Amazing Molly

A while ago I wrote about the journey of finding Molly a way to communicate.  I tried many things with her before settling on a communication board I made with Velcro and laminated words and pictures.  That worked great for a while but then it became clear that while it would work for school and academics, Molly needed a way to express her thoughts and communicate throughout the day.  With the board, that just wasn't possible.

I was at a loss for what to do and felt like I didn't have the time I needed to put into it.  Molly was mastering everything I was teaching her before I had even finished teaching it.  I couldn't keep up with the rate she was learning at and knew she needed so much more than I was giving her.  I felt like I had just scratched the surface but didn't know what to focus on next to get deeper.

Then Louise came.

Louise was a short term volunteer and part of her schedule included working with Molly.  I needed some new ideas so after she had been working with Mol for a few weeks, Louise and I sat down to brainstorm where we could go next with her.

Louise mentioned that she had worked with a child very much like Molly in the past and that child had a communication book.  I had tried something similar with Molly in the past but couldn't find a way for it to be efficient.  Louise had some ideas so I asked her to give it a shot.  We talked about how to do it and got the first few pages made.  I then had to leave for my visa break in the States so Louise said she would finish it and start to teach Molly how to use it while I was gone.

Neither of us were sure how quickly Mol would pick up the concept of using the board but now looking back we realize how silly we were to doubt her.  She picked it up right away and began to express her thoughts in full sentences.

By the time I got back from America, Molly was using the book fluently and saying things we had no idea of before.

Molly uses the book by signing "yes" when we say the name of the page she wants and then picks something specific from that page in the same way.

Contents page of Molly's book

Some of the pages

A detachable page with common words that can be combined with any other page

She has been able to communicate things we would have never known otherwise.  Things like the fact she prefers to be called by her full name as opposed to Mal (although she said she didn't mind if I keep calling her Molly-moo-moo ;) ).

She also will problem solve and find a creative way to communicate something that there aren't the words for in her book.  For example, one day she told Louise, "I want your drink."  After a while Louise realized she wanted some chai but the word chai wasn't in the book!  Last week we tried out a neck pillow to hold Molly's head up so she doesn't have to focus on that while doing school.  We put it on her and the first thing she said was, "I don't like my face."  The word neck pillow wasn't in the book but she made her message very clear (we have since made a new one that she approves of)!

With this new book we are getting to know Molly on a level that was never possible before and it is a beautiful thing.  Molly is such a funny and incredibly bright girl and she is finally getting to show us that in a deeper way.

I'm wondering when I will stop underestimating Molly!  It has also come out that she knows way more English than I gave her credit for.  And not only does she understand it, she's reading it now.  Reading and comprehending.

Molly can now read a short story on her own, then answer comprehension questions about what she has just read.  She can even phonetically sound out a word she doesn't know.

I've always known Molly was amazing but she continues to surprise me with how incredible she really is.  She inspires me in so many ways and has taught me more than I could teach her in a lifetime.  She is one special kid.

And now it's time for a much needed thank you.  Louise had to leave last week to go back home but what she has done for Molly will last forever.

Louise, if you're reading this, thank you.  Thank you for opening up Molly's world when I didn't know how.  Thank you for the time you put into making supplies and doing research in your free time.  Thank you for loving Molly so incredibly well.  Molly misses you so much and I'm sure will never forget you or what you have done for her.  The way you gave of your heart so freely did not go unnoticed and has left its mark.  You have made a difference in a big way.  From both Molly and me, thank you.

I told Molly today that I was sending you a message and asked if there was anything she wanted to say to you.  After the typical "I feel hungry," (oh, Mol!) she told me she wanted to say, "hi" :)  Then I could tell she wanted to say something else but didn't know where to find the words in her book.  After going through a couple pages and realizing it wasn't there, we finally got to one page and I read, "where."  Molly's face lit up and she said, "yes!"  Come to find out, the thing she's dying to tell you is, "where are you?"  She couldn't have said that without you.  She also misses you a whole lot.

We love you, Louise!  Come back to us soon!

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