Forgive the two posts back-to-back, but this place is my biggest megaphone and it didn’t seem appropriate to stick this onto the back of my previous post: teachers who may be reading this, have any of you ever had students who were elective mutes? Any suggestions or resources on how to work with them? She showed up while I was out, and I just met her today; apparently she hasn’t said a word to anyone in about two years. She doesn’t appear to have any learning disabilities, but in those few sentences I’ve told you literally everything I know about her. Anybody? This is a new one for me.
CALLING ALL TEACHERS: In which I need advice
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Will she write? Writing may unlock what’s going on in her head. See if you can create a journal to dialogue with her. She may prefer an online chat being that this generation grew up with technology. It may feel more safe than paper and pen, but try both. And if you’ve not done so, read the book Speak. It details a teenager who was sexually assualted and responded with elective mutism. Not that she is a victim of sexual violence, per say, but my experiences have led me to believe those who are elective mutes often have traumatic pasts in some form or fashion.
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I’ll look into the book, thank you. A couple of people have suggested writing her a note or even a quick email to gauge how willing she is to communicate in writing, and I need to figure out what other adults in the building have worked with her before and touch base with them. This will be an interesting one, that’s for sure. 🙂
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