with a much better understanding of how the program works and the amazing teachers and therapists that work with our little girl. They just seem to care so much about these kids and want to give them the very best start in their eduction. You can really tell this because Morgan loves to go to school. Sometimes we get a little resistance in the morning as she's waking up and having breakfast, but I think that's just the fact that, like both her parents, we are not morning people! There's not much we can do that. I do know that when Morgan gets to school she is happy and ready to participate.

I also was surprised to learn that Morgan is the youngest child in her class. The other parents also seemed surprised about this when the teacher mentioned it. The majority of the time these kids only have one year in the AIM program before they start Kindergarten. Because we got Morgan in Early Intervention before she was two, we were able to transition her to the school district program at three, she will have two full years in the AIM program before Kindie. That will give her such a great opportunity to learn and mature. We can give ourselves a pat on the back for that!

The School Bus - Update

No news is good news, we think. We got a message from the school district that they received David's appeal letter. They are actually considering it! Until then, the mornings get colder and I dread how we are going to deal with trekking a few blocks to the bus when there is snow on the ground and unshoveled sidewalks. I imagine I may need to put both girls in the car and drive, keeping them inside until the bus pulls up. Ugh! It's hard enough getting those two in their car seats now, but every morning to drive two blocks?!

We're hoping they make an exception for us and can use the "generous" turnaround so they can pull up in front of our house. I'll let you know when we hear more!

Morgan's School Picture Fall 2011

Piper's School



Here's our Piper on her first day of "school." She was excitedly showing me an airplane in the sky as I was taking pictures. She is attending the "Toddler Class" at the same school Morgan went to one day a week last year. She's one of the youngest in the class as her birthday is right before the school district's cut-off...but we'll be dealing with that more seriously as she gets closer to starting Kindergarten. For now it's nice that she gets her own school day.

I'm most excited because I had a hard time participating in this program with Morgan because I was chasing Piper around the whole time. When the kids are doing their activities the Moms/Parents/Grandparents gather in the lobby area to have our own discussions. It's nice to get to know the other parents and share our experiences and advice. It's also quite different this time because I will be discussing a "typical" child instead of one with special needs, though I'm sure I'll share some of that too. It seems like a good group with many backgrounds to share.

Piper did great! She did not come out of the class once to see me!! (As I'm post-dating this entry, the second class she did come out once at the end, which I loved!). Many Moms were in and out of the class with their kids as well as some of them having a younger child to take care of. I'm enjoying this time...I've earned it! I think Piper remembered Morgan's class and how badly she wanted to be in there. It's so exciting that it's her turn now! We really like this school and the director is really professional as well as nurturing to the kids. We've got Piper signed up there until Kindergarten, so we hope she loves it too!

The Bus

Here's Morgan's bus coming down the road to drop her off at home the first day! Little did we know it would be the beginning of a fiasco that has still not been resolved. We decided at the end of the school year last year that Morgan would take the bus when school started again in September. Her AIM program goes from 9:30 am - 1:30 pm. The pick-up time would be right in the middle of Piper's nap time. I'm not ready to have her give up her nap... so the bus it was! The teachers assured me that the kids love it, so I thought we'd give it a try.

A few days before school started I received calls from the morning and afternoon bus drivers, letting me know when she would be picked up and dropped off each day. I took Morgan to school on her first day, but she was scheduled  for her first bus ride home that afternoon. The morning driver asked me if there was a turnaround on our street, as it is a dead end. I told her there is one between the last two houses on the left side. When our development went in, this turnaround was mandated by the city until it was know whether the street would eventually continue through (to date, the owner will not sell the land). Garbage trucks and delivery vehicles turn around in this spot weekly. I watched as this bus driver turned around with no issues and pulled up in front of our house.

So...when I walked up to meet Morgan the driver said, "Oh no, my "Boss" isn't going to like that." You are going to have to meet us at xxxx and yyyyy cross-streets two blocks away. I questioned this and she said she would have her Boss look at it. Later that day the morning driver called and said she'd talked to the afternoon driver and that the turnaround "was too short," so we'd have to meet her at the spot two blocks away. I then asked for the Boss's phone number, which she gave me. It was late in the afternoon so when no one answered I left a message.

