C goes back to school tomorrow after a long winter break at home. I thought he’d be excited to go back to school, but was saddened to discover that he’s not looking forward to it at all. He’s had issues maintaining friendships this year and I think he’s starting to feel alienated. He had been happy at school despite the slow pace and repetition, as long as he had friends. I think a lot of the problem with maintaining friendships is tied to C’s sensory issues. So, I’m pretty frustrated that the school dropped the ball on getting him an OT evaluation.
We took him for a private evaluation before Christmas and it was recommended that we start a brushing program (Wilbarger Brushing Protocol) as part of a sensory diet for C. The therapist thought that he should only need three or four visits with her and then at that point we should have a plan for school and home that will work well with him. Right now I’m feeling pretty optimistic and am hopeful that working with C’s sensory issues will improve things for him socially.
One interesting outcome from his OT evaluation is that they administered the Beery VMI. This showed his visual perception as falling in the 99.98th percentile, which is phenomenal. It’s made me return to reading I did long ago about visual-spatial learners. While I wasn’t sure C fell into this category back then, it’s starting to look like more of a fit now.
For those seeking more information about sensory integration, check out Asynchronous Development and Sensory Integration Intervention in the Gifted and Talented Population.
