May 30, 2012

Dr. Doctor,
Re:

_________

_____________is a student at Bright Lights Academy. She is currently in Grade 3,

having attended our school since Kindergarten. We have questions regarding _____
social-emotional progress and development and are seeking support from you in
understanding this little girls needs.
The areas that we wonder about for _______are:

Her overly emotional response to simple situations;

Her hand-flapping behavior;
Her ongoing difficulties in making and keeping respectful and caring
relationships; and, more recently,
Her extreme response to situations which she perceives to be too loud, too
busy, too bright

During her Grades 1-3 years, _____ has been a member of homogeneously grouped
classrooms which offer significant support to her learning; the class is evenly
divided between boys and girls. The support comes through reduced student
numbers (often as few as 15 students), enhanced levels of staffing (the regular
classroom teacher, with the addition of a part-time educational assistant/learning
support teacher), and curriculum which is offered at a slower pace with significant
repetition and reinforcement. ___ is currently meeting the expectations of the Grade
3 curriculum.
From her earliest days in school, _____has struggled in regulating her emotions. She
can be overly dramatic to the simplest situations, to the point that this year, she
and her teacher have an arrangement which involves her leaving the classroom
when her emotions get the better if her. Her responses can be triggered by both
positive as well as challenging situations. Unfortunately, the incidences of
upset have not decreased during the years that _____ has been with us and have
accelerated recently in Grade 3.
When _____ regularly engages in a hand-flapping ritual; we are unable to
determine whether this behavior is voluntary or involuntary, but are concerned that
as she moves on in school, other students will react negatively to her overly
emotional states as well as the hand-flapping ritual. This behavior occurs both at

home and at school, and once again, appear to be on the increase at school. Other
students are beginning to notice her emotionality and arm-flapping behaviours, and
questioning her.
_______ has experienced ongoing difficulty in acting in respectful and considerate
ways when making and keeping friends, in group or partner work, etc. She has
worked with the schools Youth Development Counselor and been involved in Social
Skills group instruction in both Grade 1 and 2. These opportunities were designed
to assist her with these challenges. It would appear that the effect of these
programs has not been lasting, as ______continues to face daily challenges in
working with others and in solving even the most straight forward problems. She
does attempt to use strategies out of Kelsos Choices , a school-based problemsolving program, but requires support to do so. These situations appear to occur
irrespective of location ( i.e. in the gym, in class, on the playground etc.)
Recently (parents would report as of about two months ago; school personnel within
about the last 2-3 weeks), ______has been reacting in extremely negative ways to
loud noises (she typically covers her ears and runs from the room), bright lights (as
were present at Lloyds Rollerdome where she went for her birthday party) and
spaces where she feels there are too many people present (and she would, once
again, articulate that she feels overwhelmed and leaves the room). This last
circumstance presented itself at school when students were in the gym, playing
games, dancing in large groups, and practicing for a choir performance. Of late,
when her teacher has asked her to use their regular routine of taking a break in
the hallway for a minute to get control of herself, _____has refused to leave the
classroom, preferring to live out her distress in front of other students. This noncompliance is completely unusual for her.
We believe that _____is a lovely, sensitive, warm hearted and trusting little girl and
are concerned that our inability to understand her issues is getting in the way of our
ability to program in ways best designed to meet her needs. We would appreciate
any light that you may be able to shine upon our questions, and look forward to
learning about the results of your investigations.
We have prepared this letter with the full knowledge and support of ____parents,
who have been wonderful advocates and supports for their daughter, and who,
similarly, wish the best for her in her daily experience of school.
Should you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me as below.
Warmest regards,

Amy Donovan

Associate Principal
Cc:

Parents names
Teacher