4th Grade with Dedicated Aide Self Contained Unit – Altamont Grade School
What is your favorite subject?
Music and Library. Adeline misses the books. Her favorite books are Daniel Tiger.
When the school shut down we ordered a ukulele. We’d been to a program at the library and the teacher had recommended we try a ukulele with her.
Were you expecting the schools to shut down?
That was a surprise.
What did you do with Adeline?
We took walks at Ballard a lot so that she would get exercise.She has a heart defect so it’s important she gets exercise. I don’t think the missed therapies have set her back because of her age, even with her brain damage she’d already reached her physical goals at school like carrying her tray and getting around the playground. She missed the Ballard programs and the Library programs. She missed the pool but we did get a lot of swimming in.
What were the positives of the time off?
We got to do a lot of fishing. And we visited Ballard a lot.
It helped us see our blessings more and not take our life for granted.
You’ve had to make some adaptations to Adeline’s schooling this year. Can you tell us a little bit about them?
We had to decide, do we keep her at home because of her heart condition which I would love to do but she loves going places. When she wakes up in the morning she knows exactly what day it is and what we’re doing. And for her to just be at home all the time would not be good for her. But if she did get sick that would be bad for her. So we talked to her cardiologist. The first day of school we were pretty nervous because we’ve sheltered her so much since February. So we’ve decided just to do 8 to 11:30 at school, just enough to get some therapies, to get out. She struggles with a mask, not because she won’t wear it but because of the hypotonia in her mouth that causes her to drool so she wears a shield. And she does really well with it.
