Well, Emma's first experience with school was earlier this year at a local Head Start preschool. She is so bright and knows so much that I thought that early preschool might help her make friends and stuff like that. It was pure hell from day 1!
First, I had to constantly let the staff know that Emma HAS to be cathed every 2 hours and that she can do this mostly herself (she just needs a little help getting the catheter initally in her mitrofanoff stoma). Instead, the staff kept forgetting and she'd come home with a diaper filled to capacity. Second, they wouldn't allow her to be in cloth diapers while she was there, they only had to be disposable, then they balked at the diapers I brought with me, saying they leaked a lot (I used Tushies diapers and haven't had a problem with bad leaks with them).
Third, they treated Emma like she was retarded, talking to her really slowly and stuff like that. Emma would tell me that she didn't like this teacher or that teacher, becuase they talked funny. Well, I found out what her meaning of "funny" was.
Fourth, several of the little kids there who were older than her kept making fun of her leg braces, they wouldn't stop touching her wheelchair when she asked them to stop, and called her a baby because she still had to wear diapers. Emma would come home in tears becuase of this.
After hearing this for 2 weeks, I had a meeting with the staff. The staff wasn't interested in hearing what I had to say and one teacher there talked real slowly to me as well. I asked her if she does that to everyone in a wheelchair, and she replied "Well, most people who use wheelchair have some degree of brain damage". I told her that both Emma and my brain were fine and we had average-above average intellegence and that she shouldn't assume that for everyone in wheelchairs. She asked me if I went to college or even finished school, and I told her that I graduated high school and went onto college to pursue a degree in vetrinary medicine and have a vetrinary assistant degree. She shut up then.
This meeting went on for 2 hours and I decided that this place was not the best enviroment for Emma and pulled her out. I decided to home school the girls until they were at least in 1st. grade. Then, they could decide if they still wanted to be homeschooled or go to a private school (I found out that some students can get scholarships to private schools). I've already found an excellent private school that offers 2 different special ed programs that would be perfect for Emma. Plus, they wouldn't have to take that awful WASL test either way! Right now, both girls like being homeschooled so much that I doubt if they give a care about public school.
I've taught them basic stuff like letters and numbers, sounds, shapes, and other simple things, as well as made them educational items like a felt board with different shapes and stuff, and a plastic canvas counting box and alphabet letters.
My family doesn't agree with me homeschooling, because they are afraid it will make the girls non socialable, but both girls socialize quite well. They both go to a support group for parents of physically disabled kids 2 times a month and the kids play while the grown-ups talk and visit.
Jessie
(single mommy to Emma, 3 years and Angela, 2 years)
