KANSAS CITY, Mo. >> A Missouri school district has apologized to the family of a blind student whose cane was replaced with a swimming pool noodle after he allegedly misbehaved on the bus.

Rachel Nafzinger tells WDAF-TV that school officials took the cane from her 8-year-old son, Dakota, on Monday. North Kansas City School District spokeswoman Michelle Cronk says the boy reportedly hit someone with his cane on the bus and that officials gave him the pool noodle as a substitute because he fidgets and needed something to hold.

The 8-year-old was born without eyes, a condition known as bilateral anophthalmia.

The district released a statement Wednesday that acknowledges making a mistake. His mother says school officials visited their home Wednesday morning, returned the cane and apologized to the family.