Miss Fine's Grade 5 Year

School drop-off selfie: Miss Fine

This year has started much more relaxed with regards Miss Fine and being in Grade 5 this year. Last year we were anxious about Grade 4, which was a culture shock, but she aced it by doing very well in her first exams. So much so that she is getting an academic achievement award next week. We are so proud.

LIfe is a choice, not an excuse

Study course notes

We signed up for a study course, and this past weekend was the weekend that we could fit it in. Grade 4 is a culture shock! More for the parents than the kids, it seems! :-) The extra subjects, tests, exams and projects are a lot more than the previous grades. The parents need to help manage, AND time manage, AND help the kids to learn.

We are so glad we signed up for this! We got a couple of telephone numbers to phone from the Grade 3 teachers last year, and the lady who phoned me back is from a Tina Cowley Reading Centre. The course was from a Friday afternoon, followed up by the Saturday afternoon. It was more than a good six hours of learning how to learn.

How much therapy is necessary when there was no need in the first place?

OT play
(photo by Dad)

Little Missy's teachers have never told us that there are any problems. We were not called in to school for any reason. 

Her report cards are very good.

But because she is born in the last month of the year, there is a bit of a worry about her school readiness. I am the guilty party! (l now think that I should have left it!)

We did the school readiness tests at the developmental psychologist and the results did not come back as positive as we expected. I blogged about it already: School readiness results. She referred us to an Occupational Therapist and an Optometrist.

So we are seeing the Occupational Therapist and Little Missy is in occupational therapy every week. We decided to not do tests again, because the OT feels she does not want to test again within six months from the previous testing, and to cut out paying for another round of tests and a report.

The day before yesterday we saw the Optometrist, and although her vision is perfect, she apparently needs glasses to help her eyes relax when she is reading. She also "needs" Visual Therapy to help her before she starts with reading. What is Visual Therapy? (I should have asked, but I was flabbergasted!) 

Luckily Little Missy is besotted with her new glasses, and couldn't wait to use them at school today.

I feel it is all too much! 

To address a problem when there was no problem in the first place?

It is also costing an arm and a leg. (Luckily we have medical aid.)

I would like to know how many children go to one of these assessments and walk out of there without having to go for follow-up therapies? 

Is it not only a big money-making scheme, with referrals keeping them all going? 

For how long are we now going to have to carry on with this?

It is also very disruptive. Little Missy misses a very important hour each week in school because she has to go for OT. Mom and Dad needs to take time off from work to drive her around.

Do we also not place a label on Little Missy for struggling or having issues when there was none before?

School readiness results

The school readiness results did not come back as positive as expected.

We will probably go to an occupational therapist, as well as an optometrist as suggested!

With hindsight I should have gone to the occupational therapist in the first place, and not "waste" my money and time at a educational psychologist.
I got the reference from parents at school, and did not think twice...


Little Missy also did a few unexpected things that could have impacted on the advice:
(As they do!)

- She brought a teddy bear along to the session. She hardly ever plays with her bears, and only once or twice slept with one of them.
There is no favourite bear that goes around with us, such as the blanket that her sister carried around.
But it definitely had an impact on the assessment, and the bear was mentioned a couple of times by the psychologist.

- She drew a terrible self-portrait of only a half person, with no facial features. And announced that it was enough for that picture for the day.
Her pictures are usually the most colourful and I like to share them because I think they are very good!
(See the picture on top.)

- She told the psychologist that her secret is that she was still drinking "Boobies" until quite recently. It was never a secret in our house, or to the outside world.
It seems that this confirms to the psychologist that she is still emotionally not ready, although I personally (and Natural/Attachment parents) think that it breeds a very emotional strong and resilient person! (As well as a HEALTHY person!)

- She also admitted to manipulate us with her tantrums, until we give in to her demands!
When do we give in to her demands?
The fact that she is able to verbalise and knows what she is doing, is telling me that she is already able to control her tantrums.

- She was also only able to sit still for 15 minutes, before she got bored. In the written feedback it even says 20 minutes.
I think it is quite a long time for a little person to sit still? Maybe the stuff got boring?

- She also told the psychologist that we still sleep with her. It is true in part because we lay with her in her bed until she falls asleep. But then we get up again.. And then we only go to her at night when she calls, and sometimes falling asleep with her!
It is a parenting style that we as parents are both happy with!
It seems that the psychologist thinks we are still baby-ing her, and therefore she is not emotionally ready!


I know that the psychologist only got to see her for a an hour and a half.
We will not only base our decision on her inputs, but what we get from the OT's assessments.

Colour blind?

EnChroma Colour Blindness Test Result

The Little Missy struggled from the very start with the recognition of blues and greens.
At age two and three we did not think anything about it

At age four she is still struggling!

I have to tell her to know as fact that trees and grass are green, and that the sky is blue!
She mostly never gets the blues and greens correct, but she is able to identify all the other colours.

I phoned an optometrist yesterday, and she advised that I do one of the test available on the iPad.
I also made an appointment in April to confirm it, and also to try and understand more about it.

We did the test last night.

I thought that she would test a tritan vision deficiency because of the blue/green, but she tested deutan, which is a blue/red vision deficiency.

Apparently there is nothing that can be done about it.
Apparently it comes from the maternal side. My father tested a mild colour blindness when he was in the army years and years ago. I also remember that my grandfather was colour blind, but now nobody can remember...

It doesn't matter.

It is a bit sad to think that our little one will not see the world as brightly and as colourful as we do!

Please let me know if you have any suggestions?

I think it is good to know earlier rather than later; and to be able to tell the teachers at school.