RE: Sharing with classmates

May 25, 2007

oh how great is that and i like the last part thats how ill often say and

think stuff i mite not be able to walk or hear or c but i think just like

you thats how i think lot of the time

>

> Aubrie's teacher for next year initiated an opportunity for her to speak

> to

> the kids at the middle school in town. You may remember that Aubrie has

> been at our local school preK thru 2nd grade but attended ISD in a nearby

> town as a day student for 3rd grade. We've decided that she'll go half and

> half next year: mornings at ISD, afternoons at the middle school here.

>

> Aubrie visited the school here one day earlier this year before we made

> the

> final decision. She visited the 4th graders to see the different teachers

> (especially the one that she'll have next year) as well as all of the 3rd

> grade classes to see her peers and what they were doing in 3rd grade

> (compared to what they were doing in 3rd grade at ISD).

>

> Since then, the 4th graders have been asking many questions that Aubrie's

> future teacher can't answer. She asked that we speak to the kids to catch

> them before they develop an attitude in 5th grade :-)

>

> This morning, Aubrie gave a Power Point presentation " All About Me " to all

> of the 3rd graders. When I asked if she'd prefer to tell her story once to

> the large group or have to repeat herself over and over to each class, she

> didn't hesitate in choosing to repeat herself because " I want them to

> listen

> to me and they won't listen in a large group " . What a smartie!

>

> The presentation takes about 15 minutes. We used a PPT she'd done as part

> of her coursework at ISD. All the kids presented themselves to each other

> at the start of the year. So we updated it, inserted more photos, and

> added

> " Some things you might wonder about " answering FAQs like " Why do I have

> CHARGE? " " Why do I wear hearing aids? " " Why do I bump into you sometimes? "

> and " Why do I have braces on my legs? " . The final slide says " I am just

> like you. I'm a person. I like to have friends. If you have questions,

> ask me " with lots of photos of her and her local friends through the

> years.

>

> It was so cool! The kids listened so well. The last group asked tons of

> questions. After the presentation, we did a simulation. We gave each kid 2

> cotton balls and a Post-it Note. They plugged their ears to become hard of

> hearing and they covered their left eye with the Post-It so have vision

> similar to Aubrie's. They lined up and walked back to class with their ear

> plugs and eye patches.

>

> Tomorrow, we speak to the 4th graders. I am so proud of Aubrie and so

> pleased that the teacher is the one who made it happen. I'd brought it up

> in the past, we'd talked about it at IEP meetings, the aide was

> supportive,

> but I would have lost track of time and let the opportunity pass before

> the

> end of the year without her prompting. Great stuff to have people like

> that

> on our " team " .

>

> Michele W

>

May 25, 2007

oh how great is that and i like the last part thats how ill often say and

think stuff i mite not be able to walk or hear or c but i think just like

you thats how i think lot of the time

>

> Aubrie's teacher for next year initiated an opportunity for her to speak

> to

> the kids at the middle school in town. You may remember that Aubrie has

> been at our local school preK thru 2nd grade but attended ISD in a nearby

> town as a day student for 3rd grade. We've decided that she'll go half and

> half next year: mornings at ISD, afternoons at the middle school here.

>

> Aubrie visited the school here one day earlier this year before we made

> the

> final decision. She visited the 4th graders to see the different teachers

> (especially the one that she'll have next year) as well as all of the 3rd

> grade classes to see her peers and what they were doing in 3rd grade

> (compared to what they were doing in 3rd grade at ISD).

>

> Since then, the 4th graders have been asking many questions that Aubrie's

> future teacher can't answer. She asked that we speak to the kids to catch

> them before they develop an attitude in 5th grade :-)

>

> This morning, Aubrie gave a Power Point presentation " All About Me " to all

> of the 3rd graders. When I asked if she'd prefer to tell her story once to

> the large group or have to repeat herself over and over to each class, she

> didn't hesitate in choosing to repeat herself because " I want them to

> listen

> to me and they won't listen in a large group " . What a smartie!

