Since Katya's diagnosis of being deaf (at 18 months), a lot has happened. But our aim has always been to get Katya's listening and speaking age as close to 5yo when she started school at 5yo. I termed it 5 at 5.
I can remember a number of the team who have worked with Katya trying to temper that goal. I wouldn't hear a bar of it. That was the goal and that was it. If you aim high, then even if you miss by a little bit, you are still going to be ok.
As we started school we knew we had succeeded in getting Katya's listening age up to the 5yo level. But her speaking age when we did some benchmarking tests was not quite there in January.
However after 4 weeks of school, it seems as though she is well and truly able to hold her own in her class. She is doing everything all the other kids are. She is certainly needing some support, which we get from our most excellent special teacher, Erin. But she is doing really well.
This is pretty special for me. When I think back to the day we were told she was deaf, it seemed like so many hopes and dreams that I had for Katya as a baby would be limited. Now, thanks to her Cochlear implants and all the work that has gone in, those limits are vanishing. In fact there are a number of things she can do that she will be able to do better than normal hearing people.
Its also special for me because part of me becoming a stay at home dad was to get Katya ready for school and see her settled there. As many of you know, being a stay at home dad was never on my radar. But God had different plans for me. Claire got very bad post-natal depression after the birth of Larissa and it was no longer an option for her to look after the kids. So up to the plate I had to step (whether I liked it or not). The goal has been simple. Raise my kids and get them ready for school and kindergarten. With Katya doing so well at school and Larissa settled in kindy, I feel a real sense of accomplishment.
I know the journey and work is not over. Over the next year or so we will still need to have specialist support for Katya. Her pronunciation needs tuning. And there will be the ongoing issues around hardware. But to get to this point successfully is very cool.
Getting here has not been something that I have achieved on my own. It is amazing the number of people who have contributed over the years. And I also thank God that He has given Katya some horse power upstairs to absorb what we throw at her.
