Starting Grade One

Grade one is a scary time for any child.  The first time of structured learning, sitting at desks, and having to get work done.  For Michael, it was very interesting indeed.  The first day wasn't too bad. It was all new and he didn't know what to expect.  I presume like most grade oners, he thought it would be just like preschool!  It wasn't.  There is a lot more work involved in grade one.

And this was on top of all his other needs and requirements.  We had managed to get him toilet trained, although there were still a LOT of accidents.  He had a lot of sensory issues, many of which we still hadn't worked out yet, which was lots of fun.  The school, although fantastic in what they did for us, had not had a lot of experience with ASD, so they were learning as well.  All this made for an interesting first week.

My husband had the first week off work to help, and we so needed it!  Because the funding for aid time hadn't come through yet, we were needed to go to school at every break to help him practically.  That is, go to the toilet, get his lunch out and organised, and then supervise him in the playground.  That's four trips to the school in one day.  Morning, first break, second break and pick up.  We did this for I think two weeks, and then the funding came through for an aide, so he had a full time aide in school with him all the time for the next four weeks.  This first aide was such a blessing, and played a big part in getting him settled into school.

Mornings became a nightmare.  We would have to force his clothes on him, then carry him and place him in the car.  Once at school I would send my older child off, and then drag him out of the car, usually screaming, and carry him into the school and put him down.  Once there, his teacher or aide would take hold of him, I would give them his bag, and then I would leave.  That was the only way it seemed we could do it.  His grade one teacher was fantastic.  Everyday she would call me once he settled down, so that I could relax.  I didn't do much until I got that phone call.  In fact, I didn't do much at all during those first few weeks of school.