Scarsdale High School's newspaper, "The Maroon" says: “Online social networking, a growing phenomenon among teenagers, has the potential to corrupt the world’s youth.”
If you're like me and you're actively teaching your children about computers and the Internet, welcome to the dark side :-)
My son's favorite website is Youtube. We like to watch videos together.
The other thing we love to do is research things like Chinese New Year, Guitars, or Disney favorites.
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Sunday, March 11, 2007
The Most Special Educator
Our first experience with parent teacher conferences came when our only child was about two and half, the November of his first two's program. Expecting the teacher to gush over his sweet and playful nature and incredible vocabularly, we were stunned when instead, she launched into a discussion of his "speech and cognitive processing issues."
My husband and I were not the most athletic, most popular, or wealthiest kids but we were always comfortable as students. My husband was the kid who aced physics or calculus. He's a sponge. I studied a lot but graduated in my high school's top ten and finished college with honors. Putting our own strengths aside, the thought of our child as having intellectual deficits was truly something we'd never contemplated. It rattled us to our cores.
At the school's urging we went through weeks of extensive testing. Our son's fine and gross motor skills were tested. He had an IQ test. There were speech and psychological tests and he had to see a "physiatrist" at a hospital for severly handicapped children. I'll never forget bursting into tears as I walked past a teenager wearing a "Scarsdale Swimming" sweatshirt one day. My husband was a swimmer and we subconsciously wished for the same for our son. Now he had some unlabeled issue that required "early intervention" and "special education" from a cast of specialists. Our son was "labeled" at 3 years old.
Pre-schoolers are now being tested and treated for "delays" at a staggering rate. For some reason, the incidence of autism, particular in boys, is at record levels. I spent many late nights reading online discussion boards about the autistic spectrum. Our son was never diagnosed with anything aside from "sensory issues" and specific developmental delays in pragmatic language, and fine and gross motor skills. These new problems with no name, make an already challenging role as parent so much harder. The new discussion for parents in Westchester County, is who isn't getting "services" for their child (especially boys).
I finally began to embrace my son's differences, especially as his delays lessened through the many therapies and 3's year in "special education" pre-school. My husband and I wrestle with huge questions about our son's potential to achieve at competitive levels. We assumed we would pass all of our greatest strengths to our children as a matter of course, potentially dropping the less desirable traits through natural selection.
One day I came across an article on Aish.com. I sent this article to myself many times and re-read it often.
I am so blessed to be the mother of a "different" child. If we had to be tested now, how many of us would need "services" for our issues? When I feel the nagging worries resurface, I have to remember that he was sent here to bring us to another level, not the other way around.
My husband and I were not the most athletic, most popular, or wealthiest kids but we were always comfortable as students. My husband was the kid who aced physics or calculus. He's a sponge. I studied a lot but graduated in my high school's top ten and finished college with honors. Putting our own strengths aside, the thought of our child as having intellectual deficits was truly something we'd never contemplated. It rattled us to our cores.
At the school's urging we went through weeks of extensive testing. Our son's fine and gross motor skills were tested. He had an IQ test. There were speech and psychological tests and he had to see a "physiatrist" at a hospital for severly handicapped children. I'll never forget bursting into tears as I walked past a teenager wearing a "Scarsdale Swimming" sweatshirt one day. My husband was a swimmer and we subconsciously wished for the same for our son. Now he had some unlabeled issue that required "early intervention" and "special education" from a cast of specialists. Our son was "labeled" at 3 years old.
Pre-schoolers are now being tested and treated for "delays" at a staggering rate. For some reason, the incidence of autism, particular in boys, is at record levels. I spent many late nights reading online discussion boards about the autistic spectrum. Our son was never diagnosed with anything aside from "sensory issues" and specific developmental delays in pragmatic language, and fine and gross motor skills. These new problems with no name, make an already challenging role as parent so much harder. The new discussion for parents in Westchester County, is who isn't getting "services" for their child (especially boys).
I finally began to embrace my son's differences, especially as his delays lessened through the many therapies and 3's year in "special education" pre-school. My husband and I wrestle with huge questions about our son's potential to achieve at competitive levels. We assumed we would pass all of our greatest strengths to our children as a matter of course, potentially dropping the less desirable traits through natural selection.
One day I came across an article on Aish.com. I sent this article to myself many times and re-read it often.
"The soul of a child with physical and cognitive limitations is certainly loftier and more complete than our own souls.... A soul placed in a body which has limited functionality in this world, is sent with the primary purpose of improving those around him. Its purpose is served by being there for family and friends to work on themselves."
I am so blessed to be the mother of a "different" child. If we had to be tested now, how many of us would need "services" for our issues? When I feel the nagging worries resurface, I have to remember that he was sent here to bring us to another level, not the other way around.
Saturday, March 3, 2007
Scarsdale McNuggets
Scarsdale is a NYC suburb, locating north of Manhattan in Westchester County. It's a beautiful place to live, lots of big old trees, charming homes from the 1920's and earlier. I moved here two years ago and I'm making every effort to live here, find "normal" people, and avoid the trappings of a this self-indulgent place. More about that another time...
Scarsdale Facts
$1.35MM ---- avg. home sale price in 2006 (Sotheby's Market Watch)
$24K ----- avg. property tax bill in Scarsdale
337 ------ Students in SHS class of 2006
98.5% ------ 2006 grads continuing post HS education
~80 ------ 2006 graduates going to Ivy League (based on informal parents poll, SHS won't report this)
176 ------ Ranking on Newsweek’s "America's Best High Schools" list
Blogging around Scarsdale should get interesting, especially considering Scarsdale High School's newspaper, "The Maroon" says: “Online social networking, a growing phenomenon among teenagers, has the potential to corrupt the world’s youth.”
Where am I?
Scarsdale Facts
$1.35MM ---- avg. home sale price in 2006 (Sotheby's Market Watch)
$24K ----- avg. property tax bill in Scarsdale
337 ------ Students in SHS class of 2006
98.5% ------ 2006 grads continuing post HS education
~80 ------ 2006 graduates going to Ivy League (based on informal parents poll, SHS won't report this)
176 ------ Ranking on Newsweek’s "America's Best High Schools" list
Blogging around Scarsdale should get interesting, especially considering Scarsdale High School's newspaper, "The Maroon" says: “Online social networking, a growing phenomenon among teenagers, has the potential to corrupt the world’s youth.”
Where am I?
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