Accelerated Reader

The day has finally arrived!!  My son enjoys reading!!  Isaac is in third grade now.  When he went into kindergarten, he was diagnosed with Aspergers.  Academically, he was right there with the class, but had some developmental delays going on.  When he went into first grade he was a little behind, but starting to catch up.  Going into second grade he was still at a Pre-K reading level. At his annual IEP meeting, where we get to sit down with his principal and teachers to figure out the areas he could use some extra help, we all decided that reading was a must.

Up until that point his teachers kept telling me that if I would find him material he was interested in, he would start reading.  Well, it is difficult to find gripping first grade level material for a child who has been watching documentaries on the discovery channel since he was three!

So, here is my plug for individualized attention for special needs kids at school.  I have heard other moms with special needs kids say that they don't want their kids to go into resource.  Here are some of the reasons they give:

•  They will learn worse behaviors from the other kids than they already have.
•  Other kids will make fun of them for having to go to a different classroom.
•  They don't need to go to the 'special class'.

While I see that these are valid concerns, and admittedly I have worried about each one myself, resource for us has been such a blessing and here is why:

•  Isaac has learned how to make friends by working in a smaller classroom setting.
•  I know the principal very well now and I am confident that if there were bullying problems, they would be resolved quickly.
• Without resource I really don't see how Isaac could have gone from a Pre-K reading level to a 4th Grade reading level in one year!!

Isaac has now tested out of resource for the time being.  He is back in a main stream classroom, feeling good about himself and reading like a madman!!  I have to go down to his room and make sure his light is off so he will go to sleep or he would read all night!  I love it!  

I would strongly encourage anyone who feels like their child is struggling in school to seek help!  It is out there.   Advocating for your child is hard!!  It takes a lot out of you, it is overwhelming and disheartening at times, but it makes the victory that much sweeter!  Isaac has worked so hard and he is such an example to me to never give up.  I am so grateful for what he teaches me!