Goodbye EHBi!

I can't believe I am saying goodbye to my school, Ezra H Baker Innovation School. I have been at EHBi for six years- longer than most students attend here. Before we moved here six years ago my mom and dad came to Cape Cod to visit schools that would be able to accommodate my needs. As soon as they walked into Miss Tricia's class, my mom said, "This is where Kai is going to be." They could tell it was a place where I could learn and make friends, and that Ms. Tricia was someone very special. We decided to move to a place close enough for me to be able to go to school at EHBi. I started in 1st grade, and now I am finishing 6th grade. I want to say thank you to so many people who have made my experience here so great.

Of course I have to start out with Miss Tricia. If you don't know her, you are missing out! She works so hard for me and all of my classmates to make sure we are working toward all of our goals and being included in our mainstream classrooms. She LOVES to do art and always has us making fun projects. In fact, every year we do an art show at the Yarmouth Cultural Center where we get to show off what we worked on all year. I am so sad to be leaving her after all this time together. I hope to come back and visit. I love you Ms. Tricia!

Miss Tricia and Me

At the Art Show

Mr. Depin is our principal. What can I say, he really helps to make our program (called the SEALS) feel like part of the school. He always has a positive attitude and even helped fix one of my toys that I brought to share while he was wearing a suit! I feel very lucky to have been able to be a part of his school and am thankful he allowed me to be a school choice student at EHBi.

Mr. Depin at our graduation

Mr. Kliment is a 3rd grade teacher. I have been in his class for 4 years in a row!! Since EHBi only goes to 3rd grade, I needed to be matched up with a 3rd grade class when I was in 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th grades. Every year since my "first" 3rd grade year, we have asked Mr. Kliment if I could be part of his class again. He said yes every time! He always goes out of his way to make me part of the class. He would always read my blog to the class and let me share about the things I do outside of school. He helps the other kids learn about me and how I am different and the same as them. He makes sure I have special friends every year and attends special events for me outside of school. Every time Miss Tricia asks where I want to go- most of the time I choose Mr. Kliment's classroom! I am going to miss him so much!

Mr. Kliment and Me

Ms. Pat is my nurse at school. She has the responsibility of taking care of all my hygiene and nutrition needs- I'm not going to lie, it is a BIG job. As you know my body does not work like most people, so I need support doing all my activities of daily living. Ms. Pat always made sure I was neat, clean and fed. Other than my Mom and Dad, Ms. Pat is the best at feeding me- which can be a little tricky. She was also very diligent in keeping my mom informed of what was happening to me at school- how I felt, what kind of day I had, and any other pertinent info. Since I cannot tell my family what happens at school, Ms. Pat makes sure my family knows anything important. Whenever she calls my mom, she always starts the conversation with, "Kai is fine. I wanted to talk to you about..." That helped to make my mom not worry about getting a call from the nurse. Ms. Pat is retiring this year and we are SO glad she waited until I was leaving- she will be VERY missed!

Ms. Pat and Me

Ms. Sue has been my physical therapist at school since I came to EHBi. She works really hard to make sure I am moving and staying safe. She helps me in gym class and in my classroom try to access what we are doing by helping me manage my body. She took me to a program called Gym Buddies every week so I could see my old friends who had graduated and play games with them at their school. She also helps us apply to get equipment I need at home and fills out LOTS of paperwork for me! Luckily, Ms. Sue will also be my PT at the new school.

 

Ms. Sue and Me

I have other therapists who help me at school also, like Ms. Hilary, who is my speech therapist. She has been working really hard for the past few years to help me get a communication device (which we don't have quite yet). She also fills out lots of paperwork for me and tries to find creative ways for me to communicate. She works with Ms. Cammie who is my occupational therapist. She helps me find ways to access switches so I can make choices, communicate, play games and make friends. Ms. Cammie will be at my new school too!

In my classroom we have lots of aides to help us out. Ms. Sonja and Ms. Hannah were in my classroom this year. They take us wherever we need to go: gym, music, art, library, Mr. Kliment's, recess, etc. They help us communicate with our friends and be part of the class. They sometimes even give me foot rubs!

Ms. Sonja and Me

Hannah and Me

Over the years I have made some really great friends and EHBi- some of them I still see outside of school occasionally. Each year I always have a few special people who go out of their way to be my friend. They read to me, help me in art, music and PE and sometimes come to my classroom to help out. They hang out with me at field trips and make me a part of their class. Here are just a few...

Tanner

Maeve and Me- Maeve and I have been in class together since I started 6 years ago! I am going to miss her next year, but soon enough she will be at DYHS with me!

Another Maeve!

Mr. Kliment, Landon, and Me

I was very proud this year to be part of the EHBi graduation ceremony (it took a LONG time to get there!). I've watched lots of friends graduate, but this year I got my chance. I got to sit on stage with my friends, share a memory with the whole school and get my graduation certificate. It was an A+ day, and I know because my mom always cries when great things happen!

Here is a link to my memory speech.

Bon voyage Ezra Baker!! I will miss you!