In the meantime, Morgan did okay on the bus her first time. They said she cried some and didn't want to get on, but they assured her they were taking her to "see Mommy" and she eventually got on and did well on the ride home. It was a hot day and she was a little flushed, but seemed to be happy. She mentioned later that she wanted to go on the school bus again, so that was encouraging.

Then next morning the "Boss" called around 7:30 am. He talked about "policy this" and "policy that." I still pushed back saying the turnaround was approved by the city and the garbage trucks and UPS trucks used it frequently with no issues. I then asked, aren't special needs children guaranteed to be picked up at their homes? He then asked if she had a "transportation IEP", which I don't know if this is different that a regular IEP, which she has. Anyway, I asked if there was anyone else we could speak with and he said he'd call back. He called back shortly and said no one else was in the office. To date, we have not had a call back.

With no resolution I had to take Morgan the few blocks away to meet the bus. The driver said she'd be there at 8:25 am and when she called at 8:20, asking where Morgan was I was a little annoyed. Sweet Morgan (with Piper in her stroller) protested all the way down the street saying "I want to go in Mama's car, open the garage!" and "I want Mama to go on the bus too!" I felt just awful, like I was the worst Mom ever putting my three year-old on this bus to school. The driver and bus aide were really sweet, saying they were taking her to school and they'd have a great time!! She seemed to be OK after that. I set her up with her granola bar for the ride. Then I walked Piper home and started crying. I called her teacher just blubbering. She was so sweet and promised to call when Morgan got there. She called about 15 minutes after Morgan arrived and reported that she got off the bus happy and they'd asked her if she liked it and she said "yes." Though...Morgan says yes to a lot of  things that I'm not sure she really means yes. Hmmm. I do think this is an adjustment in routine for her. Once she knows it's part of her school routine she'll be fine with it.

When I went out to pick her up that afternoon (stinking hot, by the way!)... I took Piper's monitor with me which worked almost the whole two blocks. Morgan was very happy to see me when she hopped down the steps and walked home asking for her favorite TV show of the moment. I had also sent some water with her this time, so she seemed less hot and sweaty this time. I asked her a few questions about her day and got more information out of her than I did last year! Good progress! She told me some of the other kids' names, which included a few kids from her class last year... whom I don't think are actually in her class this year, but their classroom is close by. But there were new kids' names too. I asked her what she had for breakfast (cereal) and lunch (pizza). I asked her if she ate the pizza, because she doesn't at home, and she said she "licked" it. Huh? That's a whole other story. At first I thought I didn't hear it right, but found out later that's what actually happened. More on that later...

So, heading into Monday David is going to take over the call to the Boss, and if needed, the Superintendent's office...or whatever we need to do to get this resolved. More soon.

Wordless Wednesday: First Day of School

Orange Butterfly

We went to the end-of-year carnival at Morgan's "typical" preschool yesterday. It was so much fun for both Morgan and Piper! They would have been happy staying in the bouncy house/slide all day long. Piper was the hit of the parents as she was the littlest one to brave the steps and big slide. They were so amazed and just laughed when she just threw herself down the slide with utter joy!

And...Morgan amazed us by agreeing to have her face painted. She saw one of her friends who had a pink butterfly on her face. I asked if she wanted her face painted and she immediately said "yes" and then requested an "orange butterfly." You see, she couldn't tell you this yet, but this kid's favorite color is orange. She always uses the orange crayon first when coloring and loves her orange straw cup. One time at Target she kept requesting orange while looking for a new swimsuit. I did the best I could and found one with some orange in it, but I think she was still disappointed when it wasn't ALL orange. Finding clothing in primarily orange shades is not easy.

