« Reply #2 on: September 19, 2011, 12:36:32 PM »
Continued, Pg 3
notnutty
It really depends on the manner and situation in which it was said. Just the words don't really bother me. If the parents always provide an alternative snack, then it's not a big deal. Yes, child X will have to learn to deal with it. I didn't find it offensive because that's the truth.
Here's the bottom line: SCHOOL IS FOR EDUCATION. Food is generally superfluous to education. It's against the law to discriminate against children and all children are entitled to equal access to learning opportunities. If the food is needed for the educational experience, make it equal. If it's not, take it out.
It really should not matter if it's o.k. with the child. The child will, of course, say it's o.k. with him. He doesn't want to be the cause of the entire class missing out on the treat. He's used to being excluded again and again. But he shouldn't be excluded at school. School is different than parties and restaurants.
Parents should not have to provide an alternative snack every time. I did this - it's exhausting, it's expensive, it's time-consuming and it's wrong. I did it because it was less of a hassle than fighting. I did it because I didn't have the money to sue, and people already saw the small accommodations I asked for as over the top. I did it because I was aware that even my own allergy community did not fully support me. But I'm really bitter about it now.
People like to justify this situation. They say "well, perhaps this kid likes a sucker as much as the delicious cupcakes the rest of the class are having. Perhaps the child has gotten used to the situation. Perhaps the child wouldn't even appreciate the cupcakes if we went to all the trouble to provide them. Perhaps it's better to 'toughen up' the kid so he'll be able to deal with life." It's necessary to say those things in order to let the kid eat the sucker while he watches everyone else eat the cupcake. How else do you watch a child be excluded, time and again, and not let it get to you?
Go read the story I posted. It's chilling when you think about it in the context of inclusion and food allergies.
Thank you Boo for this. Truly thank you.
notnutty
Mr. Rootbeer Float king has actually wrote to me in an email the following in regards to a last minute ice cream event for all students that my DS was excluded from. My email to him asked him to reconsider these events in the future...
It was a last minute decision and there are times these things will happen. The Ice Cream Sundaes are the same ones that we had at Open House last week if he had one then. Same manufacturer if that helps.
Ummmm. No that doesn't help because he was excluded from the sundaes at open house as well because we did not have a chance to investigate.
This isn't just about PN allergies. This makes me crazy for any child with LTFA.
My DS ended up having a few Starbursts that day. The school provided them for him. I do not send in safe treats, but somehow the school always finds a way to exclude.
Ryansmom
I think some of it has to do with presentation. It's a tough call. If we weren't in the classroom, we weren't there to hear the tone of voice, inflection used, etc. A bumbled response from an otherwise fine teacher? It could be. It's easy to go on the attack when we just hear about words verbatim as in a dialogue in black and white. If we don't see the shades of grey, the dialogue can indeed be construed as negative.
I'm simply drawing upon my own experience thinking about Ryan's 2nd grade teacher. If she said that, it wouldn't bother me. Well, it wouldn't bother me if it didn't bother my son. And also, some kids are resilient, some are not. Things that bother us may have not bother kids at all.
And what kind of sucker was it? A caramel apple one? We don't know. 'Cuz I'd take a caramel apple sucker over a cupcake any day of the week.
ETA...things that I thought were a big deal ended up being nothing for Ryan. Go figure.
Not that the presentation really matters, but wanted to let you know that the response was dismissing and sarcastic. I am very close to the person who heard this dialogue. She is in no way a person who exaggerates or likes "drama". She was truly upset because of her relationship with my DS.
But really...I don't think it matters at all. I was more upset about the exclusion than about the teacher. She clearly does not know better and is probably just following orders.
That explanation clears it up and helps one understand the context of the dialogue.
my3guys
Ryan's mom: We agree on this point: food has no place in the classroom.
After that, you lose me. If food doesn't belong in the classroom, then why is it ok to have cupcakes, and one child have a sucker?
I'm thrilled for you that exclusion doesn't bother Ryan. But because it doesn't bother Ryan does not mean that other kids are equally unaffected.
I'm reminded of a thread about blood draws, where a parent was dreading it, saying how much she and her child hated blood draws. Both you and I responded that if you don't make a big deal, then your child won't think it's one or something like that.
Well...that worked with one of my kids. The two others both throw complete hissy fits for blood draws. I've had the same attitude for all 3.
