Sooner rather than later.

Last Tuesday, we received a note from Alex's teacher. She wanted to see us and asked for a convenient time. I was really worried and asked Jeremy to ring Mrs Dunham to find out what it's all about because the end of term review was scheduled for end of this month.

Mrs Dunham said that it's nothing to worried about and that she wanted to find out from us if we have any objection that they keep Alex a little longer in Rainbow. The teachers and speech therapist feels that he is not ready to join the bigger class in January due to his lack of speech.

The meeting was yesterday. I went to see Mrs Dunham and Becca (ST) alone as Jeremy had to work. The meeting was not as what I expected as it got a bit heavy towards the end. I came out feeling rather stressed and confused as I haven't had enough sleep for two days. (The sudden change of temperature caused some discomfort to Alex, sniffing all night long. Hence no sleep for Alex and mummy.)

I brought to Becca's attention last term that I suspect Alex has Apraxia of Speech. At the time, she felt that it was too early to diagnose Alex for Apraxia.

In our meeting yesterday, we discussed that Alex is way behind his peers in expressive speech and fine motor movement i.e. writing, drawing, cutting, pasting etc.

They suspect that he may be Dyspraxia and Becca asked if I have any objection if Alex were to be re-assess for Apraxia.

I can't really remember how the whole conversation came to a hint that suggested Alex may not be Autistic as he is far too social for an ASD child. Of course the teachers cannot say for sure as they are not trained to diagnose any disorder. However, they have seen and taught many children within the spectrum and could see Alex being the odd one out.

Becca feels that Alex wanted to talk and communicate unlike a typical Autistic child. She noticed that when Alex wanted to say a word or repeat a sound, they seem to jumble up and turned out a different sound - a typical example of Apraxia.

If Alex is diagnosed with Apraxia, he will need more Speech and Language Therapy. The teachers suggested a school which they feel is more appropriate for Alex as Rainbow cannot offer the type of help he required. Although we have concerns for sometime that Alex may not improve in time for mainstream school, my heart sank. 

The school that they suggested is an independent school in Surrey that specialise in communication and speech. Our Local Education Authority will have to pay for the fees which means we have to review his Statement for Special Education sooner than expected. It would be more appointments, more assessments and perhaps we have to fight with the LEA for our rights to send Alex to a fee paying Independent school. I heard from other parents that it would be a hard and long road. Just when we thought Rainbow was the answer .....

I guess telling us now is better than having to complete 6 terms in Rainbow and still no improvement. 

I am grateful to the teachers for making an effort to find the right help for Alex, it shows that they care.

It looks like for the next few weeks or months, I will be very busy visiting different schools and taking Alex to assessments. 

No time to wait and see. It's now or ......