Not only was it great that Morgan requested the orange butterfly herself, most notably she sat still for it and let someone actually paint her face! Last summer we tried this at Valley Fest and she completely freaked out when the person came at her with a paintbrush. I think it helped that the person painting her face was someone she'd seen before (an assistant at the school) and she was in a familiar place. She really admired her orange butterfly the rest of the day and was really proud whenever someone mentioned how pretty it was. Obviously it wasn't a professional artist who did the painting, but it was beautiful nonetheless!

Plans curtailed

So, our busy week proved to be "too" busy. I was afraid that might happen. Wednesday afternoon I drove up to Morgan's school to pick her up and her "main" teacher was waiting there with her. I thought "uh oh, this can't be good." The assistant teachers usually take the kids out to the buses/parents. I knew something was up.

It turns out that on Tuesday and Wednesday Morgan had some serious crying/screaming fits in class. She has never done this before at the district school. I was glad to hear that the teacher thought this was "out of character" for Morgan, but I fear this may start an unfavorable trend. Apparently the meltdowns are focused around their "circle time" where they sit and sing songs. Usually Morgan LOVES circle time and will sing us the songs they sing. In her Monday "typical" class she's always the first one on the rug.

Since we found out that there was going to be a "performance" of sorts we've been asking her what songs they are singing. Each time she says "no" and refuses to sing. So, now she's refusing to participate at school. So, yesterday we agreed to see what happens. I mentioned that we were having a busy week and we'd make sure she got a good night's sleep. Do you think she somehow felt the pressure of preparing for the event?! Could she be that intuitive?

So, we decided not to attend the Autism Society meeting last night. Morgan took a nice nap and had a great night's sleep last night (no wake-ups). She went off to school just fine. I went to pick Morgan up today and again, the teacher was there. No dice. She freaked out again today, maybe worse than the other two days. When it was time for circle time she threw herself on the floor and yelled "NO CIRCLE TIME!" Yikes. The teacher gave her choice of circle time or sit in a chair. She sat in the chair and cried, but was frequently given the option to return to circle time. She refused. Then when they took to other kids outside Morgan had to stay inside and do "something" related to circle time with the teacher. The teacher does not let the kids get away with not participating and make sure they participate in some way. She managed to get her to sit down and sing one song with her. On the way out to the playground Morgan kept trying to escape, saying "I need to use the potty." Apparently this is a way she's learned to avoid circle time this week. They'd take her to the potty and she wouldn't use it, it was just an excuse to get away. The teacher did not fall for that today and made her go out to the playground.

So, she basically encouraged us not to attend the event tonight. She said this for behavior reasons. She thought that if Morgan had a meltdown on stage we would have to remove her, and that would reinforce the bad behavior. I essentially agree with this, but it's still hard not to question it. We have no idea how Morgan would react to the situation, a new place she's never been, bright lights and a ton of kids singing at once. Probably not the best scenario anyway.

I'm sad about it. I LOVED this stuff as a kid (though I'm not sure if I would have participated at age 3.5?). I was really looking forward to watching her with her class and videotaping it. These are the times I feel really left out of the "neuro-typical" kid world. Why do those other parents get to watch their kid participate and I don't? I feel sad for Morgan too, though it probably really doesn't matter to her.

There was going to be cake afterwards too. She would have loved that.

Pick- up fall down

Piper and I were waiting in the car in front of the school today when we saw Morgan's teachers leading the kids out of the building. It is always a funny sight. A gang of three-year olds holding hands, essentially being "herded" along towards the parking lot and buses. I can always spot them by the bright pink jackets the girls wear. Morgan is the only one who wears purple.

As I got out of the car I saw a little "disturbance" of sorts, and one of the kids burst into tears. I immediately knew Morgan had fallen down. As I got closer I saw a crowd of little kids around her and teachers picking her up trying to calm her down. This is not the first time this has happened. In fact I think it's happened at least three times. I cannot remember an incident where any other child in the group fell down on the way out of the school. It is always Morgan.

