The 2015-16 school year is now officially over and our boys are quickly adjusting to summer vacation. Last Friday we had the opportunity to attend Samuel's end of the year class party. Since Samuel does not attend school on Friday's, he went that afternoon just for the party. I was concerned with how he would react to us telling him about going to school at a time that is very different from his normal routine. We started telling him early in the morning that we were going to "Samuel's School" for a party today. At first he made his usual "bye bye Samuel School" comment, but as the day went on he seemed to accept where he was going. When we arrived about 2:00 pm, Samuel went right inside the classroom and several of his classmates seemed genuinely excited to see him. The teacher had the class sit together in the front of the room where they sang several songs. I was simply amazed by the fact that Samuel sat there attentively with his classmates and participated in the activity. This seems like a very simple task, but it is extremely rare that Samuel will sit still among a group of people for longer than a couple of minutes. During this time, the teacher presented class awards to each of the students and Samuel received the "Jagger Award" for the best dance moves. Apparently his dancing is reaching beyond the four walls of our house. After this he went straight to his seat and sat down while April prepared his plate of food. He performed exceptionally well during the entire event and we were extremely proud parents. His teacher said that he has been showing solid progress over the past month or so, but I think she was also very pleasantly surprised and proud of his behavior at this event.
Since it was the end of the school year, April and I requested an IEP Meeting to discuss Samuel's progress and his schedule following summer vacation. We met with his teacher and principal on Wednesday at the school. As mentioned above, the teacher indicated that he has made a good amount of progress in the past month. She said that he is doing a better job of interacting with his classmates, while also understanding when he needs to separate himself from the others due to becoming over stimulated. We reviewed his current IEP and decided to keep everything as it currently stands with the exception of his amount of time in school. It was recommended and we agreed to having Samuel start the new school year by attending five half-days a week, up from two half-days this semester. The goal is to get Samuel adjusted to the idea that he has to wake-up and go to school M-F. We are also hopeful that by the end of next year, he will be able to adjust to staying for a full day. April and I are most appreciative to his teachers for the work they have done with Samuel this year. Progress is sometimes small, but every little bit is positive. We appreciate the kindness that his entire school has shown us. It is great to have a positive support system and I think Samuel is benefiting from this environment.
This afternoon I had the opportunity to spend a little daddy time with just Samuel and myself. We enjoy playing tickling games like "bore a hole," "paddy cake," and one we invented called "brown eyes." He will hop in my lap and tell me which one he wants me to do. There is nothing more special than to see him smile, while giving a big giant hug. Samuel also has a great sense of humor. As mentioned in previous posts, he knows his letters and numbers very well. Sometimes we play a game with him where someone says "A" and then Samuel will say "B", then the adult says "C" and we go all the way through the alphabet. Now when I say "A" he gets this mischievous grin on his face and then says "C" with a huge smile on his face. I try to trick him by saying "D" only for him to reply with "I" or "S" while he is laughing the whole time. Later, the two of us read some interactive Thomas books together. He enjoys reading a lot and we hope to continue to tap into this joy of books that he possesses. I also hope we can work on growing his love for music. He will occasionally bang on the piano at my parents house and it usually has a good rhythm to it. Maybe there is an untapped talent waiting there.
As always, thanks for taking time out to read the blog. It means more than you will ever understand. I will try to do better by writing more frequent posts this summer (ya'll keep me from slacking off).
Till next time!
Brian
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