““Sadie Girl”Sadie Girl”““Sadie Girl”Sadie Girl”Family PresentationFamily Presentation

Kristi KeefeKristi KeefeIUPUI K548-Families, School, and, SocietyIUPUI K548-Families, School, and, Society

Sadie» First grader, female, 8 years old

» A New Year’s Day birthday

» Loves animals she has a dog and cat

» Loves spending the night with friends and play-acting

» Head start diagnosed as fetal alcohol syndrome child

» Diagnosed in kindergarten with learning disabilities, fine-motor and gross motor delays

» First grade diagnosed with pernosis or weak hip joint

» Socially active with many friends, happy disposition

» Dislikes homework, writing, sitting for long periods of time

Family• 3 much older sisters only one lives at

home• 1 niece• Mom is a stay at home, she has been

newly diagnosed with breast cancer• Father works as a truck driver • 3 uncles on her mom’s side, 1 Aunt,

grandparents on mother side

Sadie’s Day• Sadie gets up with her dad, she dresses

herself, eats breakfast at school• She rides a wheelchair bus to school• General education, since she was retained no

adaptation are necessary• Occupational therapy once a week • Eye sight is poor we are working on getting a

pair of glasses for school and one pair for home

• No physical education instead I tutor her in reading and writing during PE times

Goals

• To get out of the wheelchair and run and play outside

• To ride a horse• To enjoy reading and become a fluent reader• To be self-motivated with homework and

chores around the house• To become successful in school and be

prepared with the necessary materials• To be clean with clothes, shoes, and socks, that fit, also glasses

After school

• She attends Wednesday church with her niece and sister

• She attends Sunday church services with her mom, sister, and niece

• She has a large extended family that she sees regularly• She has daily homework and chores• She will attend summer school in June• She will attend a summer horseback riding camp in July

that we found on the internet• She will be a member of “The Big Sister” program

starting in June. • In four weeks she will start her physical therapy to help

develop muscle control in her weak leg

I learned:• The five stages of grief when a child is diagnosed with a

disability. I learned about the stress and the yearning to learn everything you can about the disability. I learned about the misdiagnosis, and the frustration parents feel when no one seems to listen. I felt Sadie’s mom pain when the doctors kept saying to wait another 6 weeks and “lets see what happens to Sadie”. I know of her hopeless task of trying to keep an active little girl in a wheelchair, especially on nice, sunny spring days.

• I also realize that parents do know their child, most want the best for their child. When their child is diagnosed with special needs parents have stress. They do not need more stress over educational issues. Parents and teachers should work together to better the child.

Parents learned:• They learned much about the special education process.

They learned about the IEP and their rights and due process. They were always given the form that told them of their rights, but it did not mean anything to them. They had no idea about due process and that if something did not work, they could have it changed in the IEP.

• They learned lots about the internet and the information that you can receive from its websites. They were most impressed about what they could find out about Sadie’s disease and her prognosis. “It was like getting a second opinion without paying for the it.”

• They learned that the school is to help their child. The professionals are their to help find resources for their child. We will do anything to help.

“Families and Children With Special Needs”

• Learning the different stages of grief was very helpful in handling parents issues. Parents are grieving the loss of their perfect child.

• Families with children that have special needs have stress, have a greater tendency to divorce, and it effects everyone in their family

• Learning about the legal rights of both parties was very helpful with Sadie’s IEP and it helped her parents to understand what help they could get for their daughter

• I knew to paraphrase the sender’s ideas, but this became a great asset in confrontation.

• Beside the legal right, most parents know what is best for their children they have been with their child for a longer period of time and they know their child in a different environment than in a school. They need to be involved in the education of their child

• The internet has great resources to learn and become involve in disabilities. They are an important source for information and support on disabilities. It is a teachers responsibility to inform parents of these resources.

• The case studies that we read in class were very helpful and insightful. They gave a human aspect to the study. I enjoyed reading them.