Wow have we come a long way! Hailey has been ice skating since September and she is still adoring it and doing very well. I am so glad that we found something that she can excel in, and where her auditory processing disorder does not make a profound impact on her ability to learn it.
Her coach and the director of the ice skating program gave her an award recently for having great sit spins. She was so proud to receive such an unexpected honor.
She also has just signed up to participate in an ice theater class. This class has a lot of acting, ice dancing, and figure skating. The kids work in small groups and in large casts to present a play on ice so to speak. Hailey is extremely excited about this class and enjoyed her first one immensely.
The coach for the ice theater program has an accent and speaks in choppy English, but Hailey is okay with this. She agreed to not let any misunderstanding interfere with her learning and enjoyment, so she will tell the coach, "Can you please show me" when she doesn't understand what was said. We ran this scenario by the coach and she was more than willing to accomodate.
Now for the real kicker! This particular coach is known to be a little tough in some ways. (I really think it might be a cultural thing and she certainly does not mean any harm by it.) She might say something like, "What you can't do that yet?" or "You should be better by now." I made Hailey aware of this fact and told her that she might say something like that to her one day. Hailey asserted that she would be okay if that happens, and she realizes that the coach is actually trying to motivate her. Wow! I am so impressed. This child of mine is maturing into a very understanding, confident young lady.
She also has just signed up to participate in an ice theater class. This class has a lot of acting, ice dancing, and figure skating. The kids work in small groups and in large casts to present a play on ice so to speak. Hailey is extremely excited about this class and enjoyed her first one immensely.
The coach for the ice theater program has an accent and speaks in choppy English, but Hailey is okay with this. She agreed to not let any misunderstanding interfere with her learning and enjoyment, so she will tell the coach, "Can you please show me" when she doesn't understand what was said. We ran this scenario by the coach and she was more than willing to accomodate.
Now for the real kicker! This particular coach is known to be a little tough in some ways. (I really think it might be a cultural thing and she certainly does not mean any harm by it.) She might say something like, "What you can't do that yet?" or "You should be better by now." I made Hailey aware of this fact and told her that she might say something like that to her one day. Hailey asserted that she would be okay if that happens, and she realizes that the coach is actually trying to motivate her. Wow! I am so impressed. This child of mine is maturing into a very understanding, confident young lady.