>

> The presentation takes about 15 minutes. We used a PPT she'd done as part

> of her coursework at ISD. All the kids presented themselves to each other

> at the start of the year. So we updated it, inserted more photos, and

> added

> " Some things you might wonder about " answering FAQs like " Why do I have

> CHARGE? " " Why do I wear hearing aids? " " Why do I bump into you sometimes? "

> and " Why do I have braces on my legs? " . The final slide says " I am just

> like you. I'm a person. I like to have friends. If you have questions,

> ask me " with lots of photos of her and her local friends through the

> years.

>

> It was so cool! The kids listened so well. The last group asked tons of

> questions. After the presentation, we did a simulation. We gave each kid 2

> cotton balls and a Post-it Note. They plugged their ears to become hard of

> hearing and they covered their left eye with the Post-It so have vision

> similar to Aubrie's. They lined up and walked back to class with their ear

> plugs and eye patches.

>

> Tomorrow, we speak to the 4th graders. I am so proud of Aubrie and so

> pleased that the teacher is the one who made it happen. I'd brought it up

> in the past, we'd talked about it at IEP meetings, the aide was

> supportive,

> but I would have lost track of time and let the opportunity pass before

> the

> end of the year without her prompting. Great stuff to have people like

> that

> on our " team " .

>

> Michele W

>

May 25, 2007

Michele, this is so inspiring! I think it's great that Aubrie is so enthusiastic

about educating her classmates. Presentations and simulations like this are so

effective for educating others, particularly when given by a peer. Hooray for

Aubrie!

, mom to (5)

http://kauffmanlak.blogspot.com/

---------------------------------

Shape Yahoo! in your own image. Join our Network Research Panel today!

May 25, 2007

im in a huggy mood tonite and was today to must tb the cold lol

hugssssssssssssssssss

>

> Michele, this is so inspiring! I think it's great that Aubrie is so

> enthusiastic about educating her classmates. Presentations and simulations

> like this are so effective for educating others, particularly when given by

> a peer. Hooray for Aubrie!

>

> , mom to (5)

> http://kauffmanlak.blogspot.com/

>

> ---------------------------------

> Shape Yahoo! in your own image. Join our Network Research Panel today!

>

May 25, 2007

,

What a wonderful story. You must be so proud of Aubrie, I know I am:). I

think educating others is so important. It brings about so much more

understanding and opens the pathways for better socialization. We always

make sure Peyton's passport is up to date and available for all his

classmates to bring home for a time at the beginning of each school year .

Thanks for sharing...

Corrie

>

> Aubrie's teacher for next year initiated an opportunity for her to speak

> to

> the kids at the middle school in town. You may remember that Aubrie has

> been at our local school preK thru 2nd grade but attended ISD in a nearby

> town as a day student for 3rd grade. We've decided that she'll go half and

> half next year: mornings at ISD, afternoons at the middle school here.

>

> Aubrie visited the school here one day earlier this year before we made

> the

> final decision. She visited the 4th graders to see the different teachers

> (especially the one that she'll have next year) as well as all of the 3rd

> grade classes to see her peers and what they were doing in 3rd grade

> (compared to what they were doing in 3rd grade at ISD).

>

> Since then, the 4th graders have been asking many questions that Aubrie's

> future teacher can't answer. She asked that we speak to the kids to catch

> them before they develop an attitude in 5th grade :-)

>

> This morning, Aubrie gave a Power Point presentation " All About Me " to all

> of the 3rd graders. When I asked if she'd prefer to tell her story once to

> the large group or have to repeat herself over and over to each class, she

> didn't hesitate in choosing to repeat herself because " I want them to

> listen

> to me and they won't listen in a large group " . What a smartie!

>

> The presentation takes about 15 minutes. We used a PPT she'd done as part

> of her coursework at ISD. All the kids presented themselves to each other

> at the start of the year. So we updated it, inserted more photos, and

> added

> " Some things you might wonder about " answering FAQs like " Why do I have

> CHARGE? " " Why do I wear hearing aids? " " Why do I bump into you sometimes? "

> and " Why do I have braces on my legs? " . The final slide says " I am just

> like you. I'm a person. I like to have friends. If you have questions,

> ask me " with lots of photos of her and her local friends through the

> years.

