The 2010-11 school year is almost over-- considering state testing.

JD will be finishing the 3rd grade soon. I can't believe how big he is getting. It seems like yesterday he just started school. In kindergarten they were afraid he might fall behind in reading. In third grade he scored at the top of his class on the state reading assessment. It’s one of the reasons why I love state assessments so much. They are the same cookie cutter approach to education I can't stand! JD is more of a sight word reader. Phonics just doesn't seem to make much sense to him. He reads above grade level so what is the problem? The problem is that in kindergarten they tested him on letter sounds and in 3rd grade they test on reading ability. Poor kid I was convinced there was something wrong with him back then. I as a parent, and took him to make sure his hearing was ok; which it was. The I worried that he would hate reading and struggle with it.. that didn't happen he loves reading. I never thought I would have to tell him to close the book and watch where he was going.


JD did so well on this year’s state test they want to give him award at school.

He is doing well in other things. He is currently learning the guitar which he loves but hates to practice. This is such a sore point in our house I wonder why I keep pushing the issue. Part of me thinks he will thank me when he gets older.. I doubt it though. To be honest most things come so easy for him I want him to work at something and see progress. I think David thinks I am crazy. Maybe I am. Is it wrong to want your child to learn how to accomplish something that takes effort? Some people tell me he will find something he loves and then he will put the effort into it; they may be right and I may be wrong for pushing him to do something he doesn't want to do. I wish he came with instructions.



Amanda has also survived her first year at school. I have survived her first year as well. One of the hardest things was understanding her report card. You wouldn't think that it would be so difficult to understand a report card meant to let you know how a child is doing in kindergarten would be so difficult but it was. I got so fed up with trying to figure out if she was on target or not that I finally gave up and emailed the teacher to ask her if Amanda was on track. Guess what she was... If I, as a teacher, with a master’s degree in Education can't read a Kindergarten report card I wonder how other parents managed. As the school year, Amanda is getting more and more manic. She can't tell me what is going on and I suspect it is nerves about what is going to happen next year. I am afraid to bring it up because if it is something else then I don't want to add to the anxiety that seems to be fueling this manic stage. Just about anything sets her off. Today coming home she was in tears because I got permission for her to get a shirt signed the last day of school. JD has gotten a shirt signed every year he was in school. This morning Amanda said she wanted to do it.. So I emailed the teacher to find out if it was ok. Anyway she was upset because it would be permanent marker and she didn't want to make a permanent mark on her skin. We have had this conversation before and will probably have it again. I have explained that permanent would not stay on her skin forever. She insisted she was not going to do it. I said fine.. it was something for her and not for me so I really didn't care if she did it or not. By the time we got home she had changed her mind again and was going to do it.

I sometimes feel I am going insane because I really don't know how to deal with this. I keep plugging along and trying not to shield her from most of life’s experiences. I don't want the SPD to become a reason she can't succeed in life. It is a hurdle to overcome and figure out a way around but it should never become a something that blocks her path.