Selective Mutism

i kind of know what that is. it's deeper than just a child being quiet. it's one thing when your child doesn't talk at school for the first few days or so because they might need to warm up to everything- that's not something to be concern about. but if they teacher(s) tell you a few months or so later that your child never talks or makes much sounds at school but you know they can, then something needs to be found out. it's trauma related usually. how do you break through it? like older kids could probably write about what's wrong but if they can't write yet or very well, then what?

ooops! i made a mistake- sometimes is trauma related but not always. it's probably not something fun to deal with though. i can't image being so shy or whatever as a kid that i couldn't even talk to my schoolmates.

My 11 y.o. (bio daughter) has Selective Mutism and in our case, it's genetic. She went through the whole 1st grade without saying one word to her teacher! My mom and sisters think the SM has to do with our moving every 3 years, but in actuality, it helps! She has a fresh start and has been able to talk a little bit more with every new school. A frustrating part of this, though, is having to explain SM to every new teacher she has, including the music, art and PE teachers. She had one teacher tell her, in front of the whole class, that she was being rude. She's had kids pick on her, too, knowing that she wouldn't fight back.