With secondary school looming for J it is time I resurrected this blog, if only for my own sanity at times.
J is now 11 years old and it seems a lifetime since I started this blog when I had just a quirky little boy and no idea why. I have ridden over the assessments, the diagnoses and the decision about medication for ADHD. I have seen my son go from barely able to read and not achieving National Curriculum Level 1 at age 8 to the giddy heights of NC Level 4 just three short years later. I have recently watched him receive an award for the massive progress he made in Key stage 2 and I have witnessed his confidence grow, it has been a difficult but very rewarding few years.
His temper? Ah yes we still have the temper and the rages, but the bedroom door frame has been reinforced and a new cabin bed prevents the door from being slammed. He can still be very oppositional at times and sleep can still be a closed book for both of us. We live with that though and muddle through.
So Jnis doing well, I am still doing well too, the black beast of depression still rears it's head from time to time but on the whole I am on top of it. I am also much much aware of the warning signs now which allow me to take some kind of action to veer away from it (mostly).
J will be attending a mainstream secondary school from September, the school in question being chosen as the smallest one in our town with just over 750 children on roll as opposed to 1500+ in all the others. Happily it is also the school his primary feeds into which means he will have many familiar faces around...a relief for him and me.
So we are now well into school uniform purchasing which is why I am currently broke ..ah well such is life. I am expecting the bill to be around £350 by the time I have finished...and no second hand shop either.
From September I will be working every day in my newish job as a teaching assistant. I love it and the extra hours will help me financially as well. It does mean though that I will need the odd hour out here and there for meetings. I have the first meeting at J's new school on 24th September to discuss their plans for his first year. I am hopeful that with the additional support they have asked for and got that J will do well.
