Small problem in the scheme of things--gym class

[confuzzled]

dreaded phone call from gym teacher--difficult child 2 is failing gym.

and is defiant in her class. this is the infamous teacher who said mine needs to "learn personal responsibility"...apparently she must not understand gfgdom too much. (i'd have fainted if she actually accomplished such a thing, lol)

::SIGH::

i know early in the semester she "forgot" to turn in a written assignment--that was a zero. (in difficult child's head, it was unheard of to turn it in the next day in the hope of partial credit, and for all i know, the teacher could have said exactly that--of course in *my head* i was thinking wth kind of written assignment is there in GYM?!).

i know there are times she doesnt participate the entire class, but for the most part she does her best.

and most recently, i know she didnt dress for gym because she brought them home to be washed on a friday, on monday, put them in her regular locker, and between the start of school and 6th period, "forgot" to take them to the locker room, i think mostly because its not a natural time for her to go to her reg. locker, it CERTAINLY wasnt intentional...but in her head, she didnt think the teacher would "let" her go get them...(just so you know, this is the ONLY time all year she wasnt dressed for gym)

and i know gym is literally the most difficult class she has-sensory overload, weight gain, motor/coordination issues, tired and hungry before gym, medication related issues and on and on--not to mention she's a non athletic 12 year old girl...so i dont expect her to get an A.

she's openly defiant because she "cant" ask for help/express her needs---learned behavior thanks to not being heard in the school system. she's come a long way, but there is still work to be done in this area.

but obviously, failing gym is a problem. i'm about positive its mandatory summer school (GREAT, thanks for the mom punishment) and i honestly think there is no real way for her to fix it. i'm not even positive in her head, she can connect the dots between now and summer.

part of me wants to request APE, but the other part hates to go that route. there is an iep in place, but off the top of my head, i cant recall it addressing any specific needs in gym class--i dont think it really occured to any of us--but she does have an aide specifically for that class because of the unstructured nature of it. (whom she hates, and ignores as much as she humanly can)

i have to call this teacher back--i dont want to sound like i'm making excuses for my kid, but umm, its all the truth. my difficult child certainly doesnt help herself any (i can hear her mouth now), but she probably *cant* pass gym under the best of circumstances.

i'm dreading it.

 

[InsaneCdn]

JMHO... we need to either get rid of PE teachers, or get rid of PE entirely.

Absolutely EVERYTHING about PE is NUTS.
It almost destroyed me.
Almost destroyed my difficult child... and they STILL insist that he MUST do ONE MORE FULL YEAR of PE - there are absolutely no exceptions here whatsoever.

<sorry, rant... >

Yes, kids need to be active.

But the whole set of assumtions about PE class, just DESTROYS kids like your daughter and my son.

Even just changing clothes for gym is absolutely required - and the clothes are "uniform" which means they don't work for difficult child... and... and... and...

YES. If there is any way you can get her a 100% exemption from PE, go for it. She doesn't need THIS ***** (self-cencored...) stuff on top of the rest of her challenges.

 

[buddy]

I dont remember if she is on an IEP or 504? if she has sensory and physical problems along with the emotional ones, it seems like gym is a priority class for accommodations. Is she being discriminated against because of her disability here by being expected to just suck it up and take on personal responsibility? I am sorry you got that call, it really stinks. I hope admin or someone can help the teacher see that there has to be some accommodation and options for her that help overcome some of her challenges.

 

[DDD]

PE class is hugely traumatic even for many easy child's. It's been sixty years since I first had to "dress out" and I truly remember how uncomfortable and odd it was for me. There's a commonality that describes most PE teachers and coaches that I find basically offensive. It is possible to get her out of that requirement. Go for it. Understanding hugs sent your way. DDD

 

[exhausted]

Ok-how about an adapted PE class? We have University kids come(they are trained, doing internships and are so great) and do that for our school due to the high volume of kids with issues- esp Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The kids really enjoy this class.The Special Education. teacher pushed this at my prodding. I knew the PE guys had no knowledge, ability, heart to change and help these kids be successful and feel good about themselves. Isn't that what physical activity should be about? Making kids without physical prowess participate with the local jocks is just horrid! Hate PE. We even offer a nontraditional recreation class but it still has the flavor of the "super-fit granola child" going.

