New-ish project

[Neia]

I never had to pay attention in class, I always had a novel in my lap and I just used to sit there and read, but some part of my brain used to listen and absorb it all anyway. Whenever a teacher thought to catch me out by asking me a question I didn't even have to look up from my book, I could answer automatically.

And anytime I did put my hand up because I wanted to answer a question they'd ignore me. One teacher even said that there's no point asking me because they know that I know the answer.

Teachers and students all hated me, except for the girlfriend I had all through primary school, Leanne. She was smart like me and had the same troubles.

My 5th grade English teacher couldn't accept that I actually knew English
She tried to trip me once, but I replied correctly to what she had asked.
She failed me for no good reason.

In 6th grade they gave me a different English teacher who was happier about the fact that I actually had a grasp on the language.
She once lowered my grade on a test because I forgot an H in one WHAT I was not amused.

 

[Neia]

I never had to pay attention in class, I always had a novel in my lap and I just used to sit there and read, but some part of my brain used to listen and absorb it all anyway. Whenever a teacher thought to catch me out by asking me a question I didn't even have to look up from my book, I could answer automatically.

And anytime I did put my hand up because I wanted to answer a question they'd ignore me. One teacher even said that there's no point asking me because they know that I know the answer.

Teachers and students all hated me, except for the girlfriend I had all through primary school, Leanne. She was smart like me and had the same troubles.

Teachers can be real jerks.

 

[Outdated]

We didn't start to learn another language until highschool and I think that's a bit too late. Kids pick up languages a lot more easily than adults. I never learnt another language properly, I can speak a little bit of French if I have to, and I can swear fluently in Greek and Turkish complete with appropriate hand gestures.

 

[Neia]

I write a lot, for pretty much the same reasons, but I never had enough imagination to invent stories. So instead I write about a lot of the things I've experienced in life and I'm also quite politically active and write to politicians often.

You could publish your history.
It could turn out to be of great help for others like us, who went undiagnosed all our lives, or most of our lives.

Not saying you should. Just that you could if you wanted to.

 

[Outdated]

Teachers can be real jerks.

They don't like being showed up either, I found that out the hard way but it was a habit I found hard to break, especially if they'd just been giving me a hard time. I'd sit there correcting their mistakes when they were teaching wrong.

I always had a stubborn streak, I'm not able to be the first one to back down.

 

[Neia]

We didn't start to learn another language until highschool and I think that's a bit too late. Kids pick up languages a lot more easily than adults. I never learnt another language properly, I can speak a little bit of French if I have to, and I can swear fluently in Greek and Turkish complete with appropriate hand gestures.

When I was growing up, we only started at 10.
But there were tv shows like Follow Me, from Thames TV that taught English.

Those were so much fun!

10 was the age we got into 5th grade.

 

[Outdated]

You could publish your history.
It could turn out to be of great help for others like us, who went undiagnosed all our lives, or most of our lives.

Not saying you should. Just that you could if you wanted to.

A lot of the longer posts in here from me are just a copy and paste from my book, it ended up being about 750 pages in all. I do have to edit them before posting here because they're written in Australian English. But I didn't hold back at all because I really only wrote it to myself. I kept very few secrets.

At one point I even wrote in there "Hah! Like to see them try and make a TV mini series out of this one!".

 

[Neia]

They don't like being showed up either, I found that out the hard way but it was a habit I found hard to break, especially if they'd just been giving me a hard time. I'd sit there correcting their mistakes when they were teaching wrong.

I always had a stubborn streak, I'm not able to be the first one to back down.

No... teachers definitely don't enjoy being corrected.

Same as doctors.

 

[Outdated]

10 was the age we got into 5th grade.

I was a year younger than all the other kids, I turned 10 in Grade 6. This is what happened to me when I turned 10:

When I started grade 6 I got a little bit clever, maybe a little bit too clever. I discovered how easy it was to start arguments and fights between other kids, and when they were busy fighting each other they left me alone. Once again I also had a very smart lady for a teacher, and she kept me in after school one day to have a talk with me.

She told me I was becoming a bully. She said I was an intellectual bully and that on that level there was no other kid in the school that had a hope of competing with me. She said that she had already had a long talk with the headmaster and they both agreed that missing time from class was not going to affect my grades in any way, I always got straight "A"s for everything. To teach me that there were people less fortunate than me I had to spend two days a week in the Oppo's class.

The Opportunity Class was another of those great ideas set up by idealistic do-gooders and tree huggers, probably by committee. It was a special class set up in a mainstream school for children with severe disabilities, the idea being that although these kids could never have normal lives at least they would have a chance to socialise with other children. I guarantee that who ever came up with that bright idea had never had children of their own.

