Memorial Box Monday (on Wednesday) ~ Released!

Memorial Box Monday was started by my dear friend Linny @ A Place Called Simplicity, she explains what a Memorial Box is here.

In short-- Just as the children of Israel set stones as Memorials to remind them of the mighty things the Lord had done for them, we put tangible items into our Memorial Box, to represent and remind us, of the many times the Lord has moved on our behalf. And just as the Israelites passed down the stories of God's provision to their children, and their children's children--we will use our Memorial Box to teach and remind our children (and someday, our children's children) of God's great faithfulness to our family, and His personal love for us!

Linny called for a late MBM this week and said, "Let's do it"!

So here you go . . .

Memorial Box Monday ~ Released!

This past Friday I had Teddi's annual ARD meeting (Admissions, Review & Dismissal) at her school. If you aren't familiar with such things it's a once a year meeting involving the principal, the school psychologist, the head of the special education department, Teddi's classroom teacher, her speech therapist, and me--the mama . . . at a great big table. All children who require any kind of specialized help have an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) meaning that they are covered under the special education umbrella, if you will. So the purpose of the meeting is to go over her IEP (which lists goals for the year set by the people mentioned above) to see where she stands --which goals she has mastered, what she still needs help with and so forth. Of course when Teddi was first tested at school (at age 3 1/2) her cleft palate had just recently been closed-- meaning her communication skills were very basic, she was also developmentally behind (as are most kiddos who have been institutionalized), and her ability to sit still was, hmmm . . . let's say limited. For those of you who have been with me a long time, you will remember she was "Flit".

So the journey began. Teddi was immersed (early) into a four year old Pre-K classroom (with Brogie) and immediately her communication skills began to bloom! At this point she also spent some time in the special education room for one-on-one help, a lot of time in the speech room, and she had an aid who "shadowed" her to keep her on track.

Brogan & Teddi . . .

Brogan & Flit!

Last year Ted repeated Pre-K as a four year old. She was still "shadowed" by an aid and she continued with speech four days a week, according to her teachers she was also still flitting.

So a year ago as I sat in the annual ARD meeting surrounded by her "team" the discussion went something like this. Teddi will do fine in Kindergarten . . . but she will probably need to repeat it . . . she still has a hard time staying on task . . . she just needs time to catch up . . . Mrs. Winder are you okay with that? I let them know I was okay with that, but in the back of my mind I remember thinking we shall see.

Fast forward to Kindergarten. At my first conference with Teddi's teacher in September, I received a glowing report. Mrs. Mitchell shared with me that none of the things she had been given a "heads up" about concerning Teddi (staying on task . . . trouble communicating) were even an issue. This was sweet music to this mama's ears!

This brings us back to last Friday and Teddi's ARD. The principal began with a short review, and then Mrs. Mitchell made the first remarks, "Teddi is exactly on target for where she should be as a Kindergartner. (Insert a huge smile from the mama sitting across the table--that would be me.) She continued, "Staying on task has never been an issue, communication is rarely an issue, and Teddi enjoys sharing with the class when given her turn to speak."

What was that about repeating Kindergarten? My God is BIG, as are His plans for our girl! As my big boys would say, "Boo-yah"!

To make a long ARD meeting short-- Teddi has officially been released out from under the special education umbrella. Her need for extra help is gone, her need for "shadowing" is over. Of course due to her cleft issues speech therapy will be a part of our lives for a while, but her speech therapists have dropped her speech requirement from four times a week . . . to three times . . . and now to two! My girl has worked her way out of her IEP-- she is officially "just a Kindergartner who needs speech"! These words (from the principal) brought a round of applause from everyone at the table!

Oh little bird you have come so far! We are so very proud of you.

After everyone else had left the room on Friday, the school psychologist shared her thoughts with me . . . "Teddi has come so far . . . watching her story unfold just blesses me more than you know. . . seeing the difference that the love of your family has made in her life. And then with tears in her eyes she added, "Teddi has taught me much and that is to never, ever set my expectations of a child too low."

Thank you Lord for the wonderful team of people who have poured into our girl for the past two years. Thank you for how far she has come. Thank you for the determination that you have placed within her and for her self-confidence (that makes me smile big)! Thank you that her peers look to her as a leader--and she leads! Oh how far you have brought our little bird, she is flying stronger than ever! You are faithful!

Into our Memorial Box this week will go the paperwork that I signed to officially end Teddi's need for an Individualized Education Plan -- to remind us of the day that Teddi became "just a Kindergartner who needs speech"!

Blessings from my proud nest ~

Tina

* Don't forget to enter my giveaway in the post below, if you haven't already!