>

> It was so cool! The kids listened so well. The last group asked tons of

> questions. After the presentation, we did a simulation. We gave each kid 2

> cotton balls and a Post-it Note. They plugged their ears to become hard of

> hearing and they covered their left eye with the Post-It so have vision

> similar to Aubrie's. They lined up and walked back to class with their ear

> plugs and eye patches.

>

> Tomorrow, we speak to the 4th graders. I am so proud of Aubrie and so

> pleased that the teacher is the one who made it happen. I'd brought it up

> in the past, we'd talked about it at IEP meetings, the aide was

> supportive,

> but I would have lost track of time and let the opportunity pass before

> the

> end of the year without her prompting. Great stuff to have people like

> that

> on our " team " .

>

> Michele W

>

May 25, 2007

Corrie-

Thanks for the comments. I love the idea of Peyton sending home is passport

for students to share with their families. I thought about sending home a

handout but didn't think about it in advance. The only thing I had prepared

was way too complicated for elementary kids. It would have been nice to get

the info home in some accurate form so that parents could find out more if

they wanted. I wish I'd thought ahead and ordered the Foundation brochures.

Michele W

_____

From: CHARGE [mailto:CHARGE ] On Behalf Of

Mike & Corrie Young

Sent: Friday, May 25, 2007 7:47 AM

To: CHARGE

Subject: Re: Sharing with classmates

,

What a wonderful story. You must be so proud of Aubrie, I know I am:). I

think educating others is so important. It brings about so much more

understanding and opens the pathways for better socialization. We always

make sure Peyton's passport is up to date and available for all his

classmates to bring home for a time at the beginning of each school year .

Thanks for sharing...

Corrie

May 25, 2007

Ellen-

It's a difficult thing to get others to consider that we are all the same

inside regardless of the functioning of our physical body. I hope by

planting the seed in 4th grade, those kids will still get it when they are

adults.

Michele W

_____

From: CHARGE [mailto:CHARGE ] On Behalf Of

ellen howe

Sent: Friday, May 25, 2007 1:34 AM

To: CHARGE

Subject: Re: Sharing with classmates

oh how great is that and i like the last part thats how ill often say and

think stuff i mite not be able to walk or hear or c but i think just like

you thats how i think lot of the time

May 25, 2007

Thanks, -

I hope the kids take the information and really think about it. I won't be

there to see their responses later - you know, are they mocking on the

playground or kind? I guess it's a good thing I'm not there. My hope is

that for every kid who would mock or tease there will be another kid to

stand up for what's right.

Michele W

_____

From: CHARGE [mailto:CHARGE ] On Behalf Of

Kauffman

Sent: Friday, May 25, 2007 6:07 AM

To: CHARGE

Subject: Re: Sharing with classmates

Michele, this is so inspiring! I think it's great that Aubrie is so

enthusiastic about educating her classmates. Presentations and simulations

like this are so effective for educating others, particularly when given by

a peer. Hooray for Aubrie!

, mom to (5)

http://kauffmanlak. http://kauffmanlak.blogspot.com/> blogspot.com/

May 27, 2007

I loved your idea. I try to give a presentation/handout to her new

grade level teachers and always ask that they introduce her in the

class and tell clearly about how to effectively coomunicate with

her. But now that Amita is going to third grade I am going to try

out your idea. A ppt presentation by Amita to her new class will be

far more effective than me talking to her teachers.

BTW how are you dealing with keeping up with Aubrie's grade level

course work. I(and Amita) found myself struggling a little in second

grade. Here in Texas we have the TAKS test for reading and math

starting from third grade and everyone I spoke to has said that in

3rd grade the amount of work increases dramatically. Have you

implemented any special IEP strategies or any classroom strategies

for Aubrie? Hey, any hand holding and telling me not to worry will

be greatly appreciated.

