What kind of school do/did you go to?

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drdanika

Guest
Hi all,
I am a mom to a 4 year old CF girl. She will be starting kindergarten next fall. I am looking into different types of schools for her. I want to know from those of you who have been there, what are your experiences with schools. Did you go to public? private? alt ed? montessori? home school?
What did you like or not like about them in relation to your CF?
If you had a CF kid, what kind of school would you send them to?
Any other tips for us?

Thanks for your thoughts!!
-C
 
D

drdanika

Guest
Hi all,
I am a mom to a 4 year old CF girl. She will be starting kindergarten next fall. I am looking into different types of schools for her. I want to know from those of you who have been there, what are your experiences with schools. Did you go to public? private? alt ed? montessori? home school?
What did you like or not like about them in relation to your CF?
If you had a CF kid, what kind of school would you send them to?
Any other tips for us?

Thanks for your thoughts!!
-C
 

imported_Momto2

New member
I went to public school, missed A LOT of school due to being ill. I also ate horribly as a child because my parents were totally fixated on getting LOTS of calories in me and not looking at the quality of the calories as much. (translation, they let me eat a lot of sugary and fatty junk food to try and put weight on). I truly think that had a distinct negative effect on my overall health given my experiences as an adult.

If I had a daughter with CF, I would send her to private school. Both our daughters (non-CF) attend private school now and they are much more common-sense about illness, hygeine, meds, etc. The kids tend to get more personalized attention in private vs public and seem to be treated more as individuals. We did not have very good experiences with Montessori schools around here.

The best thing I can do for my health and theirs though, seems to be scads of fresh fruits and veggies and lots of healthy stuff, as well as enough sleep and exercise. Its amazing how the old standbys really seem to work. Washing hands, staying away from obviously sick people can also have good effects. : )
 

imported_Momto2

New member
I went to public school, missed A LOT of school due to being ill. I also ate horribly as a child because my parents were totally fixated on getting LOTS of calories in me and not looking at the quality of the calories as much. (translation, they let me eat a lot of sugary and fatty junk food to try and put weight on). I truly think that had a distinct negative effect on my overall health given my experiences as an adult.

If I had a daughter with CF, I would send her to private school. Both our daughters (non-CF) attend private school now and they are much more common-sense about illness, hygeine, meds, etc. The kids tend to get more personalized attention in private vs public and seem to be treated more as individuals. We did not have very good experiences with Montessori schools around here.

The best thing I can do for my health and theirs though, seems to be scads of fresh fruits and veggies and lots of healthy stuff, as well as enough sleep and exercise. Its amazing how the old standbys really seem to work. Washing hands, staying away from obviously sick people can also have good effects. : )
 

CFRacer

New member
I am currently enroled in High School as I am now in my Junior year. I have been in the same school district since Pre-School. Officially I have been in for 3 PICC lines as a 17 year old young man. My classmates and teachers have always been supportive of my CF (we actually did a charity at my elementary school every single year from 1st through 6th grade). I use to get sick really often (and it especially hit me hard in the winter because of the cold) and miss about half a week of school becasue of persistant coughing (enough that my ribs would ache). I will admit I got bullied a tiny bit, but with my attitude I let it all roll off of my back.

When I hit Middle School I got my G-Tube placed in my stomach and have skyrocketed in weight which meant less time missed. Things got a bit more difficult though as the work load increased and with the days I wasn't 100% it was harder to catch up. Things were okay though and people who were misinformed about CF still acted sorta the same but I explained what I was going through. Being friends with some of the teachers and also some good quality people to help me up when things get down.

Now I am in High School and things are a bit tougher as I have missed a total of 5 weeks (2 weeks from Sophmore year for I.V's and just as of recent, 3 weeks for I.V. Antibiotics from 1/11-2/3 roughly). Also the school work has piled up a bit and trying to get it done is a bit difficult. Just try to get help from teachers when you can when you miss out of school.

Ma'am here is my advice personally speaking. As I was born 3 months early, I was put on an IEP which has helped me tremendously. I can sit down in High School for 48 minutes or so and do work to catch up on and get extra help if needed. If your daughter can qualify for an IEP possibly then that may help in the future, just a suggestion going along. With the way things are progressing, your daughter will be surviving from the disease that we all share for a long time and we will see cure be administered to us hopefully in a few short years.

Good luck to your daughter in school, and when she gets older and more mature, just help her become independent with managing her disease (ex. carrying and taking her Creon Pancreatic Enzyme when she is in school, setting up the vest machine and doing huff coughs, etc).

Good luck to you and your family ma'am and I hope I was able to help.
 