Poor thing had fallen in the mud and had dirt all over her hand and pants. She was not hurt, she was just upset by the mud and wetness (it had been pouring down rain all morning). As soon as I got her in the car and wiped her hand off she was fine. She said she "wanted my new pants," but they really were not that wet/dirty so I said she had to wait until we got home (if she was much more muddy or wet I had dry clothes for her, but I wanted to show her it was no big deal and she'd be fine). When we got home, she insisted on her "new pants" right away and was very glad when I produced a dry pair for her.

Why does this happen? The more I thought about it... there are only two teachers who help the kids into and out of the classroom (most of them take the bus and a few of us drop our child with the bus kids out front). Usually each teacher has at least four kids holding their hands or holding onto one of the kids' wheelchair. I imagine it is kind of chaotic for Morgan. There are kids and teachers talking while they hold each others' hands and walk into the school. Now, this is a group of special ed kids. Most of them walk, but none of them are particularly agile or attentive. I've watched Morgan walk away with the group when I drop her off. Usually she's shuffling along, looking in all different directions while one of the kids is holding her hand and pulling her in the opposite direction. It's no wonder she falls down every once in a while. I wonder if there's a better way? I'll have to think about that.

Oh Morgan, I can't imagine she's ever going to do very well with multi-tasking.

Parent-Teacher Conference

We had our very first Parent-Teacher Conference yesterday at Morgan's school. It was totally casual. We even sat at the little chairs in Morgan's classroom as there was only one adult sized desk chair in the room. Ha ha!

Morgan is doing well! We went over the goals in her IEP (Individualized Education Plan). They are as follows:

Social - During a freeplay setting, Morgan will engage in functional play with peers
Her overall long term goal is "80% of the time with minimal prompting." This is to be met in one year's time. Her short term goal (by Feb. 18) is "30% of the time with prompting." Her current status is "40% of the time with prompting." So that is 10% better than the short term goal! Go Morgan!

Social - Morgan will independently acknowledge (saying hello/goodbye, asking for help if needed, etc.) familiar peers and adults during the arrival and departure routines.
Her short term goal is "2 out of 5 opportunities." She is meeting this goal! I was concerned about this one. We really are working on it, but it didn't seem to me like she's catching on yet, but apparently they think so. Yippee!

Social - Morgan will independently follow the preschool routine
Her short term goal is "4 out of 5 opportunities with physical and verbal prompting." She is at "4 out of 5 opportunities with physical prompting." The teacher said she transitions well during the day from activity to activity (in and outside of the classroom, recess and bathroom). The only time they have a little trouble is at the end of the school day when it's time to put on her jacket and backpack to leave. All the kids have their cubbies lined up next to each other right by the door. Morgan will go to her cubby, but will get distracted by her name tag and other kids' name tags (reading the letters, of course) and won't put on her jacket. The teacher says she usually has to take her away from the cubbies and other kids to help her put on her jacket. She thinks maybe the noise and "chaos" of the getting ready to leave process might be a little overwhelming for her. This is her guess...but they are still working on how to best keep Morgan focused on this task so they can all be ready to go out the door together (the teachers walk Morgan out to the buses/parking lot where I meet them).

Morgan's Occupational Therapist could not be at our meeting, but we ran into her in the hall on the way out. She gave us some quick details (in addition to what her teacher had already reviewed with us). She is REALLY pleased at how well Morgan is doing! She also said that when they do their sessions Morgan comes right over and is eager to work with her.

Fine Motor - When given a model, Morgan will copy a horizontal line, circle and cross with a writing tool.
Morgan's long term goal is completing this task at 4 out of 5 sessions. Her short term goal is 1 out of 5 sessions. She is already completing the line and circle 4 out of 5 sessions!! They are still working on the cross. Good job Morgan!

Fine Motor - Morgan will complete simple visual motor tasks (i.e. string beads, puzzles, stack 10 cubes, snip paper with scissors, lace holes with a string, place small objects in small holes/slots, etc.)
Her long term goal is also 4 out of 5 sessions. She has met this goal with the stringing beads, puzzles and small object in small holes. She is still making progress with the scissors. The therapist said she is doing well with the lacing and stacking cubes too.

And then the Occupational Therapist told us she doesn't think Morgan will need OT much longer! Whoopee!