Deepta

>

> -

>

> It'll be great to meet you guys! Of course, prayers are with you

for a good

> outcome with the heart stuff.

>

> Actually, Aubrie gave her presentation 8 times! She did each class

> separately - 5 classes of 3rd graders and 3 classes of 4th

graders - on 2

> different days. The second day (today) she was tired. Turns out

she had a

> slight fever and has some kind of little virus going around. Poor

kid. But

> it wasn't fatigue from repeating her story. She wants to be an

actress or a

> teacher - or a chef. She's not at all afraid of being in front of

a crowd.

> My kinda girl! I used to be very shy as a kid - but then I became

a teacher

> and public speaker and the shyness is a thing of the past for the

most part.

>

> Hoping things work out well for so you will have a worry-

free trip

> to CA!

>

> Michele W

>

May 27, 2007

I loved your idea. I try to give a presentation/handout to her new

grade level teachers and always ask that they introduce her in the

class and tell clearly about how to effectively coomunicate with

her. But now that Amita is going to third grade I am going to try

out your idea. A ppt presentation by Amita to her new class will be

far more effective than me talking to her teachers.

BTW how are you dealing with keeping up with Aubrie's grade level

course work. I(and Amita) found myself struggling a little in second

grade. Here in Texas we have the TAKS test for reading and math

starting from third grade and everyone I spoke to has said that in

3rd grade the amount of work increases dramatically. Have you

implemented any special IEP strategies or any classroom strategies

for Aubrie? Hey, any hand holding and telling me not to worry will

be greatly appreciated.

Deepta

>

> -

>

> It'll be great to meet you guys! Of course, prayers are with you

for a good

> outcome with the heart stuff.

>

> Actually, Aubrie gave her presentation 8 times! She did each class

> separately - 5 classes of 3rd graders and 3 classes of 4th

graders - on 2

> different days. The second day (today) she was tired. Turns out

she had a

> slight fever and has some kind of little virus going around. Poor

kid. But

> it wasn't fatigue from repeating her story. She wants to be an

actress or a

> teacher - or a chef. She's not at all afraid of being in front of

a crowd.

> My kinda girl! I used to be very shy as a kid - but then I became

a teacher

> and public speaker and the shyness is a thing of the past for the

most part.

>

> Hoping things work out well for so you will have a worry-

free trip

> to CA!

>

> Michele W

>

May 27, 2007

Deepta-

I've been spoiled because at ISD the workload seems better. Maybe because

it's a predominantly residential school - who's gonna do 3 hours of homework

with each kid? In 2nd grade, when she was at our local school, it was

difficult when she had any large amount. She gets frustrated and tired

easier. Plus, we have less waking hours than typical kids because she goes

to bed much earlier. Trying to find homework time is a huge challenge. I'm

a bit worried about it in 4th grade, to tell you the truth. She'll be going

half time to the local school again. Between both schools, I am expecting

an increased workload. We didn't specifically address it in the IEP. I'd

have to review it. Seems like we marked just about every accommodation

listed - shorter assignments, fewer spelling words, etc. But I don't recall

noting any special considerations for homework.

One thing I pay attention to is that her work is not labor-intensive.

Instead of having to rewrite an entire sentence with a word inserted, for

example, she should have to do a fill-in the blank. Instead of having to

rewrite a math problem out of the book, I copy the page so she can write her

answers on it. There are many ways to alter the format of a typical

worksheet to reduce the writing part of it. It's critical that our kids

test their knowledge and demonstrate their understanding with as little

unnecessary written work as possible. Homework would go better sometimes if

I took dictation.

Last year, I noticed the problem wasn't that the work was difficult or

labor-intensive. It was that she expected to need help and would demand

that I be there watching and approving of each answer. We'll be working on

independence in the future.

Does Amita use large print texts and worksheets?? We tried to implement

that in 2nd grade, but the folks just didn't get the importance of it so it

was done haphazardly. At ISD, they get it. Even if Aubrie seems to do fine

with the regular print, it is so much easier for her when things are

enlarged. The teachers used to worry about providing too many crutches.

