Cup Hook Screws in their hand? Mine did this afternoon. We recently hired a walking buddy for A so that I can rest for the two weeks remaining in my pregnancy. His walking buddy dropped A off as usual and handed me two screws. By that time, A’s behavioural therapist had arrived for a scheduled block therapy appointment. I thanked his walking friend profusely and we said our goodbyes.

A told BT and I that he found them on the fire alarm and that N. A. (teacher) asked him not to touch the fire alarm but didn’t take it away. I asked him if he pulled them from the wall and he said no. Observing the thread area of the screw, I could not see any evidence that he did either. I rephrased all my questions and asked new ones to see if his answers would change. They had not.

This is not the first instance where A has not been supervised. On Feb 1st, 2012, N.A. asked me where he got the scratch under his eye. I responded and stated firmly that A did not leave the house with any scratches and did not enter the classroom with them either. A told me that a specific classmate scratched him and stated that they were both being mean to each other.

Other instances occurred in January as I personally observed A outside his classroom door. I made a few unannounced visits and peeked through the window to see A playing with a green train or other objects near the bookshelves while the other children sat in the circle. I noted that the teacher had not been using ideas given to her by us such as giving A a special place with his name on it, a cushion or having the EA redirect and sit on the carpet with him. In fact, the EA was not in sight for most of my viewings. A’s gym teacher Mr. O also admitted in the Behavioural Logs that he gave A a train to play with on several occasions so that he can teach Phys Ed to the rest of the children.

Class sizes in our province need to be reduced so that teachers have more time to focus on our children and reach every child. Parents should not have to fight to get Special Education supports that will assist their children in receiving an equal education. Nor should they have their children bringing home screws that could have harmed them or other children.