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Starting Secondary School



That is pretty much my story told to date,
But I am truly hoping not to abate.
I have lots more to say on the subject,
I hope that you will stay to connect.
There is a lot more still to come,
I hope you will enjoy at least some.

 Ryan has settled well into secondary school. He still has his moments, but hey who doesn’t. He has an excellent support network around him. It has only taken me 8+ years to get to this point. I feel that I am finally beginning to really cope and understand.  He has two superb support workers in school and access to a well set up Speech and Language unit. He still has regular reviews and the option of EP & SaLT are available to him. He sees his paediatrician annually and as he matures is learning more of the ‘rules’ of social interaction and how to cope with the difficulties he faces as a result of being Autistic. 
Ryan finds it very difficult to fit in with the world.  He does not like people and he feels that no one likes him.  I believe that he does want to make friends and wants to learn to interact appropriately, but needs help, guidance and assistance to do so.  He needs to be taught to exchange the inappropriate behaviours with socially accepted alternatives.  Ryan has sensory issues across all of the senses: sight, sound, touch, taste and smell such as finding it difficult to filter out the hum and pulsating fluorescent lighting, the ‘echo’ nature of school class rooms with constant chatter from children, doors banging, children moving back and for in the corridors.  There are many foods he simply can not cope with with and the sensation of brushing teeth is a real challenge for him. Clothes have to be cotton with no labels and not too tight. He dislikes being touched. He appreciates quite time and a space he can go to as required.  It takes Ryan a little longer to motor plan moving from one activity to the next.  

He does now have a small friendship group of 4 friends that he has met in school and maintained himself. It is wonderful to see him growing up and beginning to manage, especially after the disastrous start to his education, he has pretty well caught up (thanks to my extensive efforts in homeschooling him) and can hold his own in class, with the support of his TA.

The next biggest milestone will now be in year 9 when he chooses his options, but let’s sit back and enjoy year 8. The head of year once said about this year group that it is the best year in school. You are not the newbies anymore, the pressure of adjusting from Primary to Secondary education has passed. You have no pressures of choosing options and years 10-13 are all about exams. Yes there are exams in year 8, but enjoy the year with the least amount of pressure on you.
She made a good point and made it well. 

Comments

  1. Anonymous8 September 2014 at 04:29

    Nice one - you keep it interesting and progressive. Well done.

    ReplyDelete
  2. @SarahLou8 September 2014 at 19:22

    Thanks for the feedback. Glad you are enjoying. x

    ReplyDelete

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