Update on Jackie's Progress

Update on Jackie's Progress | 2 Months Later

If you are new around here, you probably want to go back and read about Why Jackie Started School and How We Prepped Jackie for School. That will get you up to speed on where we were 2 months ago with Jackie started school. Now, I am going to give you an update on Jackie's progress so far.

A lot has happened in the last two months! We have seen some amazing progress from Jackie, more than we could have ever imagined in such a short period of time. But with that progress, there has been some change. So let's talk about the good, the tough and the in between.

Update on Jackie's Progress | Parent Teacher Conference

At the end of January, I mentioned that I went to Jackie's first parent teacher conference. It was the end of the school quarter so even though Jackie had only been in school for a total of 10 days due to holidays and being sick, we did the meeting.

Jackie's teacher gushed about her. She was doing so well, progressing faster than they thought, and was such a joy to have in class. We were seeing progress at home too. Jackie had almost completely stopped hitting her head, she was screaming so much less and talking SO MUCH MORE. She engages in imaginative play and is seeking peer interaction. We were blown away by how different she was. Her teacher showed me that Jackie had already met two of her IEP goals and was close to mastering another one. In only 10 days! We were thrilled! There were a few things we knew still needed to be worked on but that was expected.

Update on Jackie's Progress | The Email

A few weeks later, maybe even just 10 days, we received an email from Jackie's teacher about setting up another meeting. She felt like Jackie was doing so well that we needed to consider moving her from the Preschool Autism Class (PAC) to the Preschool Class Based Program (PSCB). While the PAC class is very focused on every day skills and working specifically on the IEP goals, the PSCB class is more play based while still working on IEP goals in a more typical preschool setting.

To be honest, The Husband and I were pretty hesitant about moving Jackie. She was doing so well where she was, why rock the boat? Luckily an IEP meeting is a discussion. As the parents, we get to say yes or no to the proposed changes. So we decided that unless an incredibly compelling case could be made during the meeting, we wanted her to stay in the PAC class. And I was stuck on this. I wanted Jackie to stay where she was. To increase the progression, not have huge regressions, which I knew would come with a big change like this.

Update on Jackie's Progress | The Meeting

The day of the IEP meeting, we arranged to go into the preschool and see both the PAC class and the PSCB class in action. That would give us the opportunity to see as parents where Jackie would fit best.

Even though we went in with the mind set that Jackie wasn't going to change classes, we left feeling like it was the only option. With all of Jackie's progress, she is starting to crave peer interaction. She just wasn't getting that in the PAC class. The other kids in that class at this point in time are just not as social as Jackie needs them to be. On the other hand, the PSCB class had 5 other kids who were very social and around the same level as Jackie. The Husband and I knew the decision was already made.

So when we had the IEP meeting, it was easy. We all agreed. Jackie needed to move classes. Not only was she craving social interaction but she had met ALL of her original IEP goals. She needed an entire new set of goals! While this did come with a scheduled change (full time to half time) she was already familiar with the teachers and the other kids because she had spent time with the during recess and a few other activities. She was already friends with another child in the class and talks about them all the time! We agreed to do a slow transition from the PAC class to the PSCB class. Last week, Jackie spent the mornings with the PSCB class and the afternoons with the PAC class. This week, she started full time with the PSCB class.

Update on Jackie's Progress | How It's Going

I knew going in that while this was going to be the best thing for Jackie in the long run, it was going to be a rough month or so during the transition. I was very concerned, and still am about regression. Regression is a big part of being ASD. It can happen when there is a big change or out of no where. The goal is to minimize the regressions when possible. But the change in schedule and teachers was going to trigger something. I just didn't know what.

The feedback we have gotten from Jackie's teachers is that she is thriving at school. She loves her new class and is doing really well. Home, on the other hand, is a different story.

We decided to take Jackie off of bottles last week, during the transition from PAC to PSCB, in order to get it all done at once. We talked about it with her teachers and all decided it was time. This has been a lot easier than I was expecting. Jackie asked for a bottle for first few days but I removed them all from the house. I was able to show her that there weren't any and she could have milk in a cup. She hasn't been drinking milk since. But she has been drinking lots of water and juice. And she has been EATING! So much! She is hungry because she is supplementing with the bottles. This has been great but at the same time we are struggling with getting her to eat enough at night before bed. We have had several nights where she is up until 10 pm eating because she wouldn't eat her dinner but won't go to sleep because she is hungry. And since I'm not into starving my child, 10 pm bedtimes are happening a few times a week.

We have seen some regression when it comes to communication. Jackie comes home tired every day. I try to get her to take a nap 3 days a week but it's still a work in progress on how this schedule is going to work. She doesn't always nap and regresses to screaming more when she is that tired. So that has been rough.

We have also seen some regression at church. Jackie goes to church every week with us and goes to nursery during the second hour. The Husband works in the nursery so I can leave her and take care of my other church responsibilities. It took over a year to get to a point where Jackie was doing well in nursery. Three weeks ago, that all went out the window and we are back to square one. She has a melt down when I try to leave the room or if The Husband tries to take her in there without me. Even if I do stay, she has a melt down, the entire time. She screams and cries and is really mean to the other kids. It is different than her typical melt down though. She wants to sit on my lap and hold me, which is very unlike her. We did see some improvement last week though so there is some hope.

Progression isn't a straight line, especially for those with ASD. Regressions in some ares while we have progression in other areas is to be expected. And no matter what, any progress is amazing. So we celebrate the wins.

Update on Jackie's Progress | How I'm Doing

With the schedule change, Jackie gets home every day at 1:30. Just when I was getting used to the other schedule, we needed to make adjustments. This means I either go to work in the morning after she gets on the bus and rush home to meet her at 1:30 and then stay home and work while she naps. Or I stay home and work in the morning and then take her to my parent's house after she gets off the bus. I don't get much done int he afternoons when we do that though.

I am tired. Getting out of bed in the morning is hard. Every day is exhausting. And Jackie has been up later at night. I am trying to squeeze in a full day of work in a 4 hour period while also running errands and putting out fires. I feel like I am being pulled in a million directions. It's also busy season for The Husband so he is only around right before bed time. And we are heading into a very busy few months with family in town, Jackie's birthday, Easter, and wedding out West. But it's only been a week. We will get settled into a new routine and I will figure this out. Some things may have to give.