I hate being in Special Ed!?
I really hate it! I'm normal and one day a teacher came to my special ed classroom told me if I improve everything, doing homework, doing my best work, and having a good behaver, I will go to regular classes. It all started when I was tired being treated like a child and later me and my special ed teacher started to argue a lot. I really hate special ed kids, I really do but I don't mess with them or call them names, I only ignore them. I really hate being called 'Special', one time in P.E a boy and girl were talking and saw me in front of them and the boy called me 'She's special', I'm not special and it really piss me off and I never want to hear the word 'Special' ever again! I also heard kids who are in Special Ed cannot go to collage, I really want to go to collage and be a history teacher, but me being in Special Ed, I will never go to collage. When it was the day of school, my special ed teacher give me the Anime price I earned and I thought I was going to regular classes and I told my special ed teacher if I'm going to regular classes, and she told me I'm not because I need to have good grades and I wasn't happy and later me and the teacher started to argue again. When it was lunch time, I told all my friends (who are in regular classes) that I'm still staying in special ed and they all felt sorry for me. A nightmare really came. I already told my family to take me to Regular classes but they told me I have to have good grades but I do! There is nobody who can help me and I'm feeling all goth and emo and hearing music.
As the parent of a child with special needs, what do you wish you could tell other people?
I think one of the primary things I would like to remind people is that having a special needs child is not a punishment, and it isn’t something to pity. It isn’t uncommon for people to respond (and I’m certain it is with kind intentions) “oh, I am so sorry” that my daughter isn’t “normal” or that my “life is so much harder” or that we have so many medical appointments or “inconveniences”… My special needs child is precious to my heart, to my family, to our lives…I would like to remind people that all children are gifts and blessings :) our special needs children might be different from “normal” children, but they are not different in the fact that they are still gifts and blessings. It isn’t something to take pity on, it’s just the way it is. When we wallow in self-pity about what our children are NOT, we lose sight of what they ARE.So they develop differently, they may or may not reach milestones that other children reach, they require a little (or a lot of) extra time and attention, but that does not take away from the gift of their life.Perhaps next time you see a special needs child, look at the child as a gift and not a hardship - and rather than focusing on what they aren’t, look at what they are.“What a precious little one you have there!” is greatly preferred to “you poor thing”. When speaking to an older child or even an adult special needs individual, greet them and speak to them because they are a person too. It’s as simple as “Hello! How are you today?”If you don’t know what to say, just smile. We could all do with more smiles in our lives, and when you give a smile, you are almost sure to receive one in return.
How did you feel when you were told your child had special needs?
I have 10 children in total. Most people are shocked to hear that in today's age, but I assure you, we did not plan it that way.My wife and I had 2 children, 1 with medical needs. Our focus was always on what we needed to do to help him. I don't think we ever stopped to consider how we felt about the situation, only what was necessary for him to have the best life possible.Later we decided to adopt a child. It's kinda of a longer story, but we ended up adopting many children, all with special needs, but we went into it knowing that they had special needs. It's not the same, as we only felt like we had the capacity to try to help one more child, not unexpectedly confronted with this child has special needs now what are you going to do.I have to say, all of our children are good children and perfect in their own way. They were just in a tough spot; and if we were able to help in some small way, then we were lucky, and happy to be a part of their lives.
Should parents of special needs children hire a babysitter with specific experience caring for special needs children?
Not necessarily. The important thing they should look for is someone who is willing to listen, to learn and to accommodate special needs. Experience can actually be more of a problem than a help, especially if that experience is focused in one area.I’ve worked in Special Needs schools for a long time and worked with a lot of teacher aides. The best ones are definitely those who are prepared to observe, learn and adapt. The worst are the ones who come in with a preconceived idea and fail to understand that Special Needs is a broad term.I remember one girl started at the school I worked at. She was incredibly confident in her abilities from day one because she cared for her sister who was autistic. She assumed her sister was representative of every autistic child and treated them all like her sister. I had to keep telling her not to sing to the students because they hated it. She’d tell me that she did it because her sister loved it and I had to explain that these kids weren’t her sister. They were different.If I was looking for a babysitter for a Special Needs child I’d be a lot more interested in someone who asked lots of questions and wanted to know everything that someone who assumed their experience was going to see them through. It doesn’t matter how much experience you have in the general area, every new child is a new child with their own special needs.
Why do people make fun of people who are in Special Ed?
I'm 18 and I'm going to be a senior in high school soon. I've been in special ed all my life because I needed help with my school work etc. What I don't get is, Why to people always have to make fun of the special ed kids? I remember back when I was in middle school, I've always got bullied, picked on, etc because I was in special ed, they used to call me and my friends stupid or "little kids" etc and I felt really bad when people treated me like dirt. This is the same for High School too. I was a freshmen and I used to like this one girl and this guy kept asking her why is she hanging with those "little kids", and it really irritated me my blood pressure was boiling I wanted to go kick his ***. Back when I was at my old High School, You wouldn't get a High School diploma, you will get a certificate for special education and you wouldn't be allowed to go into College, I told my special ed teacher that I was going to go to College when I graduate, And she said "No your not" and was treating me like a baby acting like I had mental problems. That's what she did, treated us all like babys since were in Special Ed. Why the hell do people treat us like this? My sophomore year at my new School when we were taking our tests to pass to the next grade, my teacher rudely asked me do I need someone to read me the test questions, And I was like, Wtf? I already know how to read I'm not stupid or anything. And they had Special Ed aids in the regular ed classes helping the special ed kids who need help and I wasn't allowed to do any of the advanced work. Since were in Special Ed, why do people treat us differently? Not all of us are "stupid" or "retarded" like most people say we are. Girls won't even go out with me because I'm in Special Ed, What the hell is wrong with this picture? I'm smart, But the School treats me like I'm not, I'm only in Special Ed for Math and Science. And that's it. Why do we have to suffer because of this BS?
