School.

16/12/14

Ok,  so this is going to be a bit ranty.  I apologise in advance.

School are being very unhelpful, uncooperative and quite frankly a wee bit rude.
They wanted like to be assessed/diagnosed with ADHD to better understand his behaviour before they would even consider taking him for full days. I did that. I took him to the paediatrician, got him diagnosed and agreed to medicate him during school hours so that he could meet his full potential. And they still won't take him for full time hours!! What more do they want me to do?! He has his statement and is supposed to get a minimum of 20 hours per week with additional support. They are actually breaking the law! A statement of special educational needs is a legally binding document.
I have asked on numerous occasions to revisit the conversation about Luke attending school for full time hours and they keep ignoring it. So I've had to take things even further - I have involved the Parent Partnership. For those who want to know more about the Parent Partnership you do, here. They are fantastic and deal with all kinds of things. It's really worth looking at if you have a special needs child.
So, the case worker is setting up a meeting with myself, her, the senco (special educational needs coordinator) and possibly the head. Hopefully we'll get to the end of it and Luke will be in full time hours shortly after Christmas. Fingers crossed!

I hope you have a very merry Christmas and a happy new year!

Good News & Bad News

3/12/14

So we have been given both good news and bad news. I suppose really the good/bad thing is how you view it. It's about perspective. Anyway, we have a new paediatrician and I kind of love her. We've only seen her once so far, although we have another appointment next week.
Luke was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in August 2013 and we received an additional diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) last week. This is the good news. Finally we have an explanation for why Luke is constantly on the go, why he finds it hard to concentrate, finds it hard to socialise and play with others. For those who want to read more about ADHD you can do this here.
Luke's school were the first to really bring this to our attention, although it had been briefly mentioned before.
So the bad (again it's about perspective) news is that we have been given the choice to medicate Luke. And I am unsure how I feel about this. School would prefer his to be medicated because he is better with the other children, his concentration is good and he is more eager to learn. They've said when he is his 'normal' self he wants to learn but finds it hard to focus and always needs to be moving or making some sound. But to me, my baby is only 5 and that is a very young age to be medicated. I don't want to change him, which some people will see as a silly thing to say. I don't want him to change. Luke is my normal. I have never spent a great deal of time around young children, aside from babysitting - although my girls were about 7, 8 and 10 when I started to babysit them.
After voicing my concerns to the paediatrician we were given a weeks worth of medication to try it, see what difference it makes and make a decision. The medication is fantastic, it calms him down, he is settled, more focused and more sociable. He is nice to the other children and school, he is helpful and shares.
We spoke about alternative choices/therapies but Luke is at the extreme end of the scale and sadly it is unlikely that the would work. We spoke about behavioural therapy, a controlled diet and a specialist health visitor. Specialist health visitors are there to help with routine, sleeping habits, hygiene (toileting, bathing etc) - but we have all of that kind of sorted.
So I am now faced with a tough choice, and I have to decide what is best for Luke.

So the good news is we now have a solid reason for Luke being Luke. ASD and ADHD.