Giulietta’s First Day of School

Giulietta was about eighteen months old when she first attended a neighbourhood program, accompanied by a nanny. At that age, she couldn’t communicate, walk independently, or participate in any activity without physical support and facilitation.

Despite these constraints, Giulietta loved school. She loved desk activities that challenged her, puzzles, books, anything that engaged her mind. She especially loved circle time, particularly when there was music, which has always captivated her.

We felt it was important for her to interact with other children, to socialize, to try to participate. We hoped that being around her peers would encourage her to develop new skills. But motivation was never Giulietta’s problem. She wanted to do everything the other kids were doing. The obstacle was her severe apraxia, the inability to motor plan, which meant she couldn’t learn by observing others and then trying herself. She simply didn’t have the neurological wiring to mimic or copy movements.

We worked hard at home with supplemental occupational, speech and physical therapy to encourage additional skills. But progress was painfully slow, and the developmental gap between Giulietta and her peers grew wider with each passing month. Eventually we realized that there was little that she could engage with at the neighbourhood school that would advance her learning.