Getting to Know Colin

Yikes! I'm dusting off the computer to finally put up a post!  I can't believe this amount of time has gone by but we have been busy enjoying our summer and making memories!  We also have the countdown going until Tobin Baby #3 arrives (which in my countdown is hopefully sooner than later!) so we have been getting ready for his/her arrival.  However, we have had a LOT going on lately and I'm looking forward to updating you on our comings and goings!

 



 

Yesterday we had a meeting set up with the principal of Colin's new school so that she would have the opportunity to meet him and give him a tour prior to him actually attending in September.  We had emailed her after that last meeting at the end of the school year had gone so poorly to tell her that we thought this would be a good idea and we wanted her to get to know Colin and not what was written on paper.  She had been really open to the idea and had watched Colin's 5 year video that we had made.  When she had called us later this summer to set the actual date, she told us she was going to try and get Colin's teacher to attend as well.  To our pleasant surprise, the meeting yesterday included the principal, his Kindergarten teacher, and his in-class support special education teacher as well.  Prior to the meeting, I had worked on creating the booklet below because I wanted them to have as much information that we could share prior to him actually attending.  It helped to have something to work off of during the meeting yesterday and they asked a lot of productive questions about him. 



 

We were so proud of Colin because when he met all of the new people, he shook hands and said "nice to meet you" and answered a lot of their questions pretty independently (or at least until Kailey started answering for him).  He was extremely well behaved and was excited to see his new classroom and explore a little bit.  While he was exploring with Kailey, we were sitting at the table with the principal and teacher and going through the booklet.  At one point, the principal stopped reading to tell us that she was already impressed with his politeness and his interaction with them and I felt my insides do a little cheer.  We know that this year is definitely going to be a work in progress but I am happy that they now have a good taste of the child that Colin is and not the way he can be portrayed in IEP meetings.  We really like the principal and the way she interacted with Colin and felt more confident in the teacher at this meeting than we did at the previous one. 

 

We are really excited for Colin and for the opportunities he is going to have by being with his typical peers.  We are optimistic that we can have an open communication with everyone at his new school to make this work for him so that he can be successful.  Onward and upward Colin!

#CATkindergarten2014