I was watching this brain stuff on PBS science NOVA now…it is on Wednesday nights and it is interesting…they were talking about animals brains and how smart they are…they said a dogs brain can be as smart as a 5 or 6 year old child…I thought it was interesting how they worked with the dogs, birds, and dolphins…over and over repetitions of different skills…like remembering the stuffed animal and bringing it to you…or the bird that can tell you how many sides are on a triangle and the dolphin that looks at a picture and then complies with the command…at one point I asked Chad…Maddie will be smarter then those animals right? I know insensitive --I know bad Mom…but I worry about it…and I worry ...there is no such thing as a high functioning person with Down Syndrome…you either have a extra chromosome or you don’t! and I get that even people that are not T21 have different capabilities….but with Maddie I think I need to keep doing things over and over again…and Maddie gives me a look as if she will not tell me where her eyes are or her nose or feet…because I have told you a 100 times…but I want her to do it…just one more time! I want her to show me that she remembers things…that she knows her body parts-- her signs, etc….but she is a stubborn little girl that will show you once and then she is done with that game…
so when I saw the video of the teacher born with Down Syndrome…I got scared…I got scared to watch…I watched first with the sound off…to see if I could make it through the video…I did and I could not wait to watch with sound…I noticed how amazing she is…how “normal” she is…how her mannerisms are nice...how she smiled…she has a great smile…how she spoke…she is clear and upbeat…and she is real…and the kids liked her…Chad and I watched this video together…and he shared it with his colleagues…I joked with him…when he becomes a principal he can hire Maddie as one of his teachers! this was a huge thing for me…to watch…to hope…I want Maddie to have all the opportunities she can dream…I expect Maddie to dream big…please watch the video if you have not seen it…you will come away with a new understanding of what my Maddie can do…if given the opportunity…
I seriously can not stop thinking about Bryann! She truly is amazing and I hope she is the future of Ds...does that make sense? What I mean is I hope we see more stories like hers, because I know they are out there...and I do believe our kids are able to achieve BIG things if given the opportunity! I so wish I could talk to her or her parents because I want to know more...it's inspirational to say the least.
ReplyDeleteDo you think Chad would hire Sutter too...doesn't hurt to put my feelers out early right! :)
Great video, I hadn't seen it before. She speaks super clearly and obviously is very bright. I love how the commenter said, "You can do anything" and she didn't say afterward, "even if you have Ds". It's just a non-issue at this point in Bryann's life. It's a part of her, but it's not "who she is". Really great. Our kids have so many opportunities to excel in life. Yes, Maddie will be way smarter than a 5 year old... try not to sell her short. I promise you! A year from now, you'll look back at this post and be amazed at how far she's come. HUGS!
ReplyDeleteLoved this video too, it gave me a lot of hope for Russells future. Even though I am a year into this I am still learning daily that Russell can and will exceed my expectations!
ReplyDeleteOooh, love the new blog look, its pretty :) And LOVE Maddie's picture at the top, what a perfect little face!
I haven't had a chance to watch the video yet, but from what I've read about her, I'm very excited to see it. I love hearing encouraging stories like these.
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, how cute is she??? I love it. I'm so sick of the stereotype with DS that they are all mentally slow. One thing I've noticed is the ones that are more delayed, like Jax, are the ones with severe medical problems. Just like my "typical" heart babies. The ones that have struggled to survive, take longer to learn to walk and such. Every child develops at their own pace, and I can't wait to see what our young DS kids do when they get older. I think we are going to see them in many jobs!
ReplyDelete