When someone says "special needs" many people - often, myself included - immediately assume a disability or a diagnosis. And quite often, we're probably right. However, I often come back to this phrase and I keep on thinking - I think more broadly.
I'm a proponent for individualized education. I don't mean an IEP; rather, I mean working with the student, at their level, rather than expecting that all kids in 4th grade are at the same level. (That's probably why I gravitated toward Special Education in college, rather than just Regular Education.)
We've dealt a lot with special needs here in our home - Picasso has a long list of letters regarding his diagnosis: IEP, 2E, ASD, OT, SLP, etc. These don't define him, these just tell us about a certain part of him. His "special needs" are that he needs more time to work, he needs quiet, he needs to be free to roam as he does his work. THOSE are his special needs as a result of his diagnosis.
In that line of thinking, I believe that all students have special needs - they all have conditions under which they work best. Some prefer music to study by, others prefer silence. Some work well in groups, others need to work individually. As I've been home with our kids, I've learned many of their special needs. Our daughter likes to be able to talk out loud while she does her work. This doesn't bode well for the one who needs quiet! Our older son loves every opportunity to learn. His special need is for continued opportunities to learn.
For so long we've focused on our younger son's therapy needs - helping to address his special needs. That's just been the way it has had to be. Things have had to be centered around his needs because they have been necessary to his overall functionality and ability to navigate through life. He has gained so much and is learning and growing at a tremendous rate and we are grateful! We've been able to get him to a point where things are easier for him - life is easier for him!
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And keeping in mind the special needs for all 3 of our kids, we're looking at moving some of his therapies closer to home. In fact, we should hear on the transition of one therapy soon, hopefully. Having him closer to home will directly allow us to focus on our older son's special needs - a love of learning.
Our older son has the opportunity to apply for a program that will allow him to skip 8th grade next year, and move right on to high school with a group of similarly-minded academically-strong students. The demands on his time, and ours to work with him, will be greater. Having Picasso's therapy closer to home will allow us the time and flexibility needed to focus on our older son's love of learning. The place we currently go for all our therapy is almost an hour away, one way. It has served us so well, and I'm sad to even start to consider moving on.
But I firmly believe we owe our older son all that we can possibly give to meet his needs as well. He carries 95% or better in all his classes, he's been accepted to the National Junior Honor Society, he keeps up with his piano practice, he reads more than I've seen many kids read, he helps around the house, participates in youth group and church activities, all the while wanting more opportunities to learn or read.
And so, this weekend, we'll sign all the forms, fill out all the information, and send in the application for him to join this program. It will be a good fit for him. We're hopeful that he will be accepted - he meets all the criteria - and that this will give us a great opportunity to help meet some of his special needs. We love that he loves to learn, and we're grateful that our younger son is at a stage where we can get his therapy closer to home, focus on the siblings' educational needs a little more, and hopefully just have more time together!
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