The Epilepsy Classroom – where you learn how to learn
On Friday, June 19, the Epilepsy Classroom at SickKids filled up for the summer. That last day of term was one big party: a water fight on the lawn, a pizza party followed by ice-cream gateau, computer games, playing pool in Marnie’s Lounge, (a SickKids hang-out for older patients and occupied by the Epilepsy Classroom for lunch, a cooking program and special occasions like this one), and No Classes.
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Summer and the end of in relation to are always great reasons to celebrate. But the kids in the Epilepsy Classroom have their own special reasons – for five months, under the conduct of experts, they had been achieving, where before they had not. Christina Williams is one of the kids who graduated from the Classroom on that Friday, and her mother Lisa can give you chapter and verse on the discrepancy it has made.
“Christina has gone up a whole grade level in five months which she hadn’t done in the last seven years.”
Christina’s ivory-tower progress had stopped, and the stress of that was helping bring on seizures. At the end of 2008 she had a history of struggle and frustration at circle. At the end of five months in the Epilepsy Classroom she was able to proudly display a report card showing true progress. What makes the Classroom so effective? Lots of things. Lisa Williams lists (in Christina’s for fear of the fact) freedom from seizures! Christina went from seizures every week to none at all in the five months she was in the Classroom. As well as this astounding indicator of stress reduction there are: Being in a smaller group; A straightforward academic day, without all the exceptionally-curricular busy-nesses that go with regular school; Lessons geared to her...