A Leap of...Faith?

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Well, I picked Logan up from school today.  He started to cry in the van.  It was the kind of crying he does when his feelings have been hurt, or he's upset about something.  

While Logan is verbal, this still presents a huge problem.  He can't describe to me what happened to make him cry.  He is unable to use descriptive language to describe a sequence of events or relay what he's feeling emotionally.  So, when I said, Did you have a good day at school?  he said, No.  When I asked him fifteen minutes later, Did you have a good day at school?  he said, Yes.  What's the answer?  

Well, who made you cry?  What happened?  

He can't tell me.  He said something about a Mrs. X.  But then in the next sentence, X became a student, so I have no idea who he is referring to or what part they played in his day.

This is one of the BIGGEST problems that parents of special ed kids face when their kids go to school.  Aside from schedule changes, dietary issues, bathroom issues, meltdowns, the question that hovers in the back of our minds is:  Are they safe?

Which is just crazy.  We shouldn't have to worry if our kids are safe.  We shouldn't have to worry if they are being grabbed roughly, told they're stupid, ignored, invalidated, or otherwise mistreated.  But it's a huge worry, and it's a worry because this type of abuse does occur at the very hands of the people who are supposed to be protecting our kids.  Special ed is not for the faint of heart, and it's like any other job:  some people are great at it, some people are mediocre, and some people are just plain awful and should never have gotten that job in the first place.  

Our kids are not like other kids.  They can't tell us if someone is being cruel to them, if they are being bullied or harassed, or if they need something at school that they're not getting.  We send them to school and it's a leap of faith that they will get a teacher who is patient, kind, but firm enough not to let them run amok.  It's an important issue because special education students often end up with the same teacher and paraprofessionals for years.  This is not a one year relationship; it's a lasting one.  Teachers and parents should work together for the best interest and benefit of the student.

Logan was very blessed to have extraordinary teachers at his elementary school.  He made amazing leaps in speech and interaction during the time he was there.  By the end of the school year, last year, he was learning how to read.  

I can only hope that in the coming weeks, whatever caused him to be upset will not recur and that he will enjoy his time in middle school as much as he did elementary school.