“Coloured Pencils” Photo by Joe Shillington on Unsplash
So you’ve been on the multi-faceted road of ASD life for a while now and your little bit-of-wonderful is finally ready for that next step in life: going to kindergarten. Or maybe, your child is already in school and you’ve just been told there is a diagnosis for their behaviour that hasn’t been brought up before.
Whatever the case may be, going through school can be like a rite of passage for children and parents alike.
Registration and meeting the teacher(s) and new schedules and organizing your support team and strange new jargon and abbreviations and figuring out meal times away from home and new therapists and new environment settings and lots of new faces and, And, AND…!!
Going through school is a lot of work but that doesn’t mean it has to be difficult. In this section we will cover a wide range of topics to help you and your family through and show that school is still cool!
Right now this section is under construction but to give you an idea of what to expect, please take a look at the list below to see the planned sub-section headings.
Terms to Know – Because it’s always nice to know what those fancy words mean, especially when you’re in a school meeting
Breakdown of the School System Structure – Who’s who and what they do
Transitioning into School – While this gets briefly touched upon in our section “What Happens First” , here you will find more details on getting ready for that first year in school
How Services Change from Pre-School to Enrollment – New faces, new names, new schedules. More of the who’s who as well
Already in School but Newly Diagnosed – No problem! Here you will find how your introduction to ASD supports may be a bit different from those who have children that were diagnosed as toddlers but are still awesome and inclusive
Your Child’s Support Team & Education Plan – Tips for building that team, how to make the most out of school meetings, tips for keeping communication up with your school, what the different types of education plans are, how you can take the reins, etc.
High School – Part way done but not all the way there yet; things to consider now that your child is getting older, getting ready for graduation, and tips for transitioning to post-secondary education
Handling Disputes with the School – Sometimes we don’t all get along and here you will find the recommended steps in which to address your concerns
Getting Ready for Adult Services – A brief introduction to how things will change as your child legally becomes an adult
Post Secondary Education: A Whole Other Beast – Again with the who’s who, application processes, getting supports in place, what grants and bursaries may be an option, and introducing the two main PSE options in Westman, ACC and BU (plus so much more!)
Miscellaneous but Useful Info – More tips for things like school holidays and getting used to all the new-ness, free printables, etc.
If you can think of any other subjects that you would like to see included or if you would like to have your own point of view/experience included in an article, please feel free to contact us at any time.
Thanks for stopping by!
With lots of cheer and high fives for everyone, see you later.
Prairie Spectrum Team
