Friday we particpated in a MAPS Personal Assessment for Cole at his school. One of his teachers is working on her masters and wanted to do the assessment for Cole. It's typically done when children are a bit older but she, very insightfully, thought it could be really beneficial to do one now. She and Cole planned the day. They invited friends he selected, family members and teachers, therapists, and even our principal, collectively, his Circle of Friends. The atmostphere was almost party-like with pizza and ice cream for all.
Prior to the event, Cole was asked to describe himself in terms of what he is: a son, friend, cousin, swimmer, bowler...Then we were all asked to share responses to several different questions: Who Cole is to us; what characteristics define Cole; what are our dreams for Cole; what are Cole's strengths; what are his needs, now & in the future. The responses were written out on big sheets of paper, one for each aspect and posted around the room. It was really amazing to hear what all of the different people had to share.
His teacher will then review and assess the responses and create a plan of action so to speak that will be used as a tool for mapping out Cole's future goals in school and in life. Most likely he will have another MAPS when he's a bit older, perhaps transitioning to middle school and we'll now have a wonderful baseline for next time. Plus it gives us an opportunity to start early in trying to help him reach every goal, wish and dream...It also occurs to me that the children who participated may not have fully understood the impact this will have but I suspect that in small ways their understanding, and appreciation of their dear friend Cole, has deepened, and that this will somehow translate into something special in their lives too.