Overall Morgan's teacher is also very pleased with how well she is doing. Obviously her biggest challenge is her social skills. We are glad she is making progress in this area. Her teacher said she seems to be forming some "bonds" with a few of the other girls in her class. We ultimately decided to keep her in this morning class...it turned out that the afternoon class will be structured very similar to the one she is in now, so there didn't end up being a benefit to switching her. This was a relief for me as I was having a hard time making a decision on this. It ended up working itself out.

We were also glad to hear that Morgan has displayed NO behavioral issues in her class. She has been such a challenge at home with the "no's" and just plain defiance that we were concerned this might be happening at school too. Her teacher said once in a while she'll resist doing something initially, but will join in pretty quickly. Even if she resists, it is only with slight body language (turning away from the person or looking away), none of the yelling and screaming that we see at home. We were really glad to hear this. It sounds like she's testing us like any other three year old would, but knows somehow that this will not be acceptable behavior at school. Thank goodness! Now if we can only figure out how to improve this behavior at home!

I also discussed with her teacher about working on some potty training in March. Shad made a good paoint about Spring Break being the first week of April. She said they would plan on working with Morgan on this for a week before the break with the goal of her continuing progress at home the week of the break. This sounded good to me as it will give us a solid week of "operation panties" at home without having to deal with the school schedule. Crossing our fingers that something "clicks" for her during that time.

So, for our first meeting, this went VERY well! If I could have this kind of feedback from here on out I'd be thrilled! I'm sure we will have bumps in the road along the way, but this only confirms that this school is the right place for her and she is making great progress on her goals.

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Just when we think we've adjusted to a new routine, something changes. Ugh. Morgan doesn't do changes well and honestly, I like my routine too. We'd just started to get into a nice groove after the holiday break. Morgan was looking forward to school each day and I've been taking advantage of having just Piper for a few hours in the morning so I can get some errands done or even have a few play dates with friends/kids closer to Piper's age.

Now Morgan's preschool teacher wants to switch her to the afternoon session. There are a lot of reasons for this and some against it. We are leaning towards the switch, but it's a tough decision. The afternoon session starts this week and her teacher is taking a little time to get to know the new kids. We don't have to make a decision right away, but it will be in the next week or two. We are also hoping one of the Morgan's "friends" from her class will move with her so she has one other child who is familiar to her. Luckily the teachers will all be the same. One pro is that there may be more opportunity for "academics" (letters, numbers , etc.) in the new class since there will be more kids at a similar level as Morgan. Of course she knows all her letters and numbers, but I'm sure they will gear the activities towards something challenging for her.

Other info on Morgan:

Language
Morgan is gaining some more spontaneous language. At least we think it's spontaneous because we know it didn't come from us. It could be some things she's heard at school too. When we ask her a yes or no question she'll respond no, no way, nope, yes, yep, okay and sure. Sure? Don't know where that came from. Yesterday I asked her to hang up her coat and she said "Okay Mama, that's a good idea!" Hee hee. Yesterday at dinner we asked her if she wanted anything else to eat (as usual, she was not touching what we gave her), and she said "cinnamon rolls!" Hmmm. Unfortunately we had no cinnamon rolls to offer (and would not have given them to her for dinner anyway), but it was a unexpected suggestion. There are a lot of other examples, but overall she's making strides. This makes me feel good that she's still making progress, though she's not currently receiving speech/language therapy. You may remember she didn't qualify for this through the school, but it's still an area of concern for us.

Fine Motor Skills
Morgan is also making strides in this area. Her Occupational Therapist says she is doing so well that she may have to write new goals for her already. Go Morgan! As you saw in yesterday's Wordless Wednesday, she is now (finally) building with her Lego's. It's so neat to see her create on her own. She usually wants me to do it for/with her. She's also using her coloring books with a lot more skill too. We still don't know her "handedness" yet though. She switches back and forth between her right and left pretty equally.

