Not a very descriptive title. Could it have anything to do with diabetes? Um, kinfof.
Caleb got on the bus for his first day of 10th grade this morning. My diabetes preparation for this day was little more than, “do you have what you need?” I don’t really remember his answer. Eek.
I have sitting next to me completed, signed medical forms. I did call in a couple of renewed prescriptions (epi-pen and glucagon) which I still have to pick up. A week ago, I reminded Caleb to email his new teachers to introduce himself and explain he may need to eat something or check his phone during class and why. Yeah – that’s about it.
Preparation for school used to be weeks of advanced planning and creating charts and cheat sheets and of course the in-depth 504 plan. We met with or at least spoke to anyone with whom he came in touch. I made sure the bus was routed to minimize his time on it. It was comprehensive, exhausting, necessary and kept him safe at school.
Things are just more rote with a nearly-16-year-old. I do virtually nothing for Caleb’s care. He hasn’t needed assistance from anyone in school for years now. It’s just not as complex as it once was. But there are ducks we need to get in a row.
Today is a short day – a day added to the calendar because there were too many cancelations last year after the May 15th storm. School “really” starts on Tuesday. By then I’ll have the forms, meds and supplies in place for drop-off to the nurse’s office. I’ll be a little more specific with Caleb about what he’s packing in his PDM case. I will have pushed him to set up a 504 meeting for the year and confirm that he has heard back from each of his teachers. I’ll also help him get the ball rolling to ensure he has the accommodations he needs for the SAT in October. We’ll get it together.
But for today, it’s just 10th grade!
This is Caleb... 
I love watching him grow up –
😊
Interesting to hear! The process definitely changes with age! This is the first year that we don’t even have a box of supplies at school yet (and my son Noah — now a senior — has attended 4 days of school. I don’t recommend that and we’ll fix it next week but it reflects on how chill we have become. My son is always carrying his supplies (un-expired glucagon and auvi-q) in his bag. Sending an email is a great idea. I think our school sends out emails to all teacher for kids with health plans but the email should be done. Unfortunately, we lost our 504 in 10th grade. The school reevaluated who qualifies for 504s and since they weren’t “doing anything” for Noah, they kicked him off. I did contact a civil rights attorney friend and make use of the legal advocacy arm at the University of Michigan Law School to have them explore the legality. I also called the ADA legal team. I talked with experienced folks in our JDRF chapter. U of M found that it was legal. Really disappointing. We have a health plan, of course.
Anyway, best of luck during the upcoming school year!