August 31, 2011

Starting School

Summer is winding down and it has been a great one! Lots of little ones are starting school soon. Thankfully that won't be Gavin until next year. I'm not quite ready to have my baby start kindergarten yet! But I'm sure it will be here before we know it.

Little Miss Gabby starts school this year though and its pretty exciting! :)

I know there are some valid concerns and worries about sending your child off to school! And when he or she is missing a hand or has some other type of limb difference the worries and anxiety skyrocket, as you wonder how the other children will react, imagine them saying mean things and pointing and how your child will handle it, etc. etc.

I know this is a source of stress for many parents. So I want to share some really helpful suggestions and info put together by Jordan's mom, Jen, of Born Just Right.

I just love this idea of making a little book about your child to share with the other children. Check out Jordan's Kindergarten Book! Very well done :)

Here is also a template for a letter you can personalize. It is directed to the parents of your child's classmates to give them a bit of background info and help them answer questions their children might have about limb differences.
Generic Letter to Parents.

I hope you find these helpful. Thanks so much Jen for these fantastic resources!

Also, if you don't have one already, be sure to request a "Starting School Kit" from CHAMP! There is lots of great info in there too!

If you are looking for books about limb differences, check out my book list! You could always ask the teacher to incorporate some of these books into circle time, or even arrange to come in with your child to talk about how we are all different, read a related book and allow the children to ask questions. This can be really helpful for everyone! CHAMP is really awesome about having someone come in to do a presentation with your child if that is something you would like to do!

Good luck to all our friends starting school this year!

3 comments:

  1. Awesome suggestions. I love how we're all banding together and helping make sure parents feel comfortable about sending our kids to school. Thinks are going incredibly well for Jordan.

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  2. Sheriauna started a new school last week since she is now in French Immersion and it has not been the greatest start. She has outbursts and is crying a lot. The first day she said she is going to hide her arm so that the kids do not ask questions.:( I know that it is a transition period but it is difficult. I did do a little presentation for the children the first day and they were receptive, however her teacher seems a bit hands off maybe because this is also new territory for her. I also believe Sheriauna is dealing with a lot of different emotions from new school and new people to having a heightened self awareness of her difference now that she is older. People keep telling me that it will get better and I know that but each day she is sad is hard and I just keep encouraging her and reminding her how fabulous she is :).

    TTYL

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  3. Great letter, what a great idea! Just curious to hear about any parent, teacher or faculty reactions to the letter?

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