Trials & Tribulations (Part 2)

I found this old paper that I did while I was taking a graduate course at Johns Hopkins in 2005. After careful thought and deliberation, I thought others would find this interesting about our battle with Asperger Syndrome. If anyone would like to post about their trials and tribulations, please leave a link so we can read your story. :)

This is written in the third person and was part of a project that I did.


Middle School

M started sixth grade at a public middle school in southern Maryland. Extensive transition planning was done for M before school started. M was orientated to his new school by his counselor and parents (Transition checklist attached and was added to IEP by parents) and his teachers were given an in-service on Asperger Syndrome by the Autism Specialist from the county and a booklet that was done by the parents about M and Asperger Syndrome. M adjusted well to his new school and his teachers followed his IEP and his accommodations and modifications (it was given to the teachers in the booklet). M was in all regular classes and was in a co-taught Reading and Language class. M did very well at the middle school and was on the Honor Roll during the whole year. No meltdowns were noted at school or at home.

M’s handwriting (print) had improved greatly with OT services and M had the accommodation of an Alpha Smart to use, but he preferred not to use it. M’s teachers comment that his handwriting was very legible and had no problems with reading it.

Dr. F moved her practice to Annapolis and M’s family did not acquire another psychiatrist. At that time, no psychiatrists in the area (three counties) were familiar with Asperger Syndrome.

M has extreme sensitivity to sudden noises (fire alarm, school bells, timers, car horns, whistles, toaster bell, telephone ringing, someone coughing, dog barking, microwave beeping, vacuum cleaners, yelling, loud music, etc.) and it can lead to intense anxiety or panic. M wears ear plugs to filter out these loud noises in middle school (classroom bell was loud to him).

Teachers have found that it is best not to let M know prior to any fire drills at school. If he knows there is going to be a fire drill that day, he will worry about it all day long. Anxiety and panic builds up and it can escalate to major meltdowns.

Due to loud, sudden noises in the lunch room at school, M eats lunch in a quiet place away from the cafeteria, but is isolated from the other students.

M’s self-care skills are normal for his age, but he still cannot tie his shoes (uses velcro shoes only). M is clumsy, uncoordinated, and has problems with balance at times. Due to his fine motor skills and anxiety problems, he has dial barrel type locks (provided by his parents) on all of his lockers at school.

M has acute tactile sensitivity and some things may be too intense or overwhelming to him (digging in the dirt, shirt collars and tags, etc.) M will become upset or anxious when students bump or brush up against him because the touch is perceived as uncomfortable or painful to him. He is therefore permitted to leave early from class to transit to his next class, lunch, morning and afternoon bus, and also allowed to go to his locker in the morning and after school before other students.

M was found to be on grade level during sixth grade according to Sylvan Learning Center’s testing and M continued with their program until the end of the summer.

Seventh grade, extensive transition planning was done again for M and his teachers. M was oriented to his school and the in-service about M and Asperger Syndrome was conducted by his mother and counselor. Booklets done by the parents were also given to the teachers about M and Asperger Syndrome. M was in all regular classes and was in a co-taught Reading and Language class. M had another excellent year and was on the Honor Roll during the whole year. No meltdowns were noted at school or at home.

In eighth grade, extensive transition planning was done again for M and his teachers. M was oriented to his school and the in-service about M and Asperger Syndrome was conducted by his mother and booklets done by the parents were also given to the teachers about M and Asperger Syndrome. M was in all regular classes and was in a co-taught Math and Reading/Language classes. M did extremely well that year and was on the Honor Roll during the whole year. One meltdown was noted at the beginning of the year, but the teacher involved was not at the in-service before school started. She was given the booklet about M and Asperger Syndrome, but it is not known if she read it and followed through with the recommended behavioral procedures. No meltdowns were noted at home.

During the school year M worked in the school library as a Media Aide. His job responsibilities included reshelving books, straightening up the library, and making sure everything was turned off (including all the computers in the computer lab) at the end of the day. He enjoyed working in the library and the librarian said he was a very hard worker and a pleasure to have in the library.

In middle school, speech services continued and they mostly worked on understanding figurative language (similes, metaphors, idioms, etc.) as well as feelings, fluent speech, and eye contact. M had made improvements in these areas and will continue to work on these in ninth grade. Even though more specific objectives were in his IEP to improve his ability in social skills with his peers, they were not done at that time. It was noted by the parents at the IEP meetings that M had no friends.

OT continued as well in middle school and M made some progress in fine motor skills, visual-spatial processing, and sensory integration (help reduce tactile and auditory sensitivity). They also worked on improving his sensory status (self regulation/monitor) and functional responses. M will only receive OT on a consult basis in ninth grade to monitor/check on his sensory status and ensure that his teachers are aware of his sensory needs as it relates to classroom performances.


To be continued . . .


Next: High School