Clear Communication is Key

I am happy to report that the frustration I experienced on Tuesday regarding our transition plans for Ryan has been resolved to my satisfaction . . . for now. 

Yesterday morning, I did manage to get the school Principal on the phone, and got her to clarify what she meant by the things she said (and didn't say) when talking on the phone to our Senior Therapist from Summit Centre on Tuesday. 

Coincidentally, I actually got some good information from one of Ryan's EAs before I even called the principal.When I dropped Ryan off yesterday morning, we chatted for a few minutes, ans she filled me in on some details about things going on in the classroom as they are preparing to have Ryan there full time.

Because I'm a busy momma, but I do want to share the info. with those who are curious (and also to document it for my own purposes), I'm going to put a copy of the "Note" I created on my phone and the email I sent to Ryan's ST below. 

Conversation with EA

While I was dropping off Ryan this morning, she brought up our transition meeting on the 14th. 

She mentioned the following pertinent items:

1) They are trying to prepare the whole class for Ryan attending full time. 

2)They are trying to get the other three little guys with special needs more settled in their routines and more independent so one of them can spend more one-on-one time with Ryan when he starts full time. 

3) They want to talk with our ST and find out more about the programs Ryan's working on at Summit. They want to spend time working on these with him in the classroom. They look forward to discussing ways to make the school and Summit programs mesh and transition seamlessly. 

4) They are trying to get Ryan's potty time figured out: trying to time it so they put him on the potty before he's wet, so there's more chance he'll pee on the potty. 

Email to ST (a few unrelated sentences removed)

I think I’ve got some answers to the questions we had about your phone call with the Principal yesterday.  She apologized for any confusion and for if she seemed rushed to you on the phone; she was in between meetings.

I asked about why they insisted on having you observe AFTER our transition meeting, and what those “issues” were in the classroom.

The reason for wanting to have you in after the transition meeting is because they are in the process of putting together lots of new programs and strategies for Ryan, and they want them to be fully in place before you observe them.  They feel it would look scattered/unorganized to you if you see it before they’ve had time to implement everything and make all the adjustments from their end.  Once they get things a little more settled, they definitely want your input. Basically, the “issues” are the things they’re trying to tweak right now.  It’s nothing major.  They just feel like they need more time to implement the changes before you come to observe them, and they won’t be ready before the transition meeting next week.

They don’t foresee this as delaying Ryan’s entry in any way.  I asked if they are comfortable with you coming to observe after Ryan has been fully transitioned (like on the consultation basis we discussed), and they are extremely open to your visits and suggestions.  In fact, the principal mentioned how eager they are to learn what programs Ryan is working on at Summit, and how you work with him, and get your help in melding Summit’s program with the school’s program as seamlessly as possible for Ryan.

The school is under the impression that Ryan will be full time by the end of October.  I have been operating under the assumption that it would be the third week of October, but it may be longer.  I think we are all kind of uncertain and need to come to a consensus. Maybe that is something we can do at the transition meeting, now that we know the full transition will not be the end of our consultations together?

I explained that it would be better for you if you knew in what ways they needed your help, so you could bring ideas to the transition meeting, but they don’t seem to be in a rush for that.  It appears they’d rather get their program settled first, and then bring you in to get feedback on that. 

At this point, the only issues the EAs have mentioned to me are 1) dealing with transition times (drop-off, pick-up, going to the the washroom, recess)—those are when Ryan gets most upset and 2) trying to set up a better potty schedule for him—like finding a way to get him on the potty before he’s wet, so he’ll be more likely to pee in the potty.

The Principal said they might want to talk to you a bit more, after our transition meeting, on that same morning.

Hopefully, this gave you some answers. I feel more reassured because my concern was that they weren’t interested in your input, but I’ve found it’s quite the contrary. They’re anxious to use you as a resource; they just don’t feel like they’ll be ready for a visit before the transition meeting.

ST's Response to My Email  

Thank you for keeping me informed That is great news! We will discuss details on transition to full time school on Wednesday.

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This isn't the first time I've had a very stressful time because of a miscommunication with the school. Thankfully, once again, it turned out that everything was fine once we all started taking the time to communicate clearly with one another. ;P