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IN THIS REPORT

Making good progress while singing his favorite songs

“I looked for two years for help with Kevin,” said his mom, Marisa, “once I found the Center, our lives changed. What we have gotten is priceless. Kevin used to cry nonstop and I was so embarrassed. Now, he cries if I don’t take him to school.” What a change from Kevin’s start at the Center.

Kevin was born in July 2004 and began attending the Blind Childrens Center in May 2006, almost 2 years old. He came to the Infant Program twice a week with his mother. He has three older siblings, none of whom have any vision or developmental difficulties.

Kevin was born prematurely at 29 weeks and had several complications. He immediately stopped breathing and was administered oxygen for 15 days. He had two periods of cardiac arrest requiring resuscitation and an intraventricular hemorrhage. Kevin was also diagnosed with Cortical Vision Impairment (vision loss due to brain injury) and Cerebral Palsy affecting his left side.

When Kevin and mom first came to the Center, mom was totally overwhelmed. She could not comprehend how she was going to care for this baby with so many problems. Kevin could not tolerate anyone touching him. He would bang his head and scream if you said “hello,” and would throw himself down or throw anything in his hands if you touched him.

In November 2007, Kevin transitioned from the Infant Program to the Preschool. The parent support groups helped mom tremendously. Kevin, although developmentally delayed and with continuing physical problems, has shown a great deal of progress. He began using a walker. A favorite activity is riding in a little car in the Center’s play yard. He tolerates the teacher’s hand over hand on the steering wheel and even laughed out loud when one of his classmates peered in the window at him and then went to the back of the car to push him.

Kevin’s most recent progress has been made in the area of speech and language. Since beginning speech therapy in March, he has gained approximately 30 words and is beginning to use two-word sentences. His first meeting with the school district therapist was less than ideal. Kevin cried during the whole session. The therapist told Marisa that if he keeps crying she couldn’t provide services for him.

Thanks to all the knowledge Marisa had gained through the parent groups, she knew this was not acceptable. She immediately called the district, who confirmed her beliefs that the therapist did need to continue working with her son. The therapist and Kevin now have a great relationship. He now cries when therapy is over instead of beginning.

His preschool teacher, Alicia Marquez, also notes his language progress. “Kevin used to scream during circle time and try to throw the teacher’s book,” she recalls, “now he asks for books and especially enjoys singing The More We Get Together.”

Physically, Kevin is now able to sit alone and, with the help of a gait trainer (walker), he is able to navigate the school independently. “This has made a huge impact on him,” said Alicia, “socially he loves being around his peers and, with the help of this device, he can now join in activities with his classmates.” She also is extremely impressed with how he understands consequences and follows through.

As part of his behavior plan, the team has a helmet that Kevin wears if he purposefully hits himself in the head. Alicia recalls, “One day I saw Kevin ready to hit his head. I acknowledged the act then looked at the helmet. Kevin reacted by saying ‘itchy’ as if he needed to scratch his head rather than hit himself.”

Recently, Marisa has been making her son walk with her from the front of the school to his classroom. Although screaming the entire time, Kevin is making good progress. He used to only be able to walk short distances within the classroom. Now, he is able to walk from the classroom to the bathroom with his teacher without incident, while singing his favorite songs.

Marisa summarizes her thoughts by saying, “Before, I was always tired, hungry and cranky. Now he and I are happier. I have learned how to have patience. I have become this person thanks to the help I’ve received at the Blind Childrens Center.”