Last week, I attended Kay’s IEP meeting to discuss any updates or changes that needed to be made, as well as her placement for kindergarten. I honestly can’t believe Kay is already old enough to be starting full-day school next year. It feels like such a big milestone for her (and for us too).
Kay will be starting a new grade in a new school, which comes with a lot of transitions all at once. One of the biggest changes will be updating her diabetes care plan to support a full school day, including managing lunch and everything that comes with it. While we truly love Kay’s current school, they unfortunately do not offer the program that the team feels would best support her at this stage.
Right now, we’re still in a season where Kay is building some important foundational skills. We’re working through big feelings and learning how to express them in appropriate ways. We’re also focusing on improving attention and staying engaged in tasks. Kay’s attention span is still quite short, which can make it challenging for her to fully participate in longer or more structured activities. Because of all of this, the team felt a smaller classroom setting would be the best fit—one that still allows her to work on academics while getting the support she needs. I agree that this feels like the right step for her right now.
Thankfully, I was able to find out about Kay’s new school almost immediately after the IEP meeting, which gave me the chance to drive by, look around, and stop in the office to ask what would be needed to officially register her. It was helpful to start visualizing where she’ll be spending her days and getting a feel for the next chapter.
Even though Kay is (and will continue to be) going through a lot of big changes, she truly is such a trooper through it all. She takes everything in stride in her own way, and I’m always in awe of her resilience.
Between now and the start of the school year in August, I can already tell there will be quite a bit of communication between the school team and Kay’s endocrinologist as we work together to make sure everyone is prepared to support her and manage her diabetes safely throughout the day. Moving from a half-day schedule to a full-day schedule is a big adjustment for all of us, but we’re taking it one step at a time and making sure we’re as prepared as possible.