Today was the magic day. Juniper completed his final round of testing with the local school district to determine if he qualifies for services. Each time we go to the Special Ed department I have to bring Juniper in a stroller because he loves that place. Anytime we try and leave he throws an all out major fit and is getting too big for me to carry him back to the car. As soon as we got to the appointment my son ran for the play area in the foyer where there this huge wooden toy that has beaded spirals on top, and each side of the pentagon has a different activity.
When it came time to do the gross motor skills portion of the test, he didn't want to leave. The room where they did the test was this long narrow room that allows space for the kids to run, kick balls, jump, etc. The tester tried to get Juniper to walk down this red line on the floor. He shook his head and said, "No." Then they wanted him to jump off a low chair. Again he said, "No." But he would do it if the tester would hold both of his hands. Then he did it again with one hand. When it came time to do it by himself, he shook his head and said, "No."
When they wanted him to kick the ball he threw it across the room. Ten minutes later, when they were testing a different activity he suddenly started kicking the ball. When they wanted him to walk backwards he pulled out the chair and started jumping off of it all on his own.
Get the picture.
However, I was quite impressed that when the tester said "freeze" he would actually stand still. That's a newbie. And when they asked him to hop over the line it took him a few moments to understand the concept, then he didn't want to stop. And when they wanted him to stand on one foot I was totally surprised when he copy-catted her (though he did keep one hand on the wall while he did it).
After the gross motor skills test he went in a different room for the fine motor skills test. He had the stacking of blocks part down to a skill. But when they mixed it up and told him to make them into a train he built a longer tower. When they wanted him to color a straight line, he squiggled all over the paper. Then, 5 minutes later started drawing straight lines. When the tester wanted him to crumple up a paper, he looked totally confused. However, a few minutes later when they wanted him to fold a piece of paper he was busy crumpling his paper up and walking it over to the trash can.
So I've learned something about my son. It takes him a few minutes to digest what he has seen and what he's been asked to do. If given the time to think about and work it out in his mind, then he's quite capable of doing it. He doesn't just mimic. He thinks it through until his mind understands it and then he'll to it. It maybe slower than a "typical" child, but I think its kind of cool that he can pick things up that quickly.
In the end, I was showed his ratings from all of the tests and was told "We agree with all of your concerns." Well, I'm glad it wasn't just my imagination. ;-) The next step is for the education team to get together, review his results and formulate and Individual Education Plan or IEP. Then they will discuss his placement. Seeing how he is going to be 3 in one week, they're going to have to step on it and quickly (especially since Monday is a holiday).
I asked the coordinator what were the chances of him getting into the preschool program and was told that they "can't" discuss that until at the IEP review meeting. I told her that my other son was already in the preschool program and it would mean the world to me if Juniper got in as well.
"Oh, so you already know about Miss Jenn."
When I said yes, she started circling the different areas on the paper where Juniper had "developmental delays" and started doing a dramatic nod. "When we have kids with delays in more than one area, then there is a high likelihood that they will assigned to the preschool program."
I smiled and laughed and thanked her for not telling me before the IEP meeting. Yahoo!!!! Now I just have to work with the teacher to establish the necessary goals for Juniper to work on, find out what days he'll be going to school, and get him set up to ride the bus with his brother.
Happy Dance!!!
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