Today and Friday

Today my close friend told me her son has autism.
Today I made a play date with a classmate of Leo's, PDD-Boy, for Wednesday.
Today was Passover and Leo thought it was cool hearing about the parting of the Red Sea.
Today the kids played the piano for Grandma.
Today I repainted blackboards (the kind used with erasers) for preschool.
Today I marveled at the fact that I'm a preschool teacher. There's that planning thing again!

Friday was Parent Teacher Conferences. I was shocked to learn that Leo and his class took a standardized test for Reading called the Gates. I almost died when she pulled the booklet out of his folder. I first got angry, always my first response. I thought they started standardized testing in 3rd grade for gods sake!I started to sweat, and surmised the outcome quickly in my head. Leo didn't finish it on time, he got confused by the bubbles and such. No problem, we'll open up an IEP, he'll qualify for untimed testing, we'll practice test taking skills, and take a deap breath until 3rd grade metacognition.

None of what I predicted came true. But, Leo's teacher was a little concerned about his score - average, since his skill level, according to her, was far better. Nothing to worry about, yeah right. I wonder what this will mean for the future. Maybe spacial planning, organization, timing, or other executive functioning skills will become disabling? I'm ready if that's the case. I say bring it! She said it's his first test, and not to be concerned. She just noted that she was surprised. Okay then.

She also stated that some fine motor things are challenging for Leo. Example: they all made totem poles made of paper towel rolls and cut-out shapes that require a long thin slit to be cut. The cutting was a challenge and it took him a while to figure out the hole-poke-then-cut trick. Everything else, fine. Then she said: He is ready for 3rd grade. Say what?

Great handwriting, reading, and he has a large group of friends, one best friend, and most importantly he's very happy. He can even do geometry - copy a 3 dimensional shape onto paper. Every week he surprises me since I can link so much of the things he can do back to therapy goals. And this was a kid that couldn't copy a 2 block imitation. We worked so hard on that hand-over-hand for years (yogurt cups, crayons, matchboxes, anything he wanted).

Discover Magazine Article

I admit. Discover magazine is one of my favorites!
It makes me think.
It makes me ponder and ponder and ponder.
It makes me talk to my husband about topics that I don't think about living my ordinary day.

If you feel like a breath of fresh air, buy the latest Discover Magazine that's got Autism featured on the cover. No matter what, you gotta love that.

Even better, it's got a very readable take on the non-gene side of Autism. The gut and the immune system. Not new news for most of us, but let's think of the American public - they only read about the epidemic and the genes. To this we should celebrate, even when Discover is a male skewed mag.

Autism: It’s Not Just in the Head

Here's the headline:
The devastating derangements of autism also show up in the gut and in the immune system. That unexpected discovery is sparking new treatments that target the body in addition to the brain.

On other notes:
Picking up our first hybrid tomorrow afternoon! We are lucky we can afford to have one.
Worry List number one: Leo's Parent/Teacher Conference NEXT Friday. Stay tuned. I'm freaked, but not as freaked as last time since I know what I'm workin' with.