When I thought I knew better.....

When I first met little Kelly*, she was insecure, terrified and anxious of strangers. She needed constant coaxing and reassurance from an adult. A whole session would go by just calming her down while she clung on to an adult and fell asleep. Doing an activity together seemed out of the question. I thought to myself, this child is going to take a long while to settle and I was prepared to slowly integrate her into the school’s routine without any pressure.

Kelly had a speech delay and through previous experiences, I knew it would take time. I was ready to be patient and give her awhile to get used to the school environment and being around strangers. However, to my surprise, Kelly began to develop trust and bonded with the teachers around really quickly. By the end of the term, she was diving head first into sensory play, dancing, following instructions and really looked forward to coming to sessions. She was even picking up some simple language and had developed a cheeky sense of humour.

Kelly began to communicate her needs to adults around her and expressed it well. All of us were surprised at the pace of development and it totally rebutted the “through our experience” myth. It was a joy to be part of a success story like this. It made my job more than just a way to make a living. It was rewarding and fulfilling and I was so happy to feel that I had made a difference somehow, somewhere in a child’s life.......

*name changed for privacy