In honor of Down syndrome awareness month I will be publishing excerpts from “From Grief to Celebration, How One Family Learned to Embrace the Gift of Down Syndrome” for 12 days. Each day features a different verb/chapter and at the end of the month we will give-away three copies of the book, signed by Alex. Priceless!
I
wrote, "From Grief to
Celebration, How One Family Learned to Embrace the Gift of Down Syndrome" to
share this story of love, life, magic and down syndrome. Our critically
acclaimed book details our journey through ten verbs beginning with grief,
ending with plan and incorporating one bonus verb, celebrate. I hope this
can be a resource to help others embrace, understand and learn. The
book is available through this blog ($12.50) on-line booksellers ($13.99) and
kindle (reduced to $3.99 during October).
Verb 8 – Expect the Best
I believe
strongly that no one should be judged by his or her cognitive abilities, and
those with Down syndrome are no exception. Alex is not a young woman to be
underestimated, and I find myself continually reminding her teachers to raise
their expectations. At the same, I try to understand their perceptions were
formed long before they ever met her.
When Alex
wants something to happen in her life it will happen, just like my other kids..
For instance, she loves music and drama, and for the last three years, just as
with sports, Alex has demanded the drama teacher give her a part in the school
play. I never had any doubt she wouldn’t be turned down (particularly because
in cases like
these,
she doesn’t take no for an answer).
However, on
other occasions, Alex may need a little more time to process and proceed. It’s
never a lack of understanding, merely the mechanism Alex uses to understand the
whole picture, and I always expect the best.
Watching
how Alex learns to learn has been fascinating. I think of it in terms of mountains,
valleys and plateaus.
To read more please enter our give-away:
These are only two requirements to be entered in the drawing - and Alex will pick the winner!
1. Please like "The Ordinary Life of an Extraordinary
Girl" on facebook (link on the sidebar), or
2. Follow this blog, on networked blogs (also on sidebar)
Of course, you will need to tell me you did this, either as a comment or by e-mail theextraordinarygirlllc@gmail.com .
2. Follow this blog, on networked blogs (also on sidebar)
Of course, you will need to tell me you did this, either as a comment or by e-mail theextraordinarygirlllc@gmail.com .
Stay
tuned
19/31
Book Give-away: Practice Healthy Skepticism
20/31
Book Give-away: Plan
It is so true how teachers sometimes have lower expectations for our kids. My Sam has his teacher convinced he can barely read which is not true. No worries, things changed after a conference:)
ReplyDelete