Motivating Amy

Amy had been in another program for children with severe motor disabilities. She hadn't been successful in that environment, so she was moved to our district, which had programs for children who had severe mental retardation.

Amy was a beautiful child with big brown eyes. Her records indicated that she was severely mentally impaired. I knew the staff at the school district she transferred from. They were very good; the reports of her skills were probably accurate. In addition to severe retardation, Amy also had severe cerebral palsy. She had very little head control and no extremity control. Her affect was generally flat, and she didn't respond to much. I learned later that Amy's family was from a culture that had a difficult time accepting disability.

At that time, our school district had a federally-funded project that looked at how children with severe disabilities learned in a specialized environment. The room was " a sensory motor happening". It has lights with dimmers, stereo music, ramps, swings, a waterbed, carpeted levels, and many cause-effect "experiences" built into the walls.

I had been working with Amy only a few weeks. One day, I carried her into the room and commented out loud, "Wow, it is dark in here." Her head swung around, and she looked up at the light. Interesting.

Over the next several weeks, I found myself spending as much time as I could in Amy's classroom in addition to her regular therapy sessions. I explained to here teacher that I wanted to get a better handle on Amy's level of functioning. I usually ate my lunch quickly and spent at least half of my lunch period with Amy. The staff was happy to have me. All the children were severely physically and mentally handicapped, so they welcomed an extra pair of hands.

Amy was my charge for the period of time I was there. At first,she did not seem to be aware of me. Over time, she began to smile when I entered the room. Eventually, she would raise her head and smile. I would spend time talking to her, teasing her and she would laugh. I knew she had more ability than anyone had seen before. I began my campaign on her behalf. I was due to go on maternity leave with my second child in a few months. I immediately transferred her to my colleague so that her treatment would be uninterrupted. I told my colleague that Amy was very smart, but we just hadn't seen it yet.

In June of that year, I moved out of state, but I kept in contact to keep tabs on Amy. She eventually left the program and went back to her old school district. She was placed in a program for children with physical disabilities. "Very smart indeed," they had told my colleague. "Normal intelligence," they thought.

For Parents and Professional: Expressive Language Delay. Reprinted with permission.