Yesterday we left summertime.
So our body needs to adjust again.
Especially for spectrumchildren quite a problem. Everything feels different.

Had a very bussy week, which started with a meeting at Stef's school about the way they are handling things.

The coordinator talked some bare nonsence: told us she wasn't allowed to request supportgrants last schoolyear.
I old her that was not what the minister wrote me, as he told me they were perfectly able to request grants up to the last schooldays.
Then she said that at least my contact with the minister had lead to the fact that the highest classes weren't subjected to the new grant- and supportsystem, and that there everything worked well.

I thought she wasn't able to read herself into all the changes and new rules, and I was right.
At a certain moment she acknowledged that she wasn't able to deal with matters anymore.
The reason is obvious: instead of two special education kids, she has about two normal kids... and the rest special education.

Which lead to the idea to ask for a new development:
ask the minister to testdrive a special educations group at your school. That ensures special grants and gives more time too.
I can't understand they never thought about that...they welcomes the idea with great enthousiasm, but if she is organising it as well as Stef's supportgrant, it'll never come to excistance.

I also said that if the board didn't listen to her complaints she should inform the schoolinspection.
Then she was called away for a few minutes.
When we were alone with Stef's mentor he said it would be wise to inform inspection, and he asked if we wanted to do the first steps.
It would take the pressure away of making a complaint which would cost her ..maybe...her job.
Well, I hate it too, but she is incapable taking action herself, so we agreed to start the procedure.

After that he told us what he would be doing with Stef, and it turned out he didn't understand very much of ADD and Asperger syndrome.
So he got a practical lesson, and he said listening and taking it in with his mouth open.
Öh, now I understand why it doesn't work to tell them they have a week extra to finish a paper... it only makes it even more of a problem to oversee.

At a certain moment I felt moved...
He's a man who clearly feels a lot for his pupils, but he has never had an insight in what is going on in the minds of those children.

I myself got an insight when an online friend blogged about being confronted with a person she had been herself in the past.
Instead of trying to see what she needed I immediately jumped to trying to see what the other person needed.

When I was a young schoolkid I always stood up for the minority kids, and I dared to say what they needed in front of others, even though I was very very shy myself.
And during my studies I didn't often go for the easy way.
So I tried to see what were the needs of the woman she met...

Guess I still want to change the world...

Maybe I wanted my friend to behave more like a caretaker, because people use so much of the psychologist part of me.

At the band we have three new people, and so we're not the newest members anymore.
And now we've finished the first part of our studies and have started practicing band repertoire, we seem to have become more part of the band.

We're now quite clear about which bagpipes we want, so it's up to the organisation to order them.
We can't wait....although I worry about the bill...
But there's no stopping now.

My teacher didn't know if he wanted to take the youngest kids as new pupils.
He's a good teacher for grown ups, he is, and i don't doubt he will be great with kids.

So I told Djenne to ask him if she was doing right (the little ones have no teache rat the moment).
He asked her to step into the lesson the nect hour and he gave her the lesson she needed.
Even told her to practice the next hour and come back later to show how she was doing.

They both enjoyed it very much. LOL!

And we now both can say we've had the same instructor. LOL!

I can't keep up with everything going on.

Thami was threatened by a couple of weird kids from school.
They really give me the creeps. I feel they're very insincere.
They feel strong and are threatening other pupils without a blinc.
They make me feel they are backed up by a larger organisation.
And with these rightside tendencies...
I know there's a coregroup in our town somewhere, and I think thesde pupils are in contact.

At the other school, when i was chairman of the parents-organisation we dealth with strange strong behaviour too, and I expressed the same feeling.
People laughed at me, untill I came up with straightforward proof.
I'm not sure if this school can handle the knowledge. Up till then I have to enforce them to take action, so they won't feel it comes from Thami's parents, otherwise they sure will have a go at him and maybe even me.

Today Jim is on a two days course.
I don't mind. Otherwise than that there is a bit more work to do. But it's far more quiet in the evenings and mornings.

yesterday it started to rain when Thami and Nyo were leaving for school.
Thami wanted to put on a raincoat and raintrousers..which took ages and they arrived at school far too late.

Today I stayed in bed (had a migraine yesterday and today), because Jim was downstairs managing things.

He didn't even stay at home to get the boys out of the door in time, but went with the girls to school. Which is unnecessary.
Thami and Nyo arrived again too late at school.

The school called, as it was two days in a row and Jim told they had been watching TV and forgot the time.
That man is completely nuts!
There is a button and we all know what you can do with it... (No...not delete the TV, switch it off.)

15 minutes later the school called again: Nyo (autistic) had lost control of his temper.

Turned out that they didn't even wait till the break, but got Nyo out of the classroom to tell him it was his mistake that he had been too late and therefore he should be at school at 8. Which means he has to go there in the dark, and he had his first hour off, so it was a double punishment, in his eyes.
he also thought it not fair that he got punished because they were late yesterday, because it was Thami's fault they went late from home, and the weather's fault, as it was storming.

Added to it: Nyo was very happy that he had finished reading a book and had his bookreview done in the proper way..two days before the deadline, which is great news!
Turned out the teacher was ill... so for once he had done something which is very special to him, and there's the disappointment.
So today was stress on stress for him, and he has difficulty handling that.

So getting him out of the lesson was a HUGE disturbance.

Oh...I wish I didn't stay in bed those 30 minutes, but would have orchestrated everything.

Thami was allowed to bring Nyo home after they told us they were on their way.
They had lost almost all stress on their way home, so we were able to have a good talk.

Turned out that on their way home they indeed had trouble with Thami's bike, and that wasn't an excuse for convenience.
I told them to take the punishment, but also to make an appointment with both mentors and tell them what really went on. Their father had made a mistake about them watching TV, and they have made a mistake by not calculating extra travelling time at this stormy weather. It makes a huge difference at a distance of 45 minutes, with the wind in the face.

Then it turned out that internet was down for the whole neighbourhood....again...

It rained almost all day. So I did a lot in the home.
When I went to the bagpipe practice it was dry, and very bussy on the roads due to the fact that the footballteam had a match.

Had a good time at the band.
I can feel we're ready for the next level. Some difficult parts are routine now.

Had a talk about the children. Yinti clearly has the talent, and Djenné the persistence and musicality.
They are both seen as one of the 3 children that are wanted by the band.

When I went home my teacher went outside with me to open the gate.
We had closed that because the footballstadium is very nearby and we didn't want cars from supporters at the schoolgrounds.
He didn't feel very well, and when I said he'd better have a good night of sleep, he had a nice reaction.
I suddenly realised that my care was appreciated, something I never feel with the boys at home.
He on his part asked if I had a raincape, as it started raining.
I'm not used to people caring if I get wet or cold...

On my way home I enjoyed the rain...and the sheering that sounded from the stadium.
It's not cold at all.