Some of the things we request from children make very little sense. Worksheets asking question after question about a book sucks the life out of it. As parents and teachers of disabled or neurodivergent children, we always feel we need to do more. Drive it home...
The pediatrician hinted about a disorder while I sat in a chair and he stood over my son's incubator. I left confused and in tears.⠀ The official diagnosis was handed to me without support in the NICU. I held my son, the doctor casually leaned on the empty...
My son and I have been on the receiving end of ableist remarks throughout his lifetime. Most of it is well-intentioned and meant to be encouraging. These seemingly-benign comments are a result of internalized ableism which is why it's hard to identify...
I am my son’s parent, but I am not a part of his culture and he is not part of mine. I have not experienced life as a disabled person and he’s never been non-disabled. I first became aware of this distinction when I heard Andrew Solomon, author of Far From the Tree:...
When my son was first diagnosed, I was handed a stack of white, legal-sized envelopes with the headings of clinics he would need to consult within the first weeks of life. Most of the departments I didn't even know existed, let alone know how to pronounce. In his...
Whether we homeschool or not, we are all teachers. In raising and educating my disabled son, I have struggled to find that fine line between doing school at home and doing life in the world. It's a never-ending conversation I have with myself: Teaching versus...
I was always a model student. I loved school, and I loved being a student. I still do. I love being a scholar with my pen scribbling fresh notes on innovative topics that challenge me. While teaching, I enrolled in a certificate program. It was held twice a week in...
I have internalized ableism, and deschooling is my rehab.⠀ ⠀ As children, we grow up trusting that what adults tell us is right and good and true. We absorb what we hear and what we see. We accept it as fact.⠀ When things feel a little off, we learn to suppress those...
When my son was first diagnosed, I was handed a stack of white, legal-sized envelopes with the headings of clinics he would need to consult within the first weeks of life. Most of the departments I didn't even know existed, let alone know how to pronounce. In his...
Whether we homeschool or not, we are all teachers. In raising and educating my disabled son, I have struggled to find that fine line between doing school at home and doing life in the world. It's a never-ending conversation I have with myself: Teaching versus...
I was always a model student. I loved school, and I loved being a student. I still do. I love being a scholar with my pen scribbling fresh notes on innovative topics that challenge me. While teaching, I enrolled in a certificate program. It was held twice a week in...
I have internalized ableism, and deschooling is my rehab.⠀ ⠀ As children, we grow up trusting that what adults tell us is right and good and true. We absorb what we hear and what we see. We accept it as fact.⠀ When things feel a little off, we learn to suppress those...