(Jonah dressed himself ALL BY HIMSELF and I thought the shirt he picked out was very “appropriate.”)
So they have cancelled schools around here for the next 6 weeks.
SIX WEEKS!
I understand the reasoning, but it is so very frustrating because this will mean having to “relearn” the school routine.
We have had a difficult time with school this year.
He has had good days, and he has had days where I get called by the vice-principal.
As recently as January, Jonah was SO anxious about going to school, he would refuse to get dressed. He would not let his brother come down the stairs to get ready for school. He would refuse to put his seatbelt on when we got in the car. He Would not put shoes or coat on. He would insist on packing a grocery bag of about 25 action figures in the car with him, and he refused to use the bathroom in the mornings, or at school.
At school he would often hit, throw rocks, wreck other kids’ work, throw every book in the classroom onto the floor, and pull down all the papers stapled to the wall. He would disrupt class and bug all the other kids.
It was getting really bad.
And it extended to other activities as well. He would not behave at Jonny’s Trail Life meetings. He would find ways to bug classmates at Awana. He was refusing to go to the bathroom except at bedtime (so he would go only once a day).
He would do things he knows he’s not supposed to do to get reactions out of me (like trying to put things in electrical outlets, or opening our filing cabinet and scattering all of my important papers onto the floor).
And It all stemmed from the fact that he simply did not want to be at school.
He anxiety about school was effecting almost every aspect of his life.
So, we sat down with his teachers to discuss what could be done. We determined that he really just needs a reason to WANT to go to school. We discussed things that Jonah likes and things that may be motivating for him.
His most recent interests are the Toy Story movies and the Cars movies.
He LOVES them.
And it just so happened that his teacher had an “Etch-A-Sketch” in her classroom.
“Etch” is a character from Toy Story, and his teachers incentivized it as a reward for doing good work.
Jonah LOVES playing with “Etch.”
The next day, Jonah woke up, picked out his own clothes, and got HIMSELF dressed for school (shirt backwards and all), something he had never done before. He climbed into the car without any extra toys, and put his seatbelt on himself.
And he was happy to be at school.
And since then, we have seen a steady improvement in his school work. He even moved up a reading level to 1-G!
He is working hard for the most part and actually enjoying school.
We have seen a vast improvement with his behaviors. And he is doing well at all his extracurricular activities. At Awana, he has been making great progress (with occasional setbacks) and he sits quietly in his seat at all of Jonny’s Trail Life meetings.
At home, he started making/eating toast all on his own. He wants to help with the laundry and help with the dishes.
Last Friday, both boys were ready to leave a full TEN MINUTES before we had to leave.
And then the announcement…
No school for 6 weeks. No Awana. No Trail Life. No church.
NO ROUTINE. For six weeks. At least.
And with Mama working at the hospital in the ICU, there is a real chance she may have to quarantine herself away from us for however long this thing lasts.
😟
It’s just frustrating. I guess I’m just venting.
I know the reasoning behind it all, but we’ve FINALLY gotten into a good school routine just to have it broken, and we will have to go through all the work of getting back into it again.
I have full confidence that we will get through this. But with six weeks away from school and the normal routine, we may take a few steps back before we make real progress again.
(Or Jonah could surprise me, and keep right on truckin. He loves to get reactions out of me.)
Here’s to hoping!