Let’s pick back up with Anya’s story, for part 2. If you missed last week’s, click here to catch up.
Anya attends a 3 day/week preK program and I asked her parents to share some insights from her teachers at school. As a reminder, Anya is generally described as a highly active, proprioceptive seeking kid who struggles with transitions and sometimes has a hard time following instructions when she’s dysregulated. Her mom said that after she picks her up from pre-K, she has some extreme behaviors, which she thinks is attributed to masking at school.
*“Masking” refers to the instances when a child tends to hide or hold in their emotions or needs in order to “fit in” with a more neurotypical crowd, or to avoid confrontation/attention. It is commonly discussed in the context of the Autism community, but can also be described in other spaces relating to other neurotypes.
According to her teacher, at school, Anya:
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Struggles with transitions (especially at drop off and pick up), during which she avoids responding to directions or questions
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Is otherwise a good listener and pretty calm/quiet throughout the day
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Has a group of peers she spends time with, but tends to just follow along with what they do rather than share her own ideas
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Gravitates towards swings and sometimes will run as fast as she can and crash into an inflatable structure on the playground
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Does not like other people in her personal space bubble, but will often not say anything. Instead, she tenses up and freezes.
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Chooses art or reading in her own space for free choice
