Labels

Labels

So, so often I hear parents say they don’t want their child labeled.  Drives me batty. Everyone has a label- either self proclaimed or given by others.   Great reader, polite, bookworm, troublemaker, athletic, funny, and so on.  The parent who says, “I don’t want my child labeled” is lying to themselves.  

You child already has a label.  

Do you want it to be, “Child whose parents are in denial” or “Child whose parents won’t get her the help she needs” or “Child who has so much potential but his parents’ pride gets in the way”???  If an educational professional is counseling you to pursue special education services for your child DO IT.  Get the testing, get the information, learn everything you can about your child and how he learns and what you can do to support that.  A label of Learning Disabled, Autistic, Dyslexic, Apraxia, Developmentally Delayed, or any other string of the ABC’s is just a search term to look up on Google.  Its just a name to give you direction in finding support and guidance for helping you child. Bring on the labels!  

Bring on the acronyms and committee meetings and new vocabulary to learn.  Your child will be labeled and categorized by her strengths and weaknesses, whether you are conscious of it or not. So be conscious of it- be proactive.  Listen to the teachers, childcare providers, and friends who tell you that your child may need some additional support or may learn in an atypical way.  

A label merely provides you a handle to hang onto as you navigate the educational system. By being a participant and advocate in the special education system, you and your child participate in choosing a label and have ownership of it.  Empower your child to claim his label and love it!