As a mother, I will never give up on my child. As a mother of a child who has autism, I will never give up hope.
I look into his eyes and I see all the potential that he has to offer to this beautiful world and I just know that one day the world can see what I see.

Follow my blog as I share my life and my experiences as a person who loves someone with autism.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Transitioning to grade 6

So Bryce is in grade 5 right now and that’s the cap at the elementary school he has been going to since kindergarten. Daniel and I had to decide where he was going for grade 6. Middle school (grade 6, 7, and 8) or another elementary school that went to grade 7. We weighed the pro’s and con’s and all the factors: having autism, level of communication, where his friends were going, the amount of students the schools had, the curriculum, and the school policies and tolerances on bullying. Sadly, that is something I fear like all the time. I don’t want my little baby to ever come home feeling unwanted, unhappy, or unappreciated. EVER!

Daniel’s main concern was that if Bryce went to a middle school, Bryce would be bullied by the grade 8’ers. Middle school also wasn’t as much of a transition to high school as I assumed it was. He’d have 7 different classes, plus gym, and each class was in it’s own room. A lot of walking around, distractions even. I just couldn’t picture it. The only plus if Bryce went to middle school is he’d end up going to school with all his current friends. Huge plus! The majority of them have been going to school with him all 6 years. They are all very protective of him. Help him all the time! If his shoes had laces, his friends would probably tie his shoes all the time, that’s how close they all are to him. It’s ridiculously adorable. But like I said, that was the only plus.

We decided it would be in Bryce’s best interest to have him go to an elementary school. He’d still do elementary school things like little concerts and performances, would have all these little kids to play with (he loves playing with kids his age, but he loves playing with younger kids too!), and there would be one classroom with all the subjects being taught by one teacher. So today I went to the school to register Bryce, and was immediately greeted by a staff member who was wearing a Canucks jersey and Ugg boots. GO CANUCKS! She was super nice, informative, and got all the paperwork for me and then introduced herself. She was the principal! I thought that was really awesome and was already sold! She gave me a visitors pass and I toured the school, talked to students, met some staff, and she answered all my questions. Oh, and their were anti-bullying posters all over the school. Loved that!

We are very excited with our decision to keep Bryce in elementary school. I know he’ll miss his friends, and everything will be new, but I am confident he will be wanted, happy, and appreciated.

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