Annoying special Ed kid at school?
This sounds really mean, and I really hope that your communication skills are lacking, and you aren't actually as ignorant as you sound. 1) "I said no because he was in special ed." I hope you mean "I said no because I'm not interested in him." If you said no only because he is special needs, you are very shallow. Disabled people can be some of the nicest, sweetest people you will ever meet. Why turn someone down because of a disability they may have been born with? That's as bad as saying you won't date black people, because they're black. It's very discriminatory. 2) "I just don't wanna go out with a special needs person because they're not very smart." There are SO many kinds of "special needs", and many varying levels. A kid with cerebral palsy may be perfectly intelligent, but not able to apply that intelligence. Autism is a "special need" that doesn't make you "not very smart", their brains just work in a different way from the general population. Someone with Down's Syndrome may not be very smart, but they can be some of the most emotionally intelligent people I've met. They just want to make people smile. Making the generalization that special needs people are unintelligent makes you sound unintelligent. 3) "I just don't want him to be following me around, it's stupid." He's still a person. If you don't want him to follow you around, you can say POLITELY to him, "I can walk the rest of the way myself, but thank you!" Odds are very good that he will be alright with that. He's not some creepy stalker, it seems like he just doesn't know personal boundaries very well. And that's okay, it's okay to POLITELY advise him of your own personal boundaries... To let him know, POLITELY, that you're not comfortable with him being around all the time. He's still just a person, odds are good that he will then know what your boundaries are and he can respect them better. You didn't actually ask any question, just complained about a boy who has a crush on you... So there's your education for the day, since your parents obviously never taught you about manners, political correctness, or tolerance.
As a parent of a special needs child, how do you respond to hurtful or ignorant comments, advice and questions?
My 16 year old son has a dual diagnosis of Down Syndrome and Autism and he contracted PANDAS about 8 years ago. He is so medically complex that we usually don’t get any unsolicited advice.A social worker at school once asked me in front of my 5 year old typical son, if the reason I didn’t terminate my pregnancy was because of my religion. We filed an official complaint with the district administrator not to be vindictive, but to ensure that this didn’t happen to any other special needs family. She broke at least 4 tenants of her profession and as the person assigned to help families navigate the special needs world within the school district, her attitude toward my disabled son was completely unacceptable.I feel that my family has benefited greatly by all the advocacy work that parents of special needs children who have come before us did, so it is up to us to continue their work to make the world a better place for our children. Thanks for the A2A. This is a topic I’m passionate about and I hope my answer helped.
Should children with special needs be included in regular schools in India?
After a point of time it gets pretty tough for a specially abled child to cope up with other students in the class. Teachers are specifically not trained for handling these children. A little extra care and fostering is required from school. I would recommend special school. Although I like the idea of same school with both type of children in different classes/sections with separate teachers so that socializing happens between the children's and they play together, stay together, travel in the same school bus . but classes or sections need to be separate with trained teachers who foster these children's.(There are reputed schools like these which have different wings for children with special needs ) . --These children are blessed---
Is it selfish to give birth to a special needs child? Rather than have an abortion which would prevent them a life of torture and struggle?
Oh goodness… The pondering of this question alone makes my heart race. Please please please know that birthing a special needs child is not torture if you give them a loving environment. With the right care, special needs children will thrive with happiness. In either situation though - birthing or abortion - selfishness results from your intentions. If you abort to prevent your own stress it’s selfish. If you have the child and treat it incorrectly, that’s selfish. Believe me I have heard first-hand about special needs children treated in the most dehumanizing ways imaginable. But my sister, with Trisomy 13, was born with us knowing she was affected. The doctors asked my mum and dad over and over if they wanted to abort. My parents pulled through. I cannot thank them for that decision enough. I’m looking over at my sleeping young sister now and I can’t imagine my life without her. My hands are shaking at the thought of not being able to see her smile, or hear her laugh, or watch her play with her doll, or kiss her cheeks, or dance with her in the living room… She goes through a lot and is the strongest person I know because of it, but she is happy. She is comfortable - but in a real sense. She loves us and everyone she meets unconditionally. But she is also healthy because of us. She is alive because of us. We (being my whole family) take care of her and would do anything for her. We give up a lot for our baby girl but it’s all worth it.And that’s why I consider her life the most selfless decision my family has undergone.
Do children with special needs siblings grow up resentful?
Not in my experience. Not toward the special needs sibling or the parents; not on that on that account. The other siblings treated her differently because she is obviously different. Some of them did not like her when they were tweens and teens, but I think that was more personality than prejudice.In one case it might have been disgust with her condition. Everybody has to be somebody. You can tell and teach and train them, but you can’t make them do anything.From a very early age young children will realize that she is not the boss of herself or them. Kids can tell if your not right in the head. It is interesting to watch a child half the size, weight, and age telling her to do or forebear some act. Sometimes it is done out of selfishness, sometimes out of concern for her, sometimes out of concern for others.If anyone is resentful, it has been the special needs child. She does not know bitterness or revenge, but she does know that she used to carry a little baby around by the same name as the little rug rat that is standing there telling her what to do.