Dear
Parents,
Our daughter Elizabeth is in the
kindergarten class at Swanson. Your child may talk about the girl
who doesn't talk or do the same things they do. That's Elizabeth.
The reason I am writing this is so you can know a little about
her for your own information and so you can answer some of your
child's questions. Elizabeth
was born with a genetic disorder that left her with multiple disabilities.
She is generally very healthy, but the disorder resulted in delays
in development. Elizabeth has been getting educational services
from District 66 since she was about 6 months old. When she was
20 months old, she started classes at Sunset. She has since been
to Westbrook, Oakdale, and back to Sunset. These have all been
"special" classes where there have been mostly other
children with disabilities. During this time, we have used regular
child care and preschool as well.
We
wanted to stop bouncing around schools and have both of our children
go to school in our own neighborhood with all the other kids.
I want to stress that we did not want to just show up at Swanson
(the local kindergarten) on the first day of school to drop Elizabeth
off. All during the spring and summer, I have spent countless
hours on the phone and in meetings with everyone involved to plan
how Elizabeth would be able to participate in the Swanson kindergarten
program. You know how scary it is to have your child encounter
challenging new environments. However, I have seen Elizabeth rise
to challenges before and surprise us all. She has learned so much!
In addition, District 66 staff have spent a lot of time in making
sure that there is enough support in the classroom when Elizabeth
is there so the program is not affected adversely.
I
also want to stress that we don't expect the kindergarten staff
to "fix" Elizabeth and teach her all the things the
other kids are learning (I wish we could pull off such a miracle).
Rather, Elizabeth is in the class to get to know other children,
to learn how they behave and play, and to learn how to communicate
more easily with them,. Otherwise, she has her own education plan.
The other children will, in turn, learn so many things from her.
Kids her age are much more perceptive than we give them credit
for. They have few preconceived notions and they ask good questions.
I tell 5-year-olds her brain doesn't always work very well so
she has trouble talking, walking, and learning how to use toys.
Even though she doesn't always answer when you talk to her, she
does understand a lot of what is said to her. And she will make
choices about what she wants to do. In fact, she can be very determined.
Please
don't tell your child that Elizabeth is "retarded".
That term only labels her in a negative way by describing one
characteristic. She is a bright, happy child who is very determined
to explore her world. She swims and swings and plays in sandboxes.
She hates television, but loves books. She has many friends and
is learning a simple sign language that the other kids enjoy using.
Obviously, I have a lot to tell people about Elizabeth. If you
have read this far, I hope you have found it interesting. Please
call me any time if you have any questions or just want to visit.
Yours truly, Susan Christensen,
Nebraska
Rosenkoetter,
S., Hains, A. H., & Fowler, S. A. (1994). Bridging early
services for children with special needs and their families: A
practical guide for transition planning. Baltimore: Paul H.
Brookes Publishing Company. Reprinted with permission.
Methods