Those kids could never leave the classroom without one of their special teachers hovering over them and protecting them, they had to take their lunch breaks at a different time to the rest of the school because that's the only way the special teachers could protect all of them at once. Most of them were in wheel chairs, a couple with physical deformities but active minds, some of them just dribbling vegetables, and everything in between.

I had to read them stories. I had to help prop them back up in their wheel chairs when they slipped and use a tissue to wipe the snot and dribble from their faces. I had to help them in and out of their chairs if they wanted to go to the toilet and wipe their bums for them. I had learned Origami and used to make them little paper birds and frogs and dogs. This went on for nearly two years until I started high school.

I really liked my time in the Oppo's class. They never picked on me or tried to ridicule me. The special teachers seemed to like me and often told me how much of a help I was and how much the kids liked me reading stories to them. And I got to take lunch break with the Oppo's instead of having to try and hide from all the other kids. I was happy. I never wagged school on a Tuesday or Thursday, I liked being there.

 

[Neia]

I was a year younger than all the other kids, I turned 10 in Grade 6. This is what happened to me when I turned 10:

When I started grade 6 I got a little bit clever, maybe a little bit too clever. I discovered how easy it was to start arguments and fights between other kids, and when they were busy fighting each other they left me alone. Once again I also had a very smart lady for a teacher, and she kept me in after school one day to have a talk with me.

She told me I was becoming a bully. She said I was an intellectual bully and that on that level there was no other kid in the school that had a hope of competing with me. She said that she had already had a long talk with the headmaster and they both agreed that missing time from class was not going to affect my grades in any way, I always got straight "A"s for everything. To teach me that there were people less fortunate than me I had to spend two days a week in the Oppo's class.

The Opportunity Class was another of those great ideas set up by idealistic do-gooders and tree huggers, probably by committee. It was a special class set up in a mainstream school for children with severe disabilities, the idea being that although these kids could never have normal lives at least they would have a chance to socialise with other children. I guarantee that who ever came up with that bright idea had never had children of their own.

Those kids could never leave the classroom without one of their special teachers hovering over them and protecting them, they had to take their lunch breaks at a different time to the rest of the school because that's the only way the special teachers could protect all of them at once. Most of them were in wheel chairs, a couple with physical deformities but active minds, some of them just dribbling vegetables, and everything in between.

I had to read them stories. I had to help prop them back up in their wheel chairs when they slipped and use a tissue to wipe the snot and dribble from their faces. I had to help them in and out of their chairs if they wanted to go to the toilet and wipe their bums for them. I had learned Origami and used to make them little paper birds and frogs and dogs. This went on for nearly two years until I started high school.

I really liked my time in the Oppo's class. They never picked on me or tried to ridicule me. The special teachers seemed to like me and often told me how much of a help I was and how much the kids liked me reading stories to them. And I got to take lunch break with the Oppo's instead of having to try and hide from all the other kids. I was happy. I never wagged school on a Tuesday or Thursday, I liked being there.

I'm glad you got to have that safe time, and the experience that went with it.
But I agree with you, the person who had the idea of that class mustn't have known children much.

They basically had a segregated school inside the school, and some of those kids probably felt that.
The ones with active minds would most likely have enjoyed the challenge of learning along the "regular" kids.

Unless I'm misunderstanding, and they had classes with all other kids, and only some activities, like lunch, with the other special needs kids?
But still... not an ideal idea.

Also... having a kid lift other kids, whipe bottoms? That's not right.
For one, how'd the other kids feel? And secondly, you weren't exactly babysitting babies either.

I can see myself having had one of those "stubborn till you burn me" moments, and just plainly refusing to do that.
One thing is helping others with homework, reading or wiping a nose, another is wiping bottoms. That's tantamount to abuse.

 

[Outdated]

Unless I'm misunderstanding, and they had classes with all other kids, and only some activities, like lunch, with the other special needs kids?

No. In primary school we didn't go to different classes. Each group had it's own room and just the one teacher all year. That changed when we got to highschool. The oppo's class was in it's own separate little building because they had to have wheelchair access, ramps and wider doors, bigger toilet, etc.

 

[Outdated]

One thing is helping others with homework, reading or wiping a nose, another is wiping bottoms. That's tantamount to abuse.

When I had that attitude one of the kids I was helping said "It's no bloody fun for me either you know.".

I did learn some things in that class, just not what my teachers were hoping for. It certainly wasn't punishment in my eyes.

 

[Neia]

No. In primary school we didn't go to different classes. Each group had it's own room and just the one teacher all year. That changed when we got to highschool. The oppo's class was in it's own separate little building because they had to have wheelchair access, ramps and wider doors, bigger toilet, etc.

Segregated what was the point then?
Why not have a larger facility, with more adults to help and better teachers?

