Angela using PODD and partner assisted scanning to talk about her brother's death

Описание: I try not to post too many videos of Angela back to back -- I like to mix it up, but this was just too amazing not to share.
This was at the end of our school day. I was actually just videoing for my own sake, looking at the difference between Angela propping herself and not propping herself. Of course I saw that she is a totally different girl propped by the way -- much more focused.
Anyway, a little back story... while setting up for school I couldn't find Angela's one pink arm support so I grabbed Jayden's. For those who are new to our story, our beautiful boy Jayden tragically died this last November.
While we were talking Angela kept taking her arms off the prompts, waving them and looking at them, something she never really does.
Angela was super tired at this point and her yes and no are very tiny. Angela said "lets go -- outside -- grill" (it's right outside the door next to her) and then said "I'm telling you something -- one of my stories -- Jayden died."
I didn't have her stories pages right in front of me so I just recalled what we had co-scripted awhile back. (Not ideal)
Siah started yelling and after I shut off my phone I dealt with him (he was very angry that his eyegaze paused 😡). I came back to finish with Angela and get her moved into the living room and it clicked -- I realized what she may have been trying to tell me.
I asked her if she was trying to tell me she was wearing Jayden's arm supports and it reminded her that he died.
She smiled and said yes.
**heart broken.
Wow. I tried to hold it together and I went back and showed her how we could say this. In that moment I was reminded what a huge GIFT robust communication is.
Crazy thing is -- people forget. They freaking forget that these children have feelings, emotions and think about really hard and difficult things.
It just really pisses me off to think of the hundreds of thousands of children who are denied the chance to communicate these feelings. Instead they sit in classroom infantized and treated like they are emotionless beings.
Please. Let's work together to stop this madness. Every human being deserves the chance. Take the risk. Let's put our own selfish desires for convenience aside and start doing the hard stuff the stuff that no one else seems to want to do!