We have been working on finding a place for Monkey after she completes the MYP. I knew I didn’t want to put her through the DP or the CP. Her sped person had found the PERFECT course for her at a school in our company. It is a media program in the BTEC.
Monkey had to interview at the school with the head of the college and one of the media teachers. I had to talk with the VP about what provisions Monkey would need.
Sped person stayed with Monkey to be interviewed while I went with the VP. Overall, it was all so positive. The VP seemed happy about Monkey’s abilities and needs. We discussed what the school would need to provide to her to help her be successful. Really, it takes so little compared to other kids. For her, a lot of it is preventative. If you lay a good foundation for her, she tends to do really well. If she knows the expectations very clearly and knows what the rules are, she rocks things.
Sped person said Monkey rocked her interview. She properly expressed her passion for the arts to the people. She is such a creative person. She is so in love with her art and her passions. If you want to find someone passionate, it is definitely her.
We left there with the promise they would get back to us to let us know if Monkey would be offered a spot. She and I took a detour through Tsim Sha Tsui to the Star Ferry to go to Central. I think I asked her a million times if this is what she really wanted to do. I sometimes feel like we push her into things because she is so amenable to things. She told me very clearly this is what she wanted to do. We talked about bit about her. She called herself weird, and I tried to shut that down. She laughed and told me, “weird is good.” I had a talk with her about how she will always be her regardless of a label or diagnosis. That we love her just the way she is.
Her response? “I know, Mom.” in a very exasperated tone. It makes me happy to know my daughter knows she is loved unconditionally…
US Mama In Hong Kong 