He was a tall thin boy for his age, no fat on those bones. His mom always tried to be sure that he had all of his favorites for lunch because he was an extremely picky eater and he had several food allergies which made it difficult to ensure that he was getting all the nutrients that he needed for a growing boy of ten.
As we left the room with him holding tightly onto my hand I could feel the wet, stickiness of his hand in mine, you see he often would put both of his hands into his mouth, if it wasn't his hands it would be whatever object that was close by.
The saliva that bonded my hand to his didn't bother me, I was quite use to holding wet hands, it was just part of the territory. His gait was quite unsteady, we started down the hallway toward the main office. With his other hand he held a folder that contained several pictures.
we stopped numerous times before arriving at our destination. He would drop the folder several times and I would instruct him to pick it up. When we opened the door to the office the secretary sat patiently waiting for him to push the big red button that was attached to the desk. We both cheered him on waiting for him to reach his goal.
Saliva dripped from his mouth onto the desk wetting the big red button and slightly repulsing the secretary. After a few more minutes and several more verbal prompts he was finally able to push the red button, so that the recorded message could be heard by the secretary. "Good morning, I'm here to pick up the mail." He laughed and clapped his wet hands in total delight. The moment that we were waiting for had finally arrived, this child who struggled with every aspect of life had accomplished a goal that others took for granted.
His sense of accomplishment could not be vocalized, because he had no words to give it, his tedious walk up the hallway caused many to shy away in fear, his loud boisterous vocalizations were often disturbing to others, he was a child with no friends.
Other children shared the simple things in life that this child would never know, playing basketball in the driveway, hanging out with buddies on a Saturday night at the movies. This small triumphant act caused us to stop in amazement, it took us only four short months to accomplish.
After spending three amazing years with this wonderful child my heart still leaps when my mind thinks of this triumphant day!
Simply a thought from Roe. Share your most memorable moments with your incredible students, Ann and I will be waiting to hear.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Monday, May 13, 2013
Weigh in On Your Pension
Click on this link to read more about Corbett's Pension Plan Reform. Let Us know what you think, give us some feedback, we want to hear from you.
http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/05/corbetts_pension_reform_plan_n.html
Points to Ponder:
How will Corbett's pension reform plan effect educators who has decided to retire early? Will the quality of classroom instruction be effected because of the educator's financial worries of the future of retirement? Let us know your thoughts...
Finding the Right Funding Formula
Joelle Ketchem, and her son, who has Angelman Syndrome were the featured story. Angelman Syndrome is a congenital disorder similar to autism that causes severe neurological impairments. These impairments require that the individual receive a high level of care. There were some staggering statistics given, it takes 100,000 dollars a year to educate one student who has special needs and in this year alone, 1 in 50 students will require special education services. These statistics are quite overwhelming when we think of the grand scale of where we stand with the economy. This is not what I found to be the fascinating aspect of this story, what was so intriguing was what Joelle Ketchem had to say about her son.
This mom gave us a quick glimpse of how not having the funds needed for her son took away his ability to be the best person that he could be. She went on to explain how this lack would cause her son to lose the opportunity to experience those things that other children experience on a regular basis. Being a retired educator who taught children with disabilities like Joelle’s son this story tugged at my heart as well as my conscience. We as citizens of this fair city must find a way of not letting our children, especially the ones that need us the most become the victims of federal/state lack it is our duty to utilize whatever resources available to develop a balanced equation that gives all children an equal opportunity and a chance to shine.
Thoughts to Ponder:
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