Thursday, October 22, 2009

HALLLAND ACADEMY

Well that has a nice ring to it, don't you think?! Actually, the original name we came up with was: Hallland Academy - School for Young Ladies Doing Everything in Their Power to Drive Their Mother to Drink. But we opted for the shortened version. lol
Okay, so let's see if I can make this long story, short.

Before we ever met our first baby, we knew we'd homeschool. It just felt right to us. Ry came along and was the perfect student. She was one smart little cookie and eager to learn. This was gonna be great!!! Sometime right before she turned 3, her bahaviour changed. She would have these wild fits and was doing harm to herself. She was still smart as a whip, but this "change" in her was upsetting for all of us. At 4, she was officially diagnosed with Moderate Autism. Wham! Well that changes everything!! Right?! And this is where I should have stayed the course, but I gave her up to the system because well....we're talking about people who know all about Autism, right? They've dealt with this hundreds of times, right? They have all those fancy letters behind their name, right? They assured me that if I would send her to "regular school", she would do much better. She would get the chance to see what other kids do and would follow along. They assured me that they knew what they were talking about. They assured me that they were prepared for her. They assured me that she would be safe.

Okay, so I sent her off to Senior Kindergarten and during the year, she totally forgot everything we had worked on. She got into trouble....a lot!! She had "zero" desire to learn anything. The meeting I had with all the bigwigs at her school at the end of the year was an eye-opener. They essentially told me that she was a smart girl and would pick things up along the way...but their focus was socializing her. Unbelievable! Oh but here's the kicker...I sent her back for Grade 1. Oh I know...no mother-of-the-year award for that move!

So Grade 1 started off pretty well...first week whipped by and everyone was happy! Whew, maybe this wasn't such a bad idea afterall....
The next two weeks didn't go so well. One morning while I waited for her in the school yard, before class started, I watched a group of older girls poke fun at her...egging her on to act silly. 3 days later, one of the kids made fun of her Chinese eyes. She was getting into massive trouble every...single...day and I was summoned to the school 3 times to come and get her. The third time I was called, they had to physically restrain her. ENOUGH!!!!

So I did a mad scramble to find some appropriate curriculum to use, sent our letter of intent to homeschool to the Board, and on October 5 2009, with Big Daddy's full support, we officially opened our homeschool.
In just 2 weeks, she's made huge strides!! She's happier, more relaxed and eager to learn once again. I am so very proud of her!

13 comments:

  1. Congratulations! I am so glad she is doing well. I often think if I had it all to do over again, I would of homeschooled my boys.

    Take Care,
    Debbie

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  2. That's great-I'm happy you recognized a problem before the damage was done for good.
    If I could only turn back the hands of time, (aside from taking better care of myself,) I would DEFINATELY have home schooled.
    A VERY smart move. Congrats!

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  3. Happy Home-Schooling!! Glad Ry is doing well. Gotta love listening to the "experts." Mom's are usually way smarter than the experts!!

    I suggest adding a field trip to the east coast to the cirriculum!! (Damn...I hope I spelled that at least reasonably close...it looks wrong!!)

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  4. God Bless you for your deceision. I'm sorry but since most parents gave their children to the sorry school system they got what they deserved. Until the parents change the system what you see is what you got.

    God Bless and good luck.

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  5. School sucks...we just moved our son...luckily there are a number of schools close by...sheesh...

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  6. Hiya Debbie! Well how about homeschooling that handsome little man/grandbaby instead? Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate the visit!

    Hey there Sue! I'm actually feeling a sense of relief NOT sending her away everyday. Thanks for dropping in.

    Hey Penny! There will definitely be a NB field trip in our future...still thinking it would make a great place to put down roots. Hmmm


    Hey Tony! Awwwww thanks for the support! It's nice to hear from a few people who believe I've done the right thing! Thanks for stopping in.

    Hey Warren! Yeah, school sucks! lol Hope everything works out with your son. Thanks for dropping by.

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  7. How wonderful! You will never regret it. It is the most wonderful thing in the world to teach your own! Oh, and how much patience you are going to learn! Your transformation is likely to be even greater than hers.

    Enjoyed reading here!
    Kim

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  8. It sounds like you made the right decision for you and Rylee..

    I am totally climbing on board the bus for an out east field trip...the things that can be learned..lol

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  9. Awwwwww thanks Kim!!! I really appreciate you dropping by here. Now, why aren't you busy cooking on that fabulous stove? I'm still so very jealous! lol


    Hey there Janice! The bus is leaving....

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  10. Boy oh boy, it's good read a real life story with a happy ending. Takes a good mother to make the right moves and you just proved yourself once again. GREAT JOB !!! Keep us posted.

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  11. Bullseye: Thanks a bunch for the lovely compliment! That was very nice of you!! Thanks for stopping by, my friend!

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  12. Wooohooo! I am so glad to hear this. You will not look back (well you will but it will mostly be fondly!). If you need any advice, I do have nearly 16 years under my belt and have graduated three, and married off one dd! (So, I will put some letters behind my name so you can feel better. LOL!)

    Have a great year of homeschooling.
    Christi, MWHH. ArLT. (Mother Who Has Homeschooled. A really Long Time.)

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  13. Hey Mama Ant! I'm so happy you came by! You made me spit mini wheat cereal on my keyboard though! lol Love all the letters behind your name...oh and I hope you were serious about giving me some advice...I'm going to need it!

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