Potty Training
Still a no-go. Will sit on the potty, but won't do anything in it. I read something that said that many kids with autism spectrum disorders do not show clear "readiness" signs like typical kids do. Basically you have to switch totally to undies and deal with the accidents until they "get it." I'm tentatively thinking that I may want to start in March and I've started to tell Morgan that the pull-ups are going away "soon." We'll see if I stick to the plan. Yikes!

I think that's whats going on with Morgan for now. I'll do a Piper update soon too.

Just some stuff

Just wanted to include a post today with some interesting Morgan-isms and Piper-doings as of late.

I walked in the door from doing some errands the other night and David was helping Morgan in the bathroom with a poopy pull-up. I heard him start laughing and he said "Quick! Come here!" I hurried to the bathroom and saw Piper "helping" Daddy by taking a wipe from the package and gently wiping Morgan's tush. What a clever, observant girl!

Morgan has had a few language bursts lately. We were riding home from our outing to the Play Place at the mall and Morgan said "Piper got an ouchie!" (We call any sort of bumps, scrapes or bruises "ouchies" as we tend to call Morgan "boo-boo" as a nickname.) I looked back at Piper and didn't see anything ouchie-ish so I asked Morgan, "Where is the ouchie?" She pointed at Piper and said very simply "on her face." Piper's cheeks were somewhat red from being outside in the cold, so I think that was what she was talking about. David suddenly said, "I think we just had a sort-of conversation" ...then we both got teary.

The way Morgan talks is not really in a "natural" tone of speaking. She tends to emphasize the wrong syllables or words. It was surprising that the way she said "on her face" was so matter-of-fact and natural. Hmmm. Maybe she's working things out somehow.

Morgan also has busted out with "okay" instead of "yes" sometimes (she is saying "yes" more and more). And about half the time she not only says "okay" she says "okay, honey!" This is still in that odd tone of voice, a little affected, so it comes out sounding really funny. The other day when I asked her if she wanted some milk she said "okay honey Mama!" I'm not sure if I'm the one who calls her honey... I wasn't aware I said that, but I must.

As Morgan was back at her "typical" preschool today I told the director and one of her teachers about her diagnosis. This particular teacher has a child with special needs as well, so she's been very helpful to me and encouraging with Morgan. I was relieved that they were very supportive and had a lot of questions for me as well. I'm so glad they are open to having a not-so-typical kid in their school. There are a lot of options for us for school for Morgan next year, but if we want to stay with this school a few days a week they gave some good suggestions on what might be best for her, possibly staying in a class with this teacher who knows her needs best. I was also relieved to hear that there were some 3-4 year olds in the class above Morgan's that still wore pull-ups to school. Hopefully we'll have made some progress in that area before next September, but if not, it's good to know that it won't be an obstacle for her attending the school next year. Whew!

I must have more for Piper...she's just turning into a sweet, funny little girl. We still tend to call her "baby" all the time and we're not sure when/if that will stop. It's so funny to see her walking from room to room of the house. She's getting more agile and able to carry things with her. She can get herself standing up from the middle of the floor now without having to pull up on anything. She can also reach down, pick up a toy and stand back up again. Good girl! She's also adding some more words, what I'm pretty sure is "bath" (without the "th"), ball (ba) and apple (a-puh). Keep them coming little one! She's very much a Mama's girl and doesn't let me get too far away in new places. I love her sweet hugs and the way she puts her head on my shoulder.

Lastly, bedtimes are a BIG challenge in our house lately. Piper has decided that she does not wish to adhere to the routine anymore. When I was nursing her it was bath, jammies, book, nurse and in bed. Then the nursing was replaced by some rocking and I would sing her a song. In the last two weeks she's decided instead of a book and a song she wants to walk in and out of Morgan's and her own room, sometimes observing Daddy reading Morgan a book. She wants nothing to do with actually going to bed. Morgan will do her routine fairly well, but when it comes to going into bed and saying prayers with Daddy, she wants none of it. The last few days we've had to deposit both of them in their beds, close their doors and listen to them yell. Ugh. We hope it's a phase.

Gram and Grandpa B are arriving on Thursday for a week! Yippee!