We are exactly 5 days into the new school year. The boys are both enjoying school so far, although I am still making adjustments. D1′s teacher is due to have a baby in about a week, and her last day of work will be this Friday, and she will have a sub for 12 weeks. Not to worry… I’ve known the sub since she was 13, and I am THRILLED she is the one he will have for that period of time!

So what have we seen & done thus far?

I have met with his teacher Mrs. R, the incoming sub Mrs. M, and his resource teacher Mrs. B twice each (informally) to discuss accommodations.

Mrs. B has helped D1 with some initial spelling work. They are being tested on the 100 most frequently used words this week, 25 per day. 25 is a huge number of words for him to write AND spell correctly. He’s a pretty good speller, but writing is sheer torture… although I’m not sure who is the more tortured, my son, or the person assigned to cue him!! When he missed (or didn’t write) 18 of the 25 words on Tuesday, I suggested she have someone work the lists orally with him. I had quizzed him and he got most of them correct. She took the suggestion, and Mrs. B came in and gave him his tests Wed & today. Yesterday Mrs. R called to say he’d done MUCH BETTER. Tomorrow I will touch bases and see how he did on today’s and tomorrow’s tests.

We hung his visual schedule on a bookcase near his desk, so he can get to it easily to use it.

Speech & Resource schedules are done, and he starts back with Mrs. B tomorrow! I haven’t yet heard when speech will begin. He (only) gets 30 min./week at the school, in addition to his private speech therapy.

And a milestone: HE RIDES THE BUS TO SCHOOL!!! I haven’t let him in years past, because he cannot WAIT at the stop. Now that D2 is also riding the bus, and he has several friends from the neighborhood who also catch the bus with them, he’s doing fine now! I used to drive him in the morning, and let him ride the bus on the way home. Now he can ride both ways. Hooray! (He qualifies to ride the special ed bus, but I’d rather he rode with his brother and friends.)