Back to the reason for starting this blog in the first place- SPENCER! Just got his evaluation from Brain Balance yesterday and his progress continues to amaze me.
There is quite a noticeable change in him overall. He is calm. Without medication. THIS ALONE IS HUGE!!! He has been off ADHD meds since April and continues to thrive without them. This change has been noticed by everyone. We make regular trips to the grocery store, like other people! Two years ago I never would have thought this possible. If I seem to be rambling, I am. I am trying to commit everything to the blog before I forget it. This week will be an especially busy one for both of us.
Monday- Brain Balance evaluation (I'll get more into that soon, I promise!)
Wednesday- Special Olympics- basketball
Thursday- IEP (morning) My parents arrive for the weekend (afternoon)
I will try to get blogging about the results of the Special Olympics and IEP meeting. For those of you who unaware, an IEP is an individualized education plan developed between the school and the parent to create goals for the school year. Recently, Spencer was evaluated by the county psychologist so we are going to discuss those results. To be honest- I hate all of those checklists they make you fill out. By the time you are done, your head is spinning and you are unsure of your name. The one for the psychologist was by far the worst. It was apparently for all school aged children and included some foolish questions regarding operating a motor vehicle. Yeah, he's 6, I let him drive all the time. I thought about answering 'yes' just to see if they were paying attention. Then I figured that they probably wouldn't appreciate my sick sense of humor and would hold it against the little guy.
Drum roll, please.... Yes, now I will share the results of Spencer's testing. He is doing some exercises that he was refusing to do at the beginning of the session in September. He has moved into Brain Balance levels in 4 of the 6 Sensory Motor exercises. This is great. Brain Balance level 4 is equal to a 6 year old level and he is operating at BB level 5 in the Balance Beam and BB level 6 in Fine Motor. He has also increased his core stability (yes, my 6 year old has a 6 pack while Mommy is carrying around a 2 liter!)
Here are the comments:
Sensory Motor Room
Spencer has been making gains with his core and is really giving effort on it. For his OPK, he places his finger on the computer screen and his eyes are moving. Frogger has been a wonderful reinforcer in the room, as he really enjoys jumping on the pad. His cerebellum is gaining strength through both legs moving. We continue to work on his upper body strength as well as vestibular system, spatial orientation, movement and sense of balance. Where Spencer used to roll around the mat, he now is staying in one place. Likewise throughout the room. Excited to see these gains and look forward to many more!!
Cognitive Room
Spencer has been working so hard for the past month. Certain activities he avoided in the past, he is beginning to enjoy such as out otolithic work. He is sitting with me and being engaged during our Felt math song - he replaces the felt pieces on the felt board when asked. He can put some word cards on pictures although he is not yet consistent in that. I do stay right with him during our sessions but he is no longer rolling around the room. I expect to see more positive changes! Keep working Mom!
We have one more month of Brain Balance here and then we are heading home. We've been gone since December 27th of last year, so it is time to pack it up here and get on with our life. But don't think the changes are going to stop. No way. He will continue to change and grow. I will continue to blog as much as I can. Time for dinner...
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