Exciting news for Casen and our family

Big things are happening for Casen! I haven't said anything because I was waiting until we got all of the info, but now I can share.

 

I posted the pic below this weekend in anticipation of Monday.

So let me take you back to the beginning....

Casen has struggled with talking and for a long time was nonverbal. Doctors thought it could have been because he couldn't hear well due to constant drainage and ear infections so we got tubes and cleared up the problem with infections. It didn't get better and he continued to fail hearing tests so in October of 2014 he had an ABR (sedated hearing test) and though we were fully prepared to learn he was partially deaf it actually came back completely NORMAL! (see post here)

In January of 2015 Casen started speech therapy once a week with Cook's Childrens (read the post here because OMG he was so dang cute!!). Then after just a few sessions we found out that Cook's messed up and insurance wouldn't cover the sessions. (read here) Kyle and I talked about it and decided to discontinue the speech therapy (or pay out-of-pocket) and discuss it with his doctor at his 2-year appointment. At Casen's 2-year appointment the doctor wasn't too concerned and said give it time.

So in the spring of this year Kyle and I started talking about speech therapy again. We decided this because we recognized that Casen would get frustrated with us when we didn't understand what he was saying. He also sometimes stuttered like his brain couldn't get his mouth to do what he wanted. It wasn't often so most people never noticed, but we did. Casen also continues to drool a lot and we think he has trouble with his tongue placement and remembering to swallow.

We decided to talk to his doctor at the 3-year checkup and were willing to try to pay for it out-of-pocket since insurance wouldn't cover it. Well his 3-year appointment was delayed to mid-August. At the beginning of August my aunt told me that some school districts have free programs starting at 3. I called our school district and pre-k doesn't start until 4 so that wouldn't work. I then contacted ECI (Early Childhood Intervention) and unfortunately once a child is 3 they no longer qualify for ECI. They have to go through their school district programs...well crap! I just found out that our school district programs didn't start until 4.

So at this point we went to his annual checkup and were ready to try private speech therapy options. But then we got great news! Apparently I didn't ask the right questions when I first called the school district. Though Pre-K doesn't start until 4 they have a childhood intervention program that starts at 3!!! Yay!! I spoke with my doctor and he agreed Casen needed more help now at this age and offered whatever help I needed.  That same day I filled out all of the paperwork for Casen to be tested through our school district.  

Later in August Casen was tested and in early September we got the great news that Casen had been approved for the program. I must admit this was bittersweet for me. Anytime I spoke to someone I told them I was excited for Casen and wanted him to get all the help he needs. However, I had to swallow my pride and get over the labels in society. This programs is considered 'special ed' and just that title makes me sad. I don't want Casen to be different, get teased, or struggle in school. But like all of those around us have said 'This is to help him get on track. It isn't permanent.' It is important we get him the help now before it affects him in school or socially with his peers.

Whew! So now that I have caught you up let me tell you about Monday.

We had our first ARD (Admission, Review, and Dismissal) meeting for Casen.  In this meeting it was myself, the speech pathologist (Casen's teacher), and the assistant principal at the school.

Diagnosis/Results of Testing-

Casen has speech impairment in the area of articulation. Casen does not use final consonant sounds (ie doh instead of dog, 'I nah lie i'  for 'I not like it'). He also skips some middle of word consonants ('a-uhl' instead of 'apple' or 'lie' instead of 'like').  There are some initial consonants he doesn't use at all and others that he replaces with a different sound ('lellow' instead of 'yellow' or 'det' instead of 'get'). For articulation skills Casen scored a 63 out of 115 (85-115 is normal) and that puts him in the 1% amongst kids his age.

Casen does understand words and following instructions. He correctly identified objects in pictures when asked 'which picture is the boy sleeping?' or 'which one is he eating?' He is fine with comprehension.

The summary reports that Casen is 'speech impaired in the area of articulation. Impairment is in the severe range and may hinder his ability to communicate effectively with teachers and peers.' The recommendation: 'Casen's weakness with articulation indicates a need for specially designed instruction through speech therapy in a small group setting to address his needs.'

Casen's Intervention Program:

• Casen will attend speech therapy on Tuesday and Thursdays from 8:30-10
• Every 5th week is called a flex week and he has no class
• This class is at a local elementary though not at the same school as Cooper
• He will take a backpack with a folder and spiral each time (I will take him to pick this stuff out himself just like I did for Cooper).
• He will get to ride a school bus. The school district offers transportation to and from school. They will pick him up at day-care each morning and drop him off there.  This is a huge answered prayer for us. Whether we did this through the school district or privately my biggest concern was getting him to his program/appointments. Neither Kyle nor I could take off that much work to get him everywhere so we were going to have to ask family for help or hire someone to help us.
• We will have an annual ARD meeting to discuss his progress though we will communicate constantly with his teacher
• He is approved for the program for 3 years. He can graduate or be dismissed before then but doesn't have to requalify for 3 years. When he reaches kindergarten he will continue to get help but attend the same school as Cooper.

I have to get him registered just like any other student but then he gets to start next week!

I know that was long but wanted to get it all down in one post for easy reference. I want to thank everyone who has been praying for Casen and our family. All of this has weighed heavily on my heart as we tried to figure out what to do and when to do it. We are really excited for Casen and he is excited too. I will try to do periodic updates of how things are going.