Hi and welcome! First, please ignore the capitalization on my posts - my shift key is not working properly and it is driving me nuts. Second, sorry I came so late to this and didn't welcome you earlier! Third, please stick around!! You won't ever find a group that is more supportive, helpful, informative and less judgmental. There isn't one. I didn't think I would stick around when I joined and that was a loooooooong time ago!
You have so much going on. I agree that the boys need help, and that it is promising that the rewards are working. Just please don't think it is all over when the current system stops working in a short time. That is pretty much par for the course with kids like ours.
Others haven't mentioned some of our favorite books and ideas, so I will. First the books! (I'm a bookworm to the extreme, lol!)
The Explosive Child by Ross Greene - this is a book we recommend to everyone who joins us. IT is not traditional parenting and it will likely seem counter-ntuitive but it works with difficult children better than about anything. There is a thread on the early childhood forum of ths board about adapting it to work with kids under 5 and it may also have some ideas.
What Your Explosive Child is Trying to Tell You by Dr. Doug Riley - awesome book. Helps you figure out the why behind the rage/tantrum/meltdown, and you need that why to figure out how to stop the rages from happening. dr. R is great, and a member here, and he really worked to make this a book to help us help our kids. He doesn't post often, but if you search his name you can find the posts he made when the book came out and at other times. I think this and the explosive child should be mandatory for every teacher to read.
The Out of Sync Child and The out of sync child has fun - both by Kranowitz. These are about sensory integration/processing disorder. The first one describes it and the hterapies used and how they all work. The has fun book is packed with fun activities to provide the sensory diet that the chld needs in a fun way - and ideas to make the fun less expensive! in my opinion sensory issues are the most overlooked and the treatment is one of the best ways to reach a child and provide tools that the child can and will use to help himself. Plus they are usually enjoyable and that makes the child willing - which is not always the case with things any kid needs to do! Every kid I know, incl my husband, loves the activities in the has fun book.
These are a pretty good start. When you have more info on what teh problems are, there are other books we can recommend.
on obtaining your degree! Well done mommy!
