Mom of a Teen who needs some answers...

AlleyCat said:
Shel was not talking about kids that are "too short, too tall, has a weight problem, etc." Yes, they can and do get picked on and bullied. But that's not what this topic was about.

Shel was talking about that it's very real that deaf kids do get picked on and bullied.
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And they CAN get picked on just because they are deaf. It has happened to me. GEEEZ!
 
So, ANY INPUT AT ALL on this would be greatly appreciated please

From the very first post in this thread.

To those who disregard or question our input, quit it.
 
Oceanbreeze said:
Kids can be mean to other kids in all sorts of situations. If a kid is too short, too tall, has a weight problem, ect. Do you want to segregate those kids, too?

Mainstreaming isn't the best option for every deaf child, but it should be an option. Like it or not, Shel, parents have the right to decide for their child and there isn't really much anyone is gonna do about it. Kids are also resilient. Personally, I think you're selling deaf kids short by having this attitude of gloom and doom all the time. Not every child will have the same experiences you did
. I know plenty of kids who did, but, I also know of plenty of kids who didn't.
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Oh come on...........people use terms like segregation and then wonder why there's a stigma against deaf schools???!!?
Point is, I don't see people advocating exclusively for Deaf Schools. I see people advocating for a continuum of placement. The fact of the matter is, is that our school system is set up to exclusively educate average kids. Kids who fall at either end of the spectrum tend to get the short shrift of things education wise. Did you know that gifted kids very often struggle academicly?
And no, I don't think that shel is selling dhh kids short by bringing up the fact that we are bullied and or ostracized in an inclusive program.... heck it's pretty much a FACT that even the dhh kids who do very very well academicly often struggle socially.
We need a continuum of placement.
 
CSign, my point is that admissions at Deaf Schools are dependent on each individual state's requirement. Just b/c they're strict in California it doesn't mean that they're strict in other states.
And yes, I have helped and sat in on IEPs for mainstreamed dhh kids....it's still the same. My friends who have dhh mainstreamed kids tell me they're still dealing with the exact same stuff I dealt with.
 
CHerri said:
My son has a cochlear and he is in a deaf school. He is brilliant. With an interpreter he could easily excel academically among a group of any hearing kids. I have no doubt that if we sent him down the street to the public school he'd graduate #1. However, on our street the hearing kids won't socialize with him, and if they interact it is in meanness. He has many friends at his deaf school.

I am a hearing parent. It would be "socially cool" to be able to say my deaf child is mainstreamed at the public school and excelling. That's the stuff of Lifetime channel movies. I get a lot of social peer pressure from family/peers to mainstream because he is so intelligient, but I don't think that's best for my kid. His social development is just as important as his intellect and even more important than what society thinks.

By the way, my son's CI failed. He is completely deaf.
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Hello I started this post about my son...and we have not had him in a DHH school for quite some time due to his behavioral prblms. We have pretty much tackled that, but he still has episodes where it will prevent him from being accepted in the Deaf School of Indianapolis..and it is about 2 hrs away and he DOES NOT wanna stay at school during the week and then come home on weekends. So for us, the mainstream is going well. He just got a new counselor at Centerstone (which provides counseling needs for Alex and our family) but she is fluent in asl and also has an education background on the deaf, so she has been great with helping us get Alex's needs met at the public school.
I am soo saddened to hear that the neighborhood kids are mean to him, that was what I feared the most with him with us not living in a deaf community. I mean he dont have TONS of friends that come over and hang out, but Alex spends a lot of his time at the skate park and I go up every so often to just check the situation out lol, but there are a lot of kids there who have taken him under their wing and will inform newcomers of Alex being deaaf and show them how to communicaate if need be. We did have an incident where a boy has asked Alex to move over, of course he didnt hear him, so the kid was cussing him out and wanted to fight him cause he thought he was 'just ignoring him', WELL, did the other kids get involved, one ran to the house to get us, and they all had went off on the boy...it was a good feeling. Because I do worry everyday that my choice to keep Alex in the public school is keeping him from 'better' friendships that he may have...????
Alex made the front page of the paper...wanted to share with ya!

http://www.pal-item.com/article/20130204/NEWS01/302040017

Check out his article!!!!!!
 
Amy&Alex said:
Hello I started this post about my son...and we have not had him in a DHH school for quite some time due to his behavioral prblms. We have pretty much tackled that, but he still has episodes where it will prevent him from being accepted in the Deaf School of Indianapolis..and it is about 2 hrs away and he DOES NOT wanna stay at school during the week and then come home on weekends. So for us, the mainstream is going well. He just got a new counselor at Centerstone (which provides counseling needs for Alex and our family) but she is fluent in asl and also has an education background on the deaf, so she has been great with helping us get Alex's needs met at the public school.
I am soo saddened to hear that the neighborhood kids are mean to him, that was what I feared the most with him with us not living in a deaf community. I mean he dont have TONS of friends that come over and hang out, but Alex spends a lot of his time at the skate park and I go up every so often to just check the situation out lol, but there are a lot of kids there who have taken him under their wing and will inform newcomers of Alex being deaaf and show them how to communicaate if need be. We did have an incident where a boy has asked Alex to move over, of course he didnt hear him, so the kid was cussing him out and wanted to fight him cause he thought he was 'just ignoring him', WELL, did the other kids get involved, one ran to the house to get us, and they all had went off on the boy...it was a good feeling. Because I do worry everyday that my choice to keep Alex in the public school is keeping him from 'better' friendships that he may have...????
Alex made the front page of the paper...wanted to share with ya!

http://www.pal-item.com/article/20130204/NEWS01/302040017

Check out his article!!!!!!
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WOW! This is great. Let's encourage more news about when things are working.
 
