Berryton Visit

Last week ... Wednesday to be exact ... Jocelyn and I went to visit her preschool. It actually made it the THIRD time we've "visited," but we spent over an hour in the classroom with all the other kids, the teacher and the two paras.

We arrived to the classroom between 8:45-9am, and of course we were the first ones there. I again wheeled Jocelyn around the room to see everything and to start getting familiar with a new environment.

She was a pretty happy camper right away.

{She looks mischievous to me here -- like, oh yea, this is MY classroom! haha}

Even though no one was there, no matter, we made ourselves at home and found some toys to play with. Sometimes its the simplest of things! :)

 

I of course had to take pictures of her classroom -- for memory sake I tell ya!!

{The colorful number/letter rug is a play area, the colored discs in a 1/2 circle is where they do "circle-time," the tables are where they do crafts/activities and then of course they have their own cute little locker/cubbies for all their stuff. Its a pretty big classroom for the most part, and that's a good thing because Jocie's wheelchair/equipment can take up some space!}

Even though they try to be tidy and organized, MANY parts of a classroom is simply not CVI (Cerebral Vision Impairment) friendly. :(

{So much clutter & overwhelming to me & I can see just fine!}

The Staff in the Class?

          Teacher: Lisa Baker

          Paras: Michele & Shelia

 

Number of Kids? 8 ... Boogs will make 9! :)

 

The Therapist that will work with Jocelyn?

          PT: David Fath

          OT: Shelle Werner

          SLP: Sarah Khan

 

Other Specialists?

          Nurse: Lorraine

          Vision: Phyllis Schmidt

          Hearing: Anne

 

That's A LOT of people huh? Yeah, I know.

 

The plan is for us to attend Tuesday's and Thursdays from 9am-11:45am for the remainder of the year. We only have about 1 1/2 months, or 14 total days {who's counting right?!}, but basically we will be simply getting our feet wet, getting to know the staff & kids, and for everyone to become acquainted and comfortable with Jocelyn.

 

Truth be told, I'm not even sure we will last the whole 2 1/2 hours each day. We are going to try, but with Jocelyn not EVER sleeping at night and her wanting to take her naps between 9-11am, it will be a challenge. This is a little off subject, but we will be visiting a sleep clinic on May 6th to see what we can do to help ALL of us get a better night's sleep.

 

I'm not living in a dream world - we are ALL nervous -- both staff and I! The staff has not had a kiddo with Jocelyn's needs in quite some time. Jocelyn is going to change the dynamics of the entire classroom and that's okay. It will be good for everyone, but it will definitely be an adjustment.

 

Jocelyn will receive 20mins of each therapy (ie PT/OT/SLP) during her preschool time. I know that doesn't seem like much, but we are only there for two days and for basically a total of 5-5 1/2 hours. Really, that's not very much when you count in a total of 1 hour of therapies, recess time, playing with the other kids {hopefully...she wasn't really "included" in the last preschool we tried}, learning, etc. And in case your wondering, yes, we will still continue our outside therapies (ie PT, speech, hippotherapy & aquatic therapy).

 

I am trying my best to be as optimistic as I possibly can. I think the staff, as well as myself, are all relieved that I will be in the classroom with Jocelyn. I'm not sure if I will be there for the rest of the school year or not ... maybe ... maybe not?!

 

Hopefully I will feel comfortable, encouraged and like Jocelyn is safe, learning and loving it!

 

That's my hope anyways.

 

Our Immediate Goals with Preschool for Jocelyn?

1. To have fun & enjoy herself
2. To be excited for school and comfortable with her new surroundings
3. A chance for everyone to get to know her
4. For her to get accustom to everyone, the noise level, commotion & environment
5. Begin learning, interacting & communicating with others

***We feel like we have to establish these basic goals, so that Jocelyn then has the opportunity for growth, development and learning OUTSIDE the home. So, we aim for these goals, and the rest will fall into place.

 

Jocelyn's three now, she's a big girl -- and mama knows she needs to give her new opportunities. I will be able to tell if this is the right path, but I have to allow people the chance to make a difference and also give them an appropriate amount of time.

 

I'm not gonna lie, I'm nervous and scared!! I don't want Jocelyn to be scared, I don't want her to get hurt with someone else lifting/handling her, I don't want the other kids to be mean to her, I don't want her to be ignored or people get frustrated with her, I don't want her to not be given opportunities just because she can't do something like everyone else ... I want to see her succeed, learn and flourish!!

 

We start on Tuesday -- any and all prayers are appreciated!!