With all of my ds' allergies, I've tried to give him the tough love approach with regards to food. He's always going to be in situations where he's eating different things from others. I thought I was helping him develop coping skills. Guess what? He hates it when the rest of the party is eating pizza, no matter how much I tried to help him with this. This is the same kid who could care less about blood draws by the way. Go figure.
So, I acknowledge how he feels, and try to help pick similar things for him to eat. When you have MFA, picking same or similar things to eat can be very challenging. That's why I resisted doing it at first. I tried to pack him his favorite things, and get him used to eating different things. Didn't work.
My ds' school happens to be food free with the exception of 2-3 events a year. I'm very grateful. Just keeping up with the daily baking/cooking/bday parties/social events outside of school is very time consuming. If I had to do it constantly in school, it would be very difficult on my ds, and it would mean me literally being tied to my kitchen constantly instead of spending any quality time with my kids or doing the countless other things that need to get done in every day life.
I realize your family has been at this allergy thing longer than mine, and I'm always open to learn. But please don't think that the issue of exclusion is as simple as you present it for your family. That's not the case for everyone.
And since this post is already long, I won't requote Boo's post which Notnutty and McCobbre quoted. I just want to say I completely agree with that post, and you've worded my thoughts exactly, and more eloquently than I could.
Gail
It really depends on the manner and situation in which it was said. Just the words don't really bother me. If the parents always provide an alternative snack, then it's not a big deal. Yes, child X will have to learn to deal with it. I didn't find it offensive because that's the truth.
It might be. But it's not the teacher's place to decide. The teacher has no business saying this, determining what he needs in order to live with his FA, bestowing such wisdom. Who is she to do that?
Just as it was not this teacher's place to determine what your DS needed to hear about the future of his allergy:
I've been on the other side. Ryan came home one day three years ago somewhat excited. A well-meaning sub teacher told him at lunch that some day he would probably grow out of his food allergy. I quickly put an end to that thought and told him it was ignorant for her to make a statement like that not knowing his medical history, nor an in-depth knowledge of food allergies. I had to tell him he's in this for life. Barring a miracle, he's not going to grow out of it. We can, however, pray for medical advances.
No, it's not the teachers' right to decide. Is it the parents' right to decide?
What if. . . this is the parents' decision? Informed decision. Say the parent chooses exclusion and discrimination for their child? Is that within their right? Or because this is within a school building, should the parents' decisions regarding the management of their child's FAs be overridden by the school's legal obligation to provide FAPE?
I ask because I have a friend who is very knowledgeable about her child's rights under S. 504. This woman and her husband are members of our local hospital's food allergy advisory board, and therefore, have been present and have participated in presentations by several experts in the field about their and their child's civil rights.
At their choice, this child does not have a S. 504 designation, and it is their decision that classroom treats are not turned away. It is at there direction that their daughter is given an alternative treat because, they have made the parental decision that, this is in the best interest of their child. They believe, similar to what the teacher stated in the OP, that they wish their child to learn to accept that they cannot eat what others eat.
So I'm curious, for the boy described in the original post, what if the teacher were following the parents' directive? And this decision was made by parents who were 'informed'? What of this direction were memorialized in the child's individual accommodation plan? If it's a FAPE violation, can such an accommodation be included in a child's accommodation plan?
notnutty
That is a very good question Gail. I fully understand where you are coming from.
From my experience within this district (being on the LTFA policy advisory board last year), I was told that my DS and only one other child (a good friend of mine) has a 504 designation or really any accommodations, period.
My point is I don't think there are very many parents within our district who even understand what their choices could be in order to make an educated decision.
I value the rights any parent has in respect to the management of LTFA.
I don't have time to elaborate right now, but you bring up a very interesting perspective that I would like to think about more.
Stinky6
these may seem like randon thoughts but two things came to my mind...
1) my friend's child who was born missing three limbs - and is competitive swimmer - doesn't focus or worry on what she cant do the same as anyone else -
2) the kids at school who a) eat nothing but junk, b) dont wear coats c) hair isn't cut or brushed - basically parents aren't parenting (although I realize that in ANY case there could be a very real issue - other than neglect...ie - sensory issues, or other challenges that I'm not aware of)
I've worked hard and been lucky in being able to get food free birthdays and many accomodations....but things still slip in...
Ryansmom
Ryan's mom: We agree on this point: food has no place in the classroom.
