Looking forward

Well I am midway through my cycle, (yes, way too much information, but completely relevant to my state of mind) so I am feeling good about my job at the moment. After a conversation with one of my supervisors about why I'm not a university graduate, I got online and looked at the psychology course I would have originally applied for. The cut-offs are very different now and had I graduated last year and applied I would have been a shoe in. I missed out by a point, when the course became popular, and set it's cut off at 7. Now it is 15! I think with a degree behind me, I would be able to focus more on creating the programs, and not always implementing them. I am great at it in smaller doses, and good at problem solving, to come up with creative ways to approach the learning.
The course is offered at my local campus, and full-time is only 15- 20 hours a week on site for lectures and such. The course is partially government funded. There are different bands of support, and science gets more, but psychology is on the second highest band. Environmental science appeals too. Especially because of the potential high pay, and less social contact of the eventual job. Collecting scientific data. Field work. I would want to specialise on waterways, rather than mining type jobs. One drawback being that I didn't do grade 12 biology/ chemistry/physics, and would have to refresh my math knowledge after not using it for 17 years (oh my god, has it really been that long). My sister began the science degree but found it boring. She hated not knowing anyone there, but that wouldn't be an issue for me. Part of me feels if I didn't pursue it in school, I mustn't have a real passion for it. I have followed pop-psychology, but that may just be a female thing.
I also looked up Speech therapy, but the course is only offered in a University the other side of Brisbane, over an hours drive each way without traffic. I have been thinking about the way Elizabeth works. She is a speech therapist who I have seen twice through the children I work with. She is an older woman with a gentle nature. She is fun and caring, without having to be loud and brash. She certainly managed to get the attention of both the children I saw her with, very easily. I wonder if I would have the possibility, down the track, of sitting in with her for a few days, as a work experience type thing. She seemed very complimentary of me, during the time I was there, and afterwards to my Supervisor, so maybe she would be aggreeable to have me tag along. If I can bring some of what she has to my style I may feel better about not being so extroverted in my sessions. She seems to use both child led, and therapist led techniques.
I finished working with A today. His mother let me know on Monday that she feels capable now of continuing with his sessions. It is a little sad, and also a relief to be finished with his program. Being stuck in his little bedroom with limited toys as reinforcers was going to leave me stuck at some point. However I made progress with him today, and even found a new game that he would have been able to use. It's hard not to be the one following through on that progress.
I only worked 6 hours a week with him though, and have replaced his 2 x 3hour shifts, with one 5 hour shift at a higher pay rate with D. I will also be able to see C earlier in the day on Wed now, and probably add an extra hour there from time to time. It will be a step toward getting my afternoons back when my husband finds work, without having to lose money now.
He has had a couple of shocking days with his behaviour program. He is stimming less with his fingers and lips, but is having screaming outbursts, for which the consequence is, having the door shut on him in the laundry until he is quiet. He was in there a lot today. So I didn't get as much teaching done. His labelling, and language in general is doing so much better though, during the times he is not screaming. I had two great days in there where he was happy and present the whole way through. The clinic is tomorrow, and I will see where we are going with it.
The only other program I work on, which is the little girl with aspergers I see for 3 hours, is a bit of an"orphan" as my supervisor says. I just make it up each week, and the superviser is content to leave me to it. We are currently working on fine motor skills, with tracing letters and cutting lines in paper. Some board games, and Uno to be able to play with others. I want to work on her being able to maintain eye-contact while speaking, and finding creative ways to enter other childrens pretend games. She fits fairly well on the norm for her age as far as I can see developmentally, but I haven't seen her interact with her peers very much.