But now we are getting the idea that they are not crutches, but necessary

tools to help her get things done efficiently. She has to work so hard to

see, hear, sit in her chair, hold the pencil. We need to remove the extra

effort in every area we can by enlarging print, providing well-fitted

furniture, FM system, etc. This year, Aubrie had both large print texts and

a magnifier to use for illustrations, charts, etc. I think that has made a

difference for her.

We are also talking about getting more books on tape to help with the

fatigue factor of reading large amounts.

The only idea I can offer is to watch for ways things can be modified for

her so that she still gets the instruction, the practice, or demonstrates

her understanding - but in a way that really works for her. Also - I remind

Aubrie's teachers that she doesn't have energy or time to spend on

unnecessary tasks. No busy work for her. If she doesn't need the practice

on something, she should be doing something else. She has so many therapies

and academics to fit into her day, there is no time to be wasted.

I hope there is something useful in there for you. I think it's a huge

challenge for most of us. Hopefully, the folks ahead of us will chime in

with things that were helpful to them.

Michele W

Aubrie's mom 9 yrs

May 29, 2007

Michele,

This is so cool!! I would love to see her presentation--is it " shareable " ?

pam

Sharing with classmates

Aubrie's teacher for next year initiated an opportunity for her to speak to

the kids at the middle school in town. You may remember that Aubrie has

been at our local school preK thru 2nd grade but attended ISD in a nearby

town as a day student for 3rd grade. We've decided that she'll go half and

half next year: mornings at ISD, afternoons at the middle school here.

Aubrie visited the school here one day earlier this year before we made the

final decision. She visited the 4th graders to see the different teachers

(especially the one that she'll have next year) as well as all of the 3rd

grade classes to see her peers and what they were doing in 3rd grade

(compared to what they were doing in 3rd grade at ISD).

Since then, the 4th graders have been asking many questions that Aubrie's

future teacher can't answer. She asked that we speak to the kids to catch

them before they develop an attitude in 5th grade :-)

This morning, Aubrie gave a Power Point presentation " All About Me " to all

of the 3rd graders. When I asked if she'd prefer to tell her story once to

the large group or have to repeat herself over and over to each class, she

didn't hesitate in choosing to repeat herself because " I want them to listen

to me and they won't listen in a large group " . What a smartie!

The presentation takes about 15 minutes. We used a PPT she'd done as part

of her coursework at ISD. All the kids presented themselves to each other

at the start of the year. So we updated it, inserted more photos, and added

" Some things you might wonder about " answering FAQs like " Why do I have

CHARGE? " " Why do I wear hearing aids? " " Why do I bump into you sometimes? "

and " Why do I have braces on my legs? " . The final slide says " I am just

like you. I'm a person. I like to have friends. If you have questions,

ask me " with lots of photos of her and her local friends through the years.

It was so cool! The kids listened so well. The last group asked tons of

questions. After the presentation, we did a simulation. We gave each kid 2

cotton balls and a Post-it Note. They plugged their ears to become hard of

hearing and they covered their left eye with the Post-It so have vision

similar to Aubrie's. They lined up and walked back to class with their ear

plugs and eye patches.

Tomorrow, we speak to the 4th graders. I am so proud of Aubrie and so

pleased that the teacher is the one who made it happen. I'd brought it up

in the past, we'd talked about it at IEP meetings, the aide was supportive,

but I would have lost track of time and let the opportunity pass before the

end of the year without her prompting. Great stuff to have people like that

on our " team " .

Michele W

May 29, 2007

Pam-

I can't get PowerPoints to email - too large of a file. But I was going to

try to convert it to a .pdf. If I ever figure it out, I'll send it to ya.

Michele

_____

From: CHARGE [mailto:CHARGE ] On Behalf Of

pamela.ryan@...

Sent: Tuesday, May 29, 2007 9:04 PM

To: CHARGE

Subject: RE: Sharing with classmates