CFRacer

New member
I am currently enroled in High School as I am now in my Junior year. I have been in the same school district since Pre-School. Officially I have been in for 3 PICC lines as a 17 year old young man. My classmates and teachers have always been supportive of my CF (we actually did a charity at my elementary school every single year from 1st through 6th grade). I use to get sick really often (and it especially hit me hard in the winter because of the cold) and miss about half a week of school becasue of persistant coughing (enough that my ribs would ache). I will admit I got bullied a tiny bit, but with my attitude I let it all roll off of my back.

When I hit Middle School I got my G-Tube placed in my stomach and have skyrocketed in weight which meant less time missed. Things got a bit more difficult though as the work load increased and with the days I wasn't 100% it was harder to catch up. Things were okay though and people who were misinformed about CF still acted sorta the same but I explained what I was going through. Being friends with some of the teachers and also some good quality people to help me up when things get down.

Now I am in High School and things are a bit tougher as I have missed a total of 5 weeks (2 weeks from Sophmore year for I.V's and just as of recent, 3 weeks for I.V. Antibiotics from 1/11-2/3 roughly). Also the school work has piled up a bit and trying to get it done is a bit difficult. Just try to get help from teachers when you can when you miss out of school.

Ma'am here is my advice personally speaking. As I was born 3 months early, I was put on an IEP which has helped me tremendously. I can sit down in High School for 48 minutes or so and do work to catch up on and get extra help if needed. If your daughter can qualify for an IEP possibly then that may help in the future, just a suggestion going along. With the way things are progressing, your daughter will be surviving from the disease that we all share for a long time and we will see cure be administered to us hopefully in a few short years.

Good luck to your daughter in school, and when she gets older and more mature, just help her become independent with managing her disease (ex. carrying and taking her Creon Pancreatic Enzyme when she is in school, setting up the vest machine and doing huff coughs, etc).

Good luck to you and your family ma'am and I hope I was able to help.
 

RachelLynne

New member
It depends on your school district. For us, I made it until 9th grade in a public school system. The schools fought with us constantly about me missing school, didn't have any smpathy dealing with illnesses with the children, etc. Your best bet is to find mothers in your school district and talk to them.Good luck to you.
 

RachelLynne

New member
It depends on your school district. For us, I made it until 9th grade in a public school system. The schools fought with us constantly about me missing school, didn't have any smpathy dealing with illnesses with the children, etc. Your best bet is to find mothers in your school district and talk to them.Good luck to you.
 

SIcklyhatED

New member
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>drdanika</b></i> I want to know from those of you who have been there, what are your experiences with schools. Did you go to public? private? alt ed? montessori? home school?</end quote>
Kinder-10th grade was public school, then I switched to a private highschool for Junior & Senior year.
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>What did you like or not like about them in relation to your CF?</end quote>
Liked: public: if I ever missed my enzymes they nurse would call my teacher and send me over. Private: since it was such a tiny, Christian school everyone was very kind and understanding. I was able to carry my own meds and it was very low-key, no drama.
Dislikes: public: I HAD to get my meds from the nurse, even though at 7 yrs old I was perfectly capable of dispensing them myself. Sometimes public school kids can be mean, so... yeah. Private: nothing really. I had a great highschool.

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>If you had a CF kid, what kind of school would you send them to? Any other tips for us? </end quote>
I'd want my kid to do what I did basically. I think it's important for them to experience public school at some point, especially in HS, but also want them in a safer environment later on. It really depends on your school district. My public school district is supossed to be the best in the city (there's like 3 districts total, lol). Have you asked your little girl what she might like too? You may be surprised.
 

SIcklyhatED

New member
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>drdanika</b></i> I want to know from those of you who have been there, what are your experiences with schools. Did you go to public? private? alt ed? montessori? home school?</end quote>
Kinder-10th grade was public school, then I switched to a private highschool for Junior & Senior year.
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>What did you like or not like about them in relation to your CF?</end quote>
Liked: public: if I ever missed my enzymes they nurse would call my teacher and send me over. Private: since it was such a tiny, Christian school everyone was very kind and understanding. I was able to carry my own meds and it was very low-key, no drama.
Dislikes: public: I HAD to get my meds from the nurse, even though at 7 yrs old I was perfectly capable of dispensing them myself. Sometimes public school kids can be mean, so... yeah. Private: nothing really. I had a great highschool.

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>If you had a CF kid, what kind of school would you send them to? Any other tips for us? </end quote>
I'd want my kid to do what I did basically. I think it's important for them to experience public school at some point, especially in HS, but also want them in a safer environment later on. It really depends on your school district. My public school district is supossed to be the best in the city (there's like 3 districts total, lol). Have you asked your little girl what she might like too? You may be surprised.
 