After that, you lose me. If food doesn't belong in the classroom, then why is it ok to have cupcakes, and one child have a sucker?
I'm thrilled for you that exclusion doesn't bother Ryan. But because it doesn't bother Ryan does not mean that other kids are equally unaffected.
It's not okay to have cupcakes IMO. I accounted for that in Ryan's 504 in the early grades. We had a "communal" snack. Every parent sent in a snack to feed the entire class 1X/month. It had to be commercially labeled and Peanut/Tree nut free. If it wasn't, it was sent home. Even so, I couldn't not account for generics or certain brands I wouldn't allow Ryan to eat. Thus, he always brought in a snack from home. An alternate. Picked from the same list of "acceptable" food choices however. Many times it matched exactly what the class was eating.
There were no homemade cupcakes. Store bought cupcakes typically had peanut warnings and were not allowed in the classroom. So this is where I'm coming from. It was written in our 504 so this issue wasn't a big deal for us because it wasn't a deal at all.
It goes back to the 504. And what do the parents want for the child. What does the doctor want for the child. Bringing in homemade cupcakes would have been a 504 violation in Ryan's case.
IMO, bringing in an alternate snack for certain occasions was my preference. I know there are some who don't want to do it. Then you really have to push for that food-free classroom. That was option no. 2 for us. Either place strong restrictions on food entering the classroom OR make it food-free. Everyone opted on the former and we worked it to what we all wanted. A team effort.
I have a close friend who is a special ed teacher with a son who has celiac. He rarely can have what the class is eating. Our approach is very similar on how we want to do deal with it, how we want teachers to deal with it, and how we both raise our sons to deal with it. She, however, did not want to go the 504 route.
Do I *WANT* to provide an alternative snack? Yes. I don't want the school providing it. Why? Because I want Ryan to learn from my example. Plan ahead. Control your own "destiny". Be prepared. Think in advance. He is the one who will have to live with this the rest of his life.
Is my approach right? Not for someone else. But for me, my family, and my son it is. Although the teacher was sarcastic in tone, perhaps the parents want to deal with it this way. Some may feel sorry for the child. I don't want anyone feeling sorry for my son though. He has a different personality and his 504 was created with that in mind.
Every child is different, every 504 is a bit different, just like many doctors treat FA's differently. And that, I think, is the most unfortunate realization of all.
McCobbre
That's an interesting consideration Gail. Then the parents' wish should be followed--but it would still be an insensitive way to do it. The teacher's comments were patronizing, to say the least.
Reading notnutty's post made me think of an entirely different situation where my boss was once told by a person at his church coordinating the baptisms of the children that he didn't need a picture of an activity that was going on (he had asked when it would be appropriate to take a picture). She determined what he needed. That's seems quite arrogant to me.
No--this teacher handled it wrong.
That said, I word things badly all the time when sometime comes up unexpectedly. Who knows--had she really thought about it, she might have been more careful in her wording.
But Gail--the question you bring up is an interesting one. Our Sped Dir, in our first plan meeting brought tis up. BTW-this took place 5 minutes after determining that my child qualified for a 504. It had actually been our second eligibility meeting, because at teh first, the principal and folks at the school determined DS was not eligible. They were completely unclear about how the law applied to DS (though I had documentation and tried to tell them).
At the second meeting, the Sped Dir made it clear he was leading the meeting. After eligibiliy was determined, we moved into the planning meeting, and he said, "The SD can implement the 504 plan without the parents. We want, but don't need parental input." Then he went on to list he accommodations he had already planned on (it seemed to us), first being that there would be no food consumed in DS' classroom.
Now, this was a brilliant move on his part, because we didn't request it. It basically got us off the hook--and we, of course, loved the accommodation.
But yes--the school can make the decision here in the interest of FAPE without the parents agreeing. Technically.
Ryansmom
I know I'm one of the lone dissenters here on exclusion. I have never felt Ryan was exluded. In fact, I felt the opposite that we did what we had to do to make him feel included.
Goes back to perception. Just like I wouldn't feel uncomfortable if a male coworker had an SI swimsuit calendar on their desk. Others, however, might. What one might consider a form of sexual harrassment to one, may not be construed as such to another.
continued next post . . .
« Last Edit: March 12, 2013, 06:05:46 AM by ajasfolks2 »
Logged
Is this where I blame iPhone and cuss like an old fighter pilot's wife?
**(&%@@&%$^%$#^%$#$*& LOL!!