Give tip/hack/advice based on your professional experience

amother

Maroon

Thu, Jan 18 2024, 12:43 pm

amother Burntblack wrote:

What else could be going on?

As another poster mentioned, it could be Pandas, lyme or other physical illnesses.
It could be you have a highly sensitive child who is overwhelmed by his environment, left too long without support that will begin looking like trauma/anxiety/autism.

What I'm trying to say is, if your child was doing well and suddenly is not, first check all physical and emotional aspects before assuming autism. It's easy to qualify for an autism diagnosis because the spectrum is so wide, but in reality, people with autism have brains that are different, not just behaviors that are different.
It's important to distinguish what's actually going on so you can best help the child.

amother

Olive

Fri, Jan 19 2024, 8:32 am

Recruiter here:

If you are going (back) into the working world, after having been home with your kids for years (which I highly commend you for!), I recommend not applying for the corporate type of office jobs.

Best to try and find work for a school, in a daycare, or for an organization or any other type of job really. The offices are only hiring people that are younger/or have previous office experience.

Also, interviews are not (should not be) scary. They are an information gathering process for both the company and candidate. No need to feel bad if you decline an offer, or have questions. Try to relax.

amother

Jean

Fri, Jan 19 2024, 8:48 am

amother Olive wrote:

I'm glad I didn't read this when I was entering the workforce after being home with my children. It's definitely hard, and many potential employers will be prejudiced against you, but it's possible and doable if you're determined.

amother

Tanzanite

Fri, Jan 19 2024, 8:56 am

amother Jean wrote:

This! This! This!

I don't know why teachers think that we have the magic answers.

I've gotten calls about DC's hard time following directions, not being organized, and I want to yell at the teachers - as soon as I figure out how to help their father I'll work on the child!!!! Obviously I cant say this to them, and then I'm stuck with the "bad mother" label.

I've also gotten calls about other things over the years- and seriously, what do the teachers want us parents to do? Not everything is fixable, do you teachers realize this???

The teachers are trying to help you break the cycle and get your dc get help. Your dhs mother said the same thing you are saying now.

amother

NeonBlue

Fri, Jan 19 2024, 10:03 am

Speech therapist here

Get rid of pacifiers and bottles/ sippy cups ideally between 1 and 2. It really affects oral development.

Nose breathing is super important. If your child is a mouth breather please figure out what is the reason. You might need to visit an ENT, speech therapist, functional orthodontist

Tongue/lip/cheek ties need to be revised in most cases. It affects development of the whole intra oral cavity, how the jaws and palate form etc. (I am spending lots of money on orthodontics due to doctors not wanting to revise in infant almost two decades ago)

amother

Rose

Fri, Jan 19 2024, 11:54 am

Special Ed and related services coordinator here (not located in NY or NJ):

Tips for parents:

Communicate! If you want a certain service, or if something needs to be adjusted—please tell us—we aren’t mind readers. 😉 If you want a breakdown of the billing for services done using your child’s funding, ask us—we are happy to provide it. Demanding that the state audit us before you ask us for the breakdown will mark you as a difficult parent.

Try to be flexible—we are trying to set up tutoring, therapies, etc to help your child—but if you veto every suggested therapist or tutor, or refuse to try implementing their recommendations, it becomes difficult to find someone who will be willing to work with your child.

As annoying as paperwork is for you, it’s just as annoying for us. But we cannot legally service your child without it—especially consent forms. Please understand that we are really not trying to drive you crazy with forms to complete!

When we tell you we are legally required to give your child state tests because they receive specific funding, or that due to bureaucratic legalities we are not allowed to bill the state/county/district for a therapy that is enormously beneficial (think aquatic therapy, equine therapy, etc.)—we are trying to navigate a broken system in a way that can help your child. Stupid laws are not fun for us either. We get it. There’s a lot we do behind the scenes to advocate for your child to get the services that will best help them.

For staff (any job):
Please complete your HR paperwork, no matter how heimish the company is.

Hack: If your job requires you to have your background checks done (FBI and BCI), ask for a copy to be sent to you for your own records. Much easier to provide a recent background check upon request when you already have a copy, and don’t have to go through getting your fingerprints redone 3 months after you had them done the first time. Smile

For school administrators:
Please communicate about what you need and don’t badmouth us to your staff. Please communicate in writing as much as possible so that there is no ambiguity in what you think you requested and what we understood from whatever was said (often conflicting messages if there are too many cooks in the kitchen - too many school admins all contradicting each other in meetings).

amother

Nasturtium

Fri, Jan 19 2024, 1:08 pm

Middle school math teacher here. If your kid struggled with basic multiplication in 3rd grade please help him or her early. No need to get professional help, most of the time drilling can be done by a high school neighbor. Otherwise years down the line they will still be struggling with harder math like algebra.

As a teacher with formal admin training, this is for all those discussing teachers calling parents with demands: It is never the teacher’s place to recommend a formal evaluation to a parent. That’s the principal’s job, and not by going on one teacher’s observations.