Kitty is almost 5. We started in Early On around the age of 16 months because of a speech delay and she was diagnosed with Autism and Global Developmental Delay at age 2. She is sweet, very social, very sensitive and very dramatic.
With more time left in ECSE ( Early Childhood Special Education, children can stay in the class until age 6), why did we want to put Kitty in a mainstream GSRP (Great Start Readiness Program) classroom?
"Inclusion is about a sense of belonging, about feeling respected, valued for who you are. It is an all-encompassing practice of ensuring that people of differing abilities related to, for example, sex, age, and race, feel a sense of belonging, are engaged, and are connected to the goals and objectives of the whole wider society.”
- Buyie Masuku
Above all we wanted to Presume Competence, and we also really thought she was ready. Her verbal skills were growing by leaps and bounds and she is an eager learner, very easily motivated. Because she likes people so much, so we knew she would learn by watching her peers.Another big factor is our confidence in the support we knew she would receive. We would have had a hard time going forward without it.
But above all, we wanted her in the mainstream class because she deserves to be with her peers and have every opportunity afforded to her.
So, what did the day look like? Because GSRP is a half day program we decided to keep her in ECSE in the morning (the less intensive nature of that classroom was a good way for her to start her day). She then had one and half hours of lunch, recess, and rest time. This was very important to us because we knew she would need some down time during the day. Then she would go to GSRP in the afternoon. There were a few hiccups along with way, but over all, it was pretty great!
She learned to write her name, say the pledge, all of her letters, to count to thirty, and so many other things.
She had a wonderful team behind her. The folks from ECSE and GSRP worked really well together, and the aides, they were amazing. We were lucky enough to have the mother daughter wonder team for our girls and it was amazing! They used a daily report sheet to show how each day went, which was great since Kitty wasn't really able to tell me how each day went.
Toward the end of the year she started to really push for her independence, and I definitely attribute that to her time in GSRP. They worked really hard to find ways to teach her the class curriculum. One of my favorite stories is how they found out how Kitty wanted to be a farmer when she grew up. Kitty isn't always able to answer direct questions so the teacher took the time to sit with her and some occupation figures and would watch to see which ones she gravitated towards. They used this information at the end of the year celebration and my Dad (who is a farmer) was over the moon!
One of the best things about Kitty's experience in GSRP had to be her classmates. They really took to her and looked after her. I really believe her growing independence came from being with her class every day. And they learned from her too. She had a social story about the voice level system used in the school and she "read" it to her class at the end of the year when it was time for them to learn about it. They were amazed!
Kitty loved GSRP! Her aides would always tell me how antsy she would get on Mondays when she was in ECSE all day.
She is now in Kindergarten and I really believe her experience in GSRP helped prepare her to succeed there. It gave her access to a more intensive learning environment, while still letting her keep her feet on the ground in ECSE.
I really don't think there is much I would do differently. The lines of communication were always open, Kitty got the support she needed when she needed it and was given the respect she deserved. I really couldn't ask for more. I really hope we can keep it up!
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