Re: Inclusion..

[Guest guest]

I totally agree,my child is doing really well in mainstream,i will push him to

try his best like i do my other child(non ds) and most important he enjoys going

to school.

Inclusion..

I really tried to stay out of this discussion, because my views are usually

not the most popular. But...

I think one point that seems to missing in this discussion concerning

inclusion is that children with IEPs included in regular ed classes

do not have to " keep up " with anyone. I think the curriculum should be a

parallel one, but with modifications and adaptations, if/when needed.

I truly believe, and studies show, that inclusion does work. I think that

in many cases people tend to jump to conclusions when there are behavior

problems. The problems are not always that the child is frustrated because

of the difficulty of the class work. And, the solution is not always

removing the child and placing them in a more restrictive environment.

One more thing that you may not want to hear. Don't be afraid of inclusion.

It's a way of life, not necessarily a program. For those of you looking at

self-contained and inclusive classes, why not start with the least

restrictive? Give it a chance and give your child a chance. Who knows what

the outcome will be. It may take a while, and like most classes, it may be

good one year and not so good the next. That's just how school tends to be.

Something I think is very important is if you begin in an inclusive class,

you can always change your mind, and look at different options. If you

begin in self-contained, in most cases, it is very difficult to get out of

it