Thursday, October 28, 2010

More on Gillian

It's been a few weeks since we got the official diagnosis on Gillian, and already, she's made great improvements in class with visual cues, social stories, and break time.

Gillian was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome a few weeks ago, through a series of tests that her school did with her (with our blessing). Even though she was only recently diagnosed, the school was aware of it being a possibility since last year, and while they could never officially put the social stories, visual cues, and break times into effect, they were able to do a few things that didn't require the help of the OT.

Right now, Gillian has a card on her desk that just describes behavior that is good, not good, and really not good (I can't recall what they call it, but they are divided by a Green, Yellow, Red system for good, slow down, stop). It describes different things, like raising her hand is good, while blurting out is not good. Hitting or shoving are really the only two things I recall in the Red section.

If something happens in the Yellow section, she is reminded to look over her card. If it happens more than once, she gets points taken away. If she does something in the red, then the school recognizes that she needs a break to regroup, and she goes to the break room, which has a lot of sensory items in it, such as a trampoline, a soft squishy "people squisher" (kids kind of roll through it, and are light squished, which is great for sensory), plus other items. She's allowed to request a break if she's feeling flustered, but what I noticed on Wed, is that she was requesting it just to go. I think right now, she's just loving it, and wants to go as much as possible.

In class, she also has a ruler she keeps on her desk, or carries around. On the back, there are numbers 1-25 on it in marker, then they have a laminated 'slide' with a window that is wrapped around it with her name. Every day, the ruler starts out on number 10. If she does something in the yellow or red, she gets a point taken away. However, if she does something good, she gets to add a point.

The traditional method in class is useful with the regular students, but does not work good with kids who have outside problems like Autism or Aspergers. For the other kids, they have a popsicle stick. They start off in box 1, and it gets moved down if they misbehave (usually after a warning or two) from Green, to Yellow, to Red.

With that system, there are no rewards for positive behaviour. A lot of what Asperger's kids struggle with, is social interaction. They may not know how to react, so they just react however they want, where as other kids learn early one that it's maybe not all right to brag about winning, or to scream if someone looks at them wrong, or what not. With the slide ruler point system, Gillian gets rewarded with points for good behavior while also getting points taken away for bad behavior. She has room to make up for having an outburst, where as before, she would just go down hill, because while bad behavior was recognized, good was not.

She has been doing a lot better in class, and has a great group of support at the school to help her. She loves her break times, and she'll tell anyone who asks all about her "Ashburger Syndrum".

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Happy 1 Year Anniversary!

Frankly, I'm being optimistic here, because I'm coming at you live... from November, 2009. I have no idea if my little blog made it, or if it will be active, or if anyone will even still be visiting with me. I have to say, I really hope that it does.

Because this is a blog being sent to the future, so to speak, or being plucked from the past, I'll write down some of the things I hope to accomplish by October 2010, and I suppose when the time comes, we'll see just how close to the mark I make it.

  1. I hope to have built up a following of at least 50 people. Currently, I'm at 15.
  2. I hope to start & finish a quilt.
  3. I hope to take several sewing classes, so I can have more than a basic knowledge of how to sew.
  4. I hope to be happy, and loved, as I currently am.
  5. I hope for a good year, above all else, for myself, my family, my friends, and anyone who stops by to read my blog.
  6. I hope to have an epiphany along the way, and actually start writing a book- any book, so long as it's written by me.
  7. I hope... a lot, I suppose.
So, if the blog is still here, and people are still reading it... Happy 1 year anniversary, a bit premature from my current time frame. Let's hope the year was a good one!

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Gillian, my Baby

Gillian is my youngest child. She's my little baby, though don't tell her that! At almost 9, she would screech if she heard herself referred to as a baby.

Last Spring, Gillian's teacher approached me about some things she had seen in the classroom with Gilly that she felt looked a lot like Asperger's Syndrome. Her school used to be where the Autistic children in the district went- it was a mainstream school, but they have a Autistic Spectrum Teacher on staff, a special class room for helping them, and a lot of other resources.

We agreed to have Gillian tested when school started back up this fall, because we've always know something was different about Gillian. She's... special, for a lack of a different word. Gillian is just different, and quirky, and loving, and wonderful, but definitely different.

We just got the final word on the testing today- the school found that after extensive testing, which included Speech Therapy testing, physical therapy, observation periods, and much more, that Gillian does shows enough signs of Asperger's Syndrome to qualify for a diagnosis.

On Friday, we go in and sign her IEP, and go over what support will be put into place to help Gillian be as successful as she can be in school.

Gillian has know from the first moment why they were testing her, and what Asperger's is. I told her today what the school decided, and she asked if that was a bad thing. I told her it wasn't bad, that it just makes her special, and that it means that she'll have more help in school, and let other people help understand her better.

These two photos are two of my absolute favorite pictures of Gillian, because they show who she is. Gillian is just quirky, and isn't scared to be different, or march to the beat of her own drum.

It helps having a diagnosis. It doesn't change who Gillian is, but it can help other people understand her more.

Talented Tuesday








The Rules



and NOT like this:




Monday, October 11, 2010

Easy Tutu Tutorial





Easy Tutu - You'll Need:













Costume ideas for Tutu's at Halloween-

Tinkerbell- Lime Green (or Citrus Green) and Kelly Green


Lady Bug- Red with black puff ball spots