I just saw your other thread, Amy, with the news article. It looks as if things are moving in a positive direction!
 
AlleyCat said:
And it was a pointless point. We're not talking about other kids in the mainstream. This thread is about parents writing about their deaf child's experience. "However, on our street the hearing kids won't socialize with him, and if they interact it is in meanness. He has many friends at his deaf school."

Nobody's making you stay to read about "their crappy experiences."

Just writin'...
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So, a residential school is THE answer? :ugh:
 
Oceanbreeze said:
So, a residential school is THE answer? :ugh:
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That is not what AlleyCat is saying.

Guess, I can see that you have an agenda against Deaf schools.

U are not really getting what we are saying. You are just going all over the places.

It started out with someone saying that maybe deaf children dont get bullied for being deaf.

Then, I said that they do and how it has happened to me and others.

Then, u got on my case about my mainstreaming experiences and how I am selling deaf children short.

Now, you are accusing AlleyCat of implying that residential schools are the answer.

Totally WAAAAYY offff the point big time.

If you have a personal agenda against the both of us or our views, I suggest you take it to PM land.
 
shel90 said:
That is not what AlleyCat is saying.

Guess, I can see that you have an agenda against Deaf schools.

U are not really getting what we are saying. You are just going all over the places.

It started out with someone saying that maybe deaf children dont get bullied for being deaf.

Then, I said that they do and how it has happened to me and others.

Then, u got on my case about my mainstreaming experiences and how I am selling deaf children short.

Now, you are accusing AlleyCat of implying that residential schools are the answer.

Totally WAAAAYY offff the point big time.

If you have a personal agenda against the both of us or our views, I suggest you take it to PM land.
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Oceanbreeze wanted to make this thread about her. About other kids because SHE isn't deaf. Her agenda's too transparent. Let it be. She will go away when she gets bored.
 
And OB, I suggest you look at my post #12 and #18 and then think about your posts to me and AlleyCat. Unless we go through the cycle of denial again like old times.

This always happens whenever I or AlleyCat share our thoughts, opinions, or experiences.

I dont get it. Seriously.
 
AlleyCat said:
Oceanbreeze wanted to make this thread about her. About other kids because SHE isn't deaf. Her agenda's too transparent. Let it be. She will go away when she gets bored.
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:ty:
 
shel90 said:
And OB, I suggest you look at my post #12 and #18 and then think about your posts to me and AlleyCat. Unless we go through the cycle of denial again like old times.

This always happens whenever I or AlleyCat share our thoughts, opinions, or experiences.

I dont get it. Seriously.
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Agreed.
 
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Anyways, back on topic. Shel, did you get a chance to read Amy&Alex's article? I thought it was good.
 
AlleyCat said:
Anyways, back on topic. Shel, did you get a chance to read Amy&Alex's article? I thought it was good.
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Just did...thanks for pointing me to it. I overlooked it. Wow, thats a good article and I am happy that things are working out for him. :aw:
 
Thanks ya all, I am so very proud of him. I know he is not as socially adapted as 'hearing' kids, but he is happy, has some friends and has a pretty good self esteem. And big news!!! He has a girlfriend,(they are on their 2nd week :) she is hearing, didn't know a lick of sign...but has learned the alphabet and her numbers, and can hold a simple conversation..actually as each day passes she is learning more and more...and USING IT!!! They have been skyping everynight and if there is somethig she doesnt know she has her sign book right beside her, or she will write it and ALex will show her the sign/s...It is soo cute..he's only 14, but Im happy he is getting to experience this. hehe:)
And ya know, I would love for Alex to really be at a deaf school where his language is #1, not the latter, but the behavioral issues are still there...huge sigh...:( We have had 4 (tonight was a bad one) episodes since he moved back home in June...where he doesnt want to do homework., lies about having it done, or just wont look at me when Im trying to sign to him asking why he has lied or whats wrong...THEN when I get upset, and send him to his room he really throws a fit, like throwing things in his room, trying to intimidate me because of his 6 foot size...I first thought, well maybe he is NOT UNDERSTANDING and just dont want to do it because of that...Its math..and like I had stated earlier, gma had him in a school where adding and subtracting were probably the only math he saw, he is now doing 7th grade math..algebra, some he has grasped pretty well, I dont know...I jsut get so upset that if it is something like his just not understanding, then why not say that instead of getting this angry to the point that he is now grounded to his room for the weekend, and no grlfriend..Sorry, just rambling really...I just really want to know if A LOT of deaf/hh kids/teens have anger issues like this? He is starting meds tomorrow...gma had him on meds for yrs...He hasnt been on any since here, but I wanted to try them again to see if he REALLY did need them??? Another issue all together...MEDS...HUGE SIGH:(
 
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