And have those students who needed it or wanted too, help as volunteers.

I always see that kind of idea from organisations as demagogy and penny pinching rather than true willingness to help.

 

[Neia]

When I had that attitude one of the kids I was helping said "It's no bloody fun for me either you know.".

I did learn some things in that class, just not what my teachers were hoping for. It certainly wasn't punishment in my eyes.

That's exactly what I meant.

It must have been difficult for them to have a peer doing that. It's bad enough as it is.

 

[Outdated]

They say that bureaucracy is a curse invented by the Chinese. Assigning a committee is a way for the government to tell the people that it's taking action on a subject whilst guaranteeing that no workable ideas will come up and therefore no money will be spent.

That's exactly what I meant.
It must have been difficult for them to have a peer doing that. It's bad enough as it is.

Once I was used to the idea they were more comfortable as well. I was there for 2 years, it was a good education.

 

[Neia]

They say that bureaucracy is a curse invented by the Chinese. Assigning a committee is a way for the government to tell the people that it's taking action on a subject whilst guaranteeing that no workable ideas will come up and therefore no money will be spent.


Once I was used to the idea they were more comfortable as well. I was there for 2 years, it was a good education.

My prideful mind still can't grasp the idea of having to depend on someone else like that.

I'm glad you had a good experience there.

 

[Outdated]

I'm glad you had a good experience there.

In some ways my teacher was right, I learnt how to be human.

 

[AuAL]

Only caught this conversation now - so much that sparks reactions.

@Outdated, “The Opportunity Class was another of those great ideas set up by idealistic do-gooders and tree huggers, probably by committee. It was a special class set up in a mainstream school for children with severe disabilities.

I was in Opportunity Class in Primary school, grades 5 and 6, but it was a selective class for gifted children.

I remember in grade 4 I, still quite oblivious to how I was, complained that I never got included in the “question game”. It was something our teacher (first year out) set up where one half of the class asked questions of someone in the other half of the class. Points were awarded. I sat there bored and frustrated most of the time. On one memorable day (I still remember it vividly, 57 years later) I complained that I never got asked a question and many of the questions directed to our side went to one boy who was ill-equipped to answer, which I explicitly pointed out. (I remember his surname was Fletcher.) OK, I was a dickhead. Oblivious, but a dickhead. It was during this year that someone sabotaged my basket-weaving project in craft classes. I did not connect the two. Oblivious, but I learnt that some people did not like me and would do something about it. I didn’t know why.

 

[Neia]

Only caught this conversation now - so much that sparks reactions.

@Outdated, “The Opportunity Class was another of those great ideas set up by idealistic do-gooders and tree huggers, probably by committee. It was a special class set up in a mainstream school for children with severe disabilities.

I was in Opportunity Class in Primary school, grades 5 and 6, but it was a selective class for gifted children.

I remember in grade 4 I, still quite oblivious to how I was, complained that I never got included in the “question game”. It was something our teacher (first year out) set up where one half of the class asked questions of someone in the other half of the class. Points were awarded. I sat there bored and frustrated most of the time. On one memorable day (I still remember it vividly, 57 years later) I complained that I never got asked a question and many of the questions directed to our side went to one boy who was ill-equipped to answer, which I explicitly pointed out. (I remember his surname was Fletcher.) OK, I was a dickhead. Oblivious, but a dickhead. It was during this year that someone sabotaged my basket-weaving project in craft classes. I did not connect the two. Oblivious, but I learnt that some people did not like me and would do something about it. I didn’t know why.

I learned quite quickly that the best for me was to be quiet. Even in class.

My teachers complained that I didn't participate enough, but they weren't outside much during recess.

The other kids could be brutal. Specially the other girls.
I'd take refuge in the library a lot.
When I fought back I was a bit over the top, and I had to report myself to the principle. Which earned me detention in the library.

The other day someone said that if they knew what they know now, they still wouldn't want to go back to their teen years.
I tend to agree.

 

[Outdated]

I complained that I never got asked a question and many of the questions directed to our side went to one boy who was ill-equipped to answer, which I explicitly pointed out.

I did exactly the same sort of thing a few times, but as for anyone trying to sabotage my work, they all did that sort of thing all the time anyway so it made no difference to me. The most memorable was my year 10 maths teacher. I always finished any problems immediately than I'd sit there quietly reading a book.

The teacher didn't like that, he said it wasn't fair that I could sit there having a bludge while everyone one else had to work. That entire attitude doesn't sit well with me even today, and when people try that one on me I arc up big time.

"You have the cheek to start picking on me when I've done my work. Meanwhile the rest of these (very derogatory Aussie term) are still counting on their fingers and can't tell you their 6 times tables. You're wasting my time and theirs.". And I walked out. That was the last time I went to maths class that year.