21st Century Solutions

There's no getting around it: Hadley misses a certain amount of instruction in her recreational activities. When she was younger, we dealt with that issue by either volunteering to coach her sports teams or hovering around the field, cluing her in to information she missed. At home, we reviewed instructions that were given and reminded her of key rules just before the next game or session. To be honest, there was a level of nagging involved that none of us liked!

By first grade, we were all in agreement that Hadley needed to be on her own more in these activities-- it was definitely time to put her skills to the test. Over the past year, we've learned a bit more about what works for Hadley (at least for now). Like any kid who is in the early stages of learning a new sport, there needs to be some support and practice at home. We realized this spring that Hadley wasn't sure of some of the new drills they were learning in lacrosse, so Dan and I made sure that one of us paid attention during practice to know what "Steal the Bacon" was all about. We had learned last summer that it helps Hadley to videotape short portions of swimming lessons, but she was self conscious of being videotaped this year. As a substitution, I tried to bring her to her practices 5 or 10 minutes early so she could watch the teams that were finishing up and have those images in her mind when her team began. This worked well for indoor soccer, since the acoustics in the building where they played made it nearly impossible for Hadley to hear anything.

This spring, I was surprised when her softball coach sent an email to the team, giving links to several YouTube videos about proper batting form. I had never thought about YouTube as an instructional site but, once I started searching, I found all kinds of instructional videos that seemed to be the perfect answer. Hadley loves watching the short videos and feels extremely grown up to be using the computer in this way. So far, Dan and I have found videos that help reinforce how she's being taught to swing her golf clubs and throw a lacrosse ball, as well as demonstrate swimming strokes. We've made sure to find videos that mirror what her coaches are teaching, but in just a few minutes of searching, we have been able to find a video that suits the purpose. Some of her coaches, when asked, already have a few to recommend. The end result is that Hadley has gained a better understanding of what her coaches are teaching and is able to fill in some of the missing gaps. She is more confident of herself and more inclined to throw herself into each activity. She is engaged in each activity from beginning to end. Hadley even received a special sportsmanship award at the end of the softball season this spring!



She may never be a star athlete and she may drop some of these sports sooner than later. For now, it's another way for Hadley to connect with friends, learn in a group, and finetune the skills needed to be part of a team-- just like all the other kids. Plus, she's got a load of cool new t-shirts to wear all summer at the beach.

First Grade: Recap and Lessons Learned

The year we were waiting for: first grade! Full days of school...art, music, gym, library, and Spanish classes...lunch in the cafeteria...using a soundfield system. This was the year that was truly going to show what was working for Hadley...and what was not.

Transitioning to a full day of school was definitely a process for Hadley. It's a long, long day to be using your very best listening and coping skills. By the time Hadley stepped off the school bus at the end of the day, she was wiped out. We learned quickly that having a snack already prepared and waiting for her helped give her that little energy boost, as did staying outside to play for as long as possible. The toughest part was balancing her brothers' desire to play with her and her need to just do her own thing. I purposely did not schedule any weekly after school activities for the first few months of first grade; she needed those hours after school to be on her own terms. It took about two months for her to adjust to the full day schedule and build up her endurance for the long days.

We had purposely refrained from using a soundfield system in earlier school years, in order for Hadley to further develop her listening, discrimination and self-advocacy skills. We opted to use it in first grade now that the level of instruction was directed at the full group of students in the classroom. Four speakers were installed in the "teaching" section of the classroom (which was roughly half of the room). This was the teacher's first year of using a soundfield system, so there was an adjustment period of remembering to turn it on/off, dealing with the inevitable technical issues, and following a process for use of the system by substitute teachers. While Hadley was not completed wowed by the system-- she didn't feel that immediate sense of her listening being improved by it-- there was a clear difference in her level of energy and demeanor on days when she returned from school and the soundfield system had not been used (there were some early repair issues as well as days that substitute teachers did not use it). Like other AV kids, she was annoyed and very distracted by the occasional static and feedback from the system, but she adjusted over the course of the year.

While a soundfield system was also used in the Spanish classroom, her other specials (music, art, gym, and library) did not. Given the acoustics and method of instruction in the art room, Hadley managed just fine. Music was tricky: although Hadley had taken music lessons for years, she had difficulty transferring those skills to her school music class. Library time was fine, as it was just free time to choose a book. Gym was the hardest. Although Hadley's 504 Plan states that her class will be the only class to use the gym during classtime, it's still a large, open room that presents a huge listening challenge. It took the entire school year for Hadley to adjust; although she had taken many sports, she always had at least one parent there to clue her in to missed instructions (and more than one coach). Listening in a pack of 20 kids to one adult who may have turned away from her momentarily was impossibly frustrating for her, and did eventually lead to my having a discussion with the gym teacher (which helped).

It came as no surprise that the hardest part of first grade was dealing with social situations, particularly during unstructured times of the school day (recess, in particular). While Hadley is friendly and very outgoing, she also likes to control conversations and games (in part because it makes it easier to anticipate what her friends are going to say and do). She also relies on visual clues from other kids, so sometimes she's one of the last to stop playing a game. Sometimes when a kid runs off to play another game, she takes it personally, having not heard the invitation to join in. This is the hardest part: the only way for her to learn is to be in these situations on her own. We can make it a little easier with outside play dates and activities, but ultimately she has to learn these skills on her own...which involved more than a few tears this past year. The playground can be a very lonely place when you think that everyone wants to play with other kids, and even a minute of discomfort feels like hours.

Ultimately, what we learned in first grade was that Hadley has a strong foundation for her academic life and that, as always, her toughest struggle continues to be understanding her interactions with her peers (which isn't much different from other seven year old kids). Now on to grade two!