Parent Teacher Conferences and Bullying
We had Parent Teacher Conferences for both the High School and the Elementary School last night.
When we got the schedules it looked like this:
High School
6:10-6:20 Mrs. K
6:20-6:30 Mrs. W
6:30-6:40 Mr. M
I was worried about having enough time to talk and also transition between classes. But THEN we got Isaac's schedule:
Elementary (3 miles away)
6:40-6:50 Mrs. S
Yeah. So I fired an email off to change that.
Here's what we found out.
Our little Aspie is a math whiz. He's in 2nd grade working at a 4.5 grade level. I know that Paul and I met while getting our undergrad math degrees (nerd?! How dare you.) But still, it's not like we overtly teach him shit. He can do multiplication and division. Where the hell did he learn that?
He's also reading at grade level according to the computer. But I think it's higher. He has a very measured way of speaking, and his first grade teacher told us people read the way they talk.
Did I mention I can speed read? I took a class in it and beat out all the other kids. So yeah, I can motormouth too.
Sam is honor roll. Again. 5 quarters. Every quarter since he got in high school. He takes LS science and reading but everything else is mainstream. Those classes are LS because of his reading processing issues. But I'm pretty sure he could do science mainstream. Reading, no. If you can't understand motive in real life, there's no way to suddenly develop that on paper.
His history teacher really likes him. I think because he was a soldier in combat and got a few head knocks and knows what it's like to process differently. Knows what it's like to struggle. I think I have a crush.
All 3 teachers (that wasn't all of them, those were the ones we felt we had to talk to) plus the spec ed teacher. We all discussed bullying. Because it's is a daily part of Sam's life now. Classroom, lunch room, home room.
Sam doesn't make things better. He's really into this strange insulting thing with no regard to whom he's talking. He says things like "gluttonous slob" and "big fat pudding." Teachers, parents, TSS, students.
His biggest bully.
Yeah, right in homeroom.
On the other hand, he's gotten so that he'll yell at the person who's bullying him which attracts attention and people realize it.
But bullies are really good at being sneaky. The average bullying episode lasts 35 seconds. And can go on right under an adult's nose with no recognition.
Mr. M told us about walking into the lunchroom and seeing 'big fat pudding' boy telling Sam to get out of his line and get in the other.
Sam is so used to being compliant. He has been expected to be compliant and rewarded for it since toddlerhood. Now we have to teach him to talk back.
Wow, growing up is fucking hard. Especially for us parents.
When we got the schedules it looked like this:
High School
6:10-6:20 Mrs. K
6:20-6:30 Mrs. W
6:30-6:40 Mr. M
I was worried about having enough time to talk and also transition between classes. But THEN we got Isaac's schedule:
Elementary (3 miles away)
6:40-6:50 Mrs. S
Yeah. So I fired an email off to change that.
Here's what we found out.
Our little Aspie is a math whiz. He's in 2nd grade working at a 4.5 grade level. I know that Paul and I met while getting our undergrad math degrees (nerd?! How dare you.) But still, it's not like we overtly teach him shit. He can do multiplication and division. Where the hell did he learn that?
He's also reading at grade level according to the computer. But I think it's higher. He has a very measured way of speaking, and his first grade teacher told us people read the way they talk.
Did I mention I can speed read? I took a class in it and beat out all the other kids. So yeah, I can motormouth too.
Sam is honor roll. Again. 5 quarters. Every quarter since he got in high school. He takes LS science and reading but everything else is mainstream. Those classes are LS because of his reading processing issues. But I'm pretty sure he could do science mainstream. Reading, no. If you can't understand motive in real life, there's no way to suddenly develop that on paper.
His history teacher really likes him. I think because he was a soldier in combat and got a few head knocks and knows what it's like to process differently. Knows what it's like to struggle. I think I have a crush.
All 3 teachers (that wasn't all of them, those were the ones we felt we had to talk to) plus the spec ed teacher. We all discussed bullying. Because it's is a daily part of Sam's life now. Classroom, lunch room, home room.
Sam doesn't make things better. He's really into this strange insulting thing with no regard to whom he's talking. He says things like "gluttonous slob" and "big fat pudding." Teachers, parents, TSS, students.
His biggest bully.
Yeah, right in homeroom.
On the other hand, he's gotten so that he'll yell at the person who's bullying him which attracts attention and people realize it.
But bullies are really good at being sneaky. The average bullying episode lasts 35 seconds. And can go on right under an adult's nose with no recognition.
Mr. M told us about walking into the lunchroom and seeing 'big fat pudding' boy telling Sam to get out of his line and get in the other.
Sam is so used to being compliant. He has been expected to be compliant and rewarded for it since toddlerhood. Now we have to teach him to talk back.
Wow, growing up is fucking hard. Especially for us parents.
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