Hi Justin, this is a great post and a great reminder to all of us….Our kids with down syndrome have great futures ahead of them; from the moment our kids are born we know in our hearts, and we see our kids do everything their siblings and other kids do, just a bit slower. In many cases, we need to provide resources and intervention to assist development, but that is all it is – assistance, our kids do the rest. This post from you affects all of us – our school systems and state budgets are in peril. There should not be a classroom with one teacher and 29 five and six year olds ANYWHERE in this country. It is unbelievable we have regressed this far. Of course Teddy, and the 28 other kids are having difficulty – he is not the only child that will suffer from this lack of guidance and education every kindergartner deserves…It really stinks, and makes our job harder. I know there are other parents of kids in Teddy’s classroom that will have their children act out, this is such an important time in a child’s development. It is a shame, but as you say – you will not give up and perhaps next year or the year after another young family with a child with down syndrome will walk into a kindergarten class in AZ and thank you for staying the course and not giving up. You will have made a difference in the way our kids are educated and included. On a more practical note, do you think you could ask for more assistance in the classroom? – there are federal and state laws that should prevent this student/teacher ratio from happening, especially with kids with special needs. When Alex was younger other parents told me they loved Alex being in the classroom because it guaranteed a lower student/teacher ratio.

Best of luck and most importantly always believe (which I know you do)!