Before the Madonna School
For Years, we dealt with suspensions and weekly calls from
the school about our son’s behavior. I felt like my husband and I were always
fighting to keep services that were supposed to be provided through the school
system, including basics to his education like appropriate tools and resources
to increase his language and fine motor skills. It was a battle that I honestly
could not fight anymore.
The time came when we had to decide whether to send
our child to a huge middle school where he would be segregated in one part of
the building all day or look at schools outside our school district.
I was
exhausted!
Then we had a respite provider last summer who connected us
with another family whose child attended the Madonna School.
A Chance to Fit In
We toured the Madonna School and knew right away it was a
place where our son could fit in. Luckily, we received a call a few weeks
before school started that there was a spot available. My next call was to the
Special Education Director in our school district to let her know our son was
going to go to Madonna. It was the biggest relief I had felt in a very long
time.
The Difference
If I could say one thing about the teachers at Madonna, it
would be that they have realistic expectations of their students. Everything I
heard before from teachers over the years was how my son was not acting
appropriately. I will never forget one phone call where his teacher told me
that he wouldn’t put back on his tennis shoes. He kept putting them outside the
classroom. I was told to come pick him up, because he needed to leave for the
remainder of the day. I’m not denying the fact that he did have severe
behaviors – major physical and verbal aggression. However, he was also never in
a positive environment or allowed to be a part of the entire school body.
But now, at the Madonna School, my son is involved in sports
and the teachers provide many opportunities for the students to participate in
community outings. My son also has friends.
This is huge for our family! We are
surrounded by positives in his world. Forget the weekly calls and school
suspensions. Not once have I received a call this year about his behavior not
being manageable. His teacher doesn’t even see the things that were written in
his previous IEP. I cannot say enough good things about Madonna and what it
means to our family.
Thank you to the parent who referred us to the school and Thank you to my
son’s teacher for being truly amazing!
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