Aaron is now in 5th grade
and is at the top of his elementary school. He is still fully included in the
general education classroom, but he has a teacher assistant named Mrs. Caden.
Mrs. Caden comes into the classroom in the morning and comes in and out
throughout the day. When she is in the classroom she helps Aaron with whatever
activity the rest of the class is doing. Also, during test days, Mrs. Caden
takes Aaron out of the room and into a quiet classroom where she reads the
questions on the test aloud. Aaron has had a really hard time sitting at his
desk because he just wants to roam around the room. Mrs. Caden recommended that
he sit on a big red bozu ball so that he can bounce at his seat while working.
This has really helped him to stay focused but now other children are upset
because they want to bounce on a ball at their seats as well. Mrs. Caden is
trying to help Aaron learn how to be independent and to not rely on her for all
school work. This is because once he
goes to middle school in 6th grade; there is a slim chance that he
will be able to have a teacher assistant. Although Aaron is able to keep up
with his school work, he is not able to maintain social interactions with his
peers. Because of his social impairments, he is not able to hold an age level
appropriate conversation with his peers. He also has a repetitive behavior of flailing
his arms. This is a constant behavior of Aaron’s and because of this, his
classmates view him as different and therefore don’t include him in any conversations
or play. Aaron has an obsession with fire
alarms. He has always had this obsession as long as his parents can remember
and he constantly asks throughout the day if there is going to be a fire alarm
that goes off. No matter how many times Mrs. Caden tells him that there isn’t
going to be a fire alarm, Aaron still asks about it.
Amir and Kayla have been involved in the morning news show
at their new middle school. Amir is the person who does the video and Kayla is
the news anchor. Each day, they get to discuss the weather for the day, the
lunch choices, the pledge of Allegiance and any other school news. This has
given them both a sense of responsibility and a sense of belongingness at their
school. Since being at their new school, they are now no longer at the same
school as Aaron. This has been beneficial for them because now they are
recognized as individuals instead of being Aaron’s siblings. Their behavior has
drastically changed for the positive because they are now getting more
individual attention from the teachers at school and now from Ali and Hannah . Ali
and Hannah have been using the ABA method to handle all the behaviors that
occur. With this consistency between all the children, they are seeing an
increase in the positive desired behaviors.
Ali and Hannah have been attending counseling, just the two
of them at a local church. They don’t attend this church but they are receiving
counseling services from the pastor. With this counseling, Ali and Hannah are
getting along much better and are really seeking to work out the problems
within their marriage and the ways they raise their children. Since going to
counseling the pastor has encouraged them to try out the church on Sundays
because he thinks this would be beneficial for the whole family. After much
apprehension, Ali and Hannah attend church one Sunday with their children.
Although still apprehensive the kids really seemed to like hanging out with the
other children in the church. Ali and Hannah don’t know if they will continue
going to church, but Amir and Kayla have made some new friends. They have been
attending youth activities that the church youth group puts on but they don’t
always attend church on Sunday.
Ali has been feeling really ill and has not been able to go
to work. He is constantly lethargic and has zero energy. This really worries
Hannah so she encourages him to go to
the doctor but he refuses. However, he has used up all of his sick days at work
and now he is facing a pay cut. Hannah is getting really worried because they
need Ali to work to be able to have enough income to stay in their home. After
a months’ time, Ali is still not well and even his kids are starting to notice
that something is wrong. This worries the children because their daddy is
really sick and is no longer able to do the things he used to like play outside
with the kids and help them with their homework.
1)
Should the school host a
program that teaches the typical children about the children with disabilities
so that they are more aware of their behaviors and how they can interact with
them?
2)
What are some ways that Mrs.
Caden could direct the conversations with Aaron away from fire alarms? What
procedures should be carried out when there is a fire drill in this school?
Should Aaron be warned ahead of time if there is a planned fire drill?
3)
What illness does Ali
have? (choose an acute or chronic illness)
Decision Point : Since he is
not able to currently work, does Hannah find a part time job in order to have
some income? Explain the pros and cons of Hannah going to work.