Can you join hands with some other moms and find out if there are enough kids to push for an adaptive PE class? Is there a near by local university that needs to train their peeps (its free if there is). Go in with this idea and ask that it happen quickly to help out your girl. Just and idea that might be proactive.

 

[confuzzled]

Is she being discriminated against because of her disability here by being expected to just suck it up and take on personal responsibility? QUOTE]

hmmm...i dont think she's necessarily singled out, its just that the expectations for her are unrealistic. on the whole, she tries...but i doubt she could walk a mile let alone run one. apparently these days its not enough to show up, dress out and try--there are specific grading criteria on specific skills (she "ran" a consistant 19 min. mile--that was a 70/100).

i am soooooo with IC...i hate gym class. i think if it must be, it should be an ungraded class. (funny, she has a literacy class which is actually a "read a book of your choice" class and THAT is ungraded!). the fact that she is dressed out for gym every.single.day.but.one is a small miracle in itself. she has three minutes to get there and be dressed--she doesnt move that fast at home. this is the same kid that will not wear any shoes EXCEPT sneakers to school "just in case"--no matter that she has a spare pair in her gym locker--but she "doesnt have time" to change shoes.

i kind of think though that there is no real way to get an exemption...i'm pretty sure you have to have gym.

oh, and her defiance is almost always anxiety related. *that* kind of does fall on her--at this point, she is well aware she cant talk to adults like that, but again, in the heat of the moment.....

i'm putting off "the call" until tomorrow...i'll be breaking out the xanax for bed tonight i'm sure.

 

[InsaneCdn]

has she ever had a full Occupational Therapist (OT) evaluation? motor and sensory?
I'm seeing serious motor skills issues - even so simple as tieing shoes...

Occupational Therapist (OT) should be able to detail the required accommodations and interventions for PE.
That's the MINIMUM.

e.g. For this student, running a mile in anything under 20 minutes is "best possible outcome"... so maybe 90% for a 20 minute mile, and 100% for 18 or faster just to have a goal. Specific points for just showing up dressed... and giving her 2x the time to change (should be 5x but they won't do it... but it can take 20x the mental effort to get changed than what a easy child takes...) Stuff directly related to where she is and what she can actually reach for... WITHOUT becoming a bigger bullying target.

(my difficult child has a different problem with PE, and NO help from NOBODY in getting any exemption, accommodation or intervention of any kind. And this is Canada - so no legal basis to raise a stink either.)

 

[AnnieO]

I hated PE. I didn't like changing clothes. I was a klutz. Just hated it. Ended up taking the 1/2 credit I was missing in summer school.But, even so - it was pass/fail for us.

Jett got a "B+" last quarter...

 

[svengandhi]

WOW! Your difficult child did a mile in 19 minutes. When my difficult child was that age, it took him 20 minutes to do a QUARTER mile! When the teacher made him do it again the next day, he got the same exact time. When the teacher called, he said he was sort of impressed because it was outside and there were no clocks and difficult child didn't wear a watch but he still managed to get the same exact time. It turned out that difficult child has flat feet and the running was actually painful for him.

Once he hit 10th grade and could take adventure gym - no team sports at all, he did much better.

I, on the other hand, still cringe at the memory of the time there was a fire drill (in a NYC winter) and we had to go outside in our hideous uniforms - gym was not coed yet so the boys didn't usually see us in those outfits.

 

[buddy]

Ok-how about an adapted PE class? We have University kids come(they are trained, doing internships and are so great) and do that for our school due to the high volume of kids with issues- esp Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The kids really enjoy this class.The Special Education. teacher pushed this at my prodding. I knew the PE guys had no knowledge, ability, heart to change and help these kids be successful and feel good about themselves. Isn't that what physical activity should be about? Making kids without physical prowess participate with the local jocks is just horrid! Hate PE. We even offer a nontraditional recreation class but it still has the flavor of the "super-fit granola child" going.

Can you join hands with some other moms and find out if there are enough kids to push for an adaptive PE class? Is there a near by local university that needs to train their peeps (its free if there is). Go in with this idea and ask that it happen quickly to help out your girl. Just and idea that might be proactive.

adapted pe is a related service and must be provided if the team says a child needs it and my son even has 1:1 dape (developmental adapted phy. ed.) which the district would say they "dont do" but that is illegal, cant deny service due to money... so he has it.