Six-year-old Joanna delights in trying new activities. Reading, swimming, biking, drumming – she tackles them all with zest.
“Joanna likes to explore,” says Lindsay, her first grade teacher at the Bloorview School. “She’s very curious. Her favorite word is why?”
Words haven’t come easily to Joanna. Born prematurely at 26 weeks and a client of Holland Bloorview from the time she was 6 months old, Joanna has paralyzed vocal cords and up until recently, did not speak at all. Her mom, Shirley, says she was a very quiet pre-schooler who struggled to express herself with ‘a little sign language’.
Joanna began to blossom when her parents enrolled her in the Bloorview School’s Integrated Education and Therapy program. Her mom says she has benefited enormously from the school’s rich combination of classroom learning and physical, occupational and speech therapies.
Holland Bloorview outfitted her with a laptop-like communication device that ‘speaks’ the words she chooses from a kid-friendly menu. But, much to her own delight and the joy of her parents, Joanna has discovered her ability to use her own voice – a few words at a time.
Teachers see other changes in Joanna over the years she’s been at Holland Bloorview. Although she’s always been a positive, easy-going child who loves to laugh, she’s now “much more independent and a greater advocate for herself.”
Joanna is a popular student who is very fond of her classmates and teachers. Unlike most kids, she’s ‘a bit disappointed’ when the weekend rolls around, because she can’t go to school!
