Claire Wiegand's Story: 1995 - 1996

At six, Claire finally started sleeping through the night and going to bed consistently. At 8:00 sharp, she would have her teeth brushed and be put to bed, and she would sleep for 10 - 11 glorious hours! She continues to sleep well even now -- we hope it lasts! This was Claire's first year of genuine public school and she was placed in a class for moderately mentally handicapped children at Cherry Tree Elementary. It was an ambitious placement, because her tests showed her functioning in the severe-to-profound range, but her preschool teacher and we were so pleased with her progress that we hoped she would continue to improve if placed with higher-functioning students. It turned out to be a mistake, because the class didn't meet her needs and she was considered to be a burden to the class. At case conference time, we unanimously agreed to move her to the severe-to-moderate class the next year.

	Claire's soon-to-be stepdaddy, Tom, worked on a board that could hold Claire's new Jelly Bean switches. Here's Claire at age 6 1/2 testing out one of the switches, ...
	... and using her Jelly Bean switches. The pink one operates a radio; the purple one operates a fan. She loves them! (March 1996)
	Claire was knocked out by a case of the flu, so her sister joined her for a while to keep her company. (April 1996)
	Here's Claire and Tom, ...
	... and here's Claire smiling while having some snacks. (April 1996)
	Claire with her sister Jill, looking quite adorable in matching dresses. (May 1996)
	Claire and her Life Skills class visited the Indy 500 Museum on a field trip. (May 1996)
	Debbie's dad came to visit so we took the kids to the Indianapolis Zoo.
	Debbie's friend Jenni is a zoo volunteer, and she helped Claire hold a turtle, which Claire promptly turned upside down.
	Claire really enjoyed having a front row seat at the dolphin show. (June 1996)
	We co-hosted the annual Indiana Rett Syndrome Group's family picnic at Claire's dad's house. (June 1996) Next: 1996 - 1997