1) Should the school host a program that teaches the typical children about the children with disabilities so that they are more aware of their behaviors and how they can interact with them?
ReplyDeleteI think it’s really important that there is some kind of meeting scheduled where the other kids are aware of the children that are different than them. The meeting wouldn’t be about treating them differently it would be more along the lines of explaining to the students that these individuals learn differently and therefore need different accommodations to succeed in the classroom. Especially at this age, a lot of jealousy takes place, so letting the other students know that Aaron is using a bouncy ball during the day instead of a chair because it helps him concentrate more is important to let them know. Maybe the teachers could give other incentives to their children that if they behave a certain amount during the day, they will be rewarded with a treat, that way they don’t feel left out and have a reason to behave.
2) What are some ways that Mrs. Caden could direct the conversations with Aaron away from fire alarms? What procedures should be carried out when there is a fire drill in this school? Should Aaron be warned ahead of time if there is a planned fire drill?
If Mrs. Caden were to think of different rewards she would give Aaron for not talking about fire alarms, I think he would have an incentive to not talking about them. If he does start talking about them it’s important for her to continue to reassure him that it is a good thing for schools to have fire alarms because it keeps the students safe from anything bad that could happen. When Mrs. Caden knows there is going to be a fire drill she should definitely warn Aaron that way he is prepared and not freaked out when it goes off. Telling him there will be a fire drill is just one less worry for Aaron and will hopefully give him the confidence that when it does go off, he will be just fine. When a fire drill does occur I think it’s important that he knows about it but at the same time, sitting in the classroom with the rest of the kids when it goes off. You don’t want to bring him outside or somewhere where he can’t hear it, otherwise he will never know what to do in case there is a real fire in his life. There’s a fine line between warning him about it and making sure he is still involved in the process of getting out of the school when it goes off.
3) What illness does Ali have? (Choose an acute or chronic illness)
ReplyDeleteAli finally decides to go to the doctor to figure out what is going on with his body. The doctor runs a bunch of blood tests and his results finally come back that he has Lyme disease. Lyme disease is transmitted through a bite from a specific type of tick. In the early stages of Lyme disease, you may experience flu-like symptoms that can include a stiff neck, chills, fever, swollen lymph nodes, headaches, fatigue, muscle aches, and joint pain. The vast majority of patients will be completely cured if treatment is started during the rash or "flu-like" stages. In some patients with arthritic or neurologic symptoms, complete cures have been documented following oral or intravenous antibiotic therapy. In other patients, recurrent or persistent symptoms may remain. It is unclear whether these symptoms are due to active infection and if additional antibiotics will help (CDC, 2014).
Decision Point: Since he is not able to currently work, does Hannah find a part time job in order to have some income? Explain the pros and cons of Hannah going to work.
Since Ali is no longer able to work because he has taken off too many days from work last year, Hannah will have to find a part time job to get another form of income flowing into the family. Not only do they have a child with autism which is hard enough in itself, but they also have two other kids that they need to provide for. Below are some of the pros and cons or Hannah going back to work:
Pros:
• More income coming into the family
• Able to provide for her family
• Ali will be at home so they won’t have to pay for a babysitter or other forms of day care
• A better chance for their family to be successful and provide the needs their children have to them
Cons:
• Hannah will be away from her family more
• Would she be making enough part time that it would be worth it?
• If Ali cannot take care of the kids they will have to hire a babysitter to watch their kids which will cost a lot of money
• Lyme Disease. (2014, February 3). Stony Brook Medicine. Retrieved July 7, 2014, from http://stonybrookmedicine.edu/patientcare/lyme
• Lyme Disease Symptoms and Treatment. (2013, March 12). WebMD. Retrieved July 7, 2014, from http://www.webmd.com/rheumatoid-arthritis/arthritis-lyme-disease
• Lyme Disease. (2014, June 23). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved July 7, 2014, from http://www.cdc.gov/lyme/