Steeephie

New member
I've been to public school my whole life. But I do know other CFers who are home schooled or cyber schooled due to being sick all the time.
I do know my mom didn't send me to preschool because of the germs and everything. But I did go to K-current grade (10) public.
Hope this helps?
-Stephanie
 

Steeephie

New member
I've been to public school my whole life. But I do know other CFers who are home schooled or cyber schooled due to being sick all the time.
I do know my mom didn't send me to preschool because of the germs and everything. But I did go to K-current grade (10) public.
Hope this helps?
-Stephanie
 

Simba15

Member
I think you have to look at how sick she is to make your determination. I went to public school. Now there is a 504 civil rights legislation to assist students. That didn't exist when I was in school.
 

Simba15

Member
I think you have to look at how sick she is to make your determination. I went to public school. Now there is a 504 civil rights legislation to assist students. That didn't exist when I was in school.
 

Tisha

New member
I have an unconventional story. I grew up in Mallorca, an island in Spain. There were many public and private schools to choose from (both national and international). <strong>The doctors told my mother I should attend a school with less than 10 pupils per class, in order to reduce infection risk.</strong> The only one like that was the Swedish School, and fortunately my father is Swedish, so I was allowed to attend.
The groups were tiny (maximum 12 students when I was in middle school, 40 students in the whole school) and if somebody got sick, I usually stayed at home in order not to get sick too. I would catch up with classes on my own (fortunately I always had good grades). For high school, I went to the Scandinavian School in Madrid, which was much larger (100 students in the whole school) but still not more than 12 per classroom (in dry climate I was doing much better, however, so I rarely missed class). Then I went to study playwriting (500 students in the whole college, but lots of smoking so my FVC of 100% went down to 60% in two years and I dropped out). A few years later, I went to do my whole Bachelors degree at BYU in the United States(30,000 students!! Freaking out... hahaha).
If I were to choose for a CF child, I would probably send him/her to a Montessori/Waldorf school for early years, provided they had small groups, and then homeschool (and include extracurricular activities and sports). But that's also because I want them to have really good education and most schools don't teach what I consider appropriate!
 

Tisha

New member
I have an unconventional story. I grew up in Mallorca, an island in Spain. There were many public and private schools to choose from (both national and international). <strong>The doctors told my mother I should attend a school with less than 10 pupils per class, in order to reduce infection risk.</strong> The only one like that was the Swedish School, and fortunately my father is Swedish, so I was allowed to attend.
The groups were tiny (maximum 12 students when I was in middle school, 40 students in the whole school) and if somebody got sick, I usually stayed at home in order not to get sick too. I would catch up with classes on my own (fortunately I always had good grades). For high school, I went to the Scandinavian School in Madrid, which was much larger (100 students in the whole school) but still not more than 12 per classroom (in dry climate I was doing much better, however, so I rarely missed class). Then I went to study playwriting (500 students in the whole college, but lots of smoking so my FVC of 100% went down to 60% in two years and I dropped out). A few years later, I went to do my whole Bachelors degree at BYU in the United States(30,000 students!! Freaking out... hahaha).
If I were to choose for a CF child, I would probably send him/her to a Montessori/Waldorf school for early years, provided they had small groups, and then homeschool (and include extracurricular activities and sports). But that's also because I want them to have really good education and most schools don't teach what I consider appropriate!
 

kallaart

New member
For the majority of my school, before I graduated in 2011, I went to public school. I was homeschooled in 4th grade because the school I went to before I moved out of state wanted to hold me back because I had missed so much, being in the hospital. And when I moved to Colorado the school I went to, it was VERY small, wanted to put me in Special Ed because of my "problems". The biggest problem I had while going to school, and still do is not getting the work I need when I miss school due to being admitted.
Make sure your daughters school REALLY understands her medical needs from going to the bathroom when needed to having to stop every once in awhile in P.E. Ask her doctors for some fliers that you can give to the school so they can sort of understand.
 

kallaart

New member
For the majority of my school, before I graduated in 2011, I went to public school. I was homeschooled in 4th grade because the school I went to before I moved out of state wanted to hold me back because I had missed so much, being in the hospital. And when I moved to Colorado the school I went to, it was VERY small, wanted to put me in Special Ed because of my "problems". The biggest problem I had while going to school, and still do is not getting the work I need when I miss school due to being admitted.
Make sure your daughters school REALLY understands her medical needs from going to the bathroom when needed to having to stop every once in awhile in P.E. Ask her doctors for some fliers that you can give to the school so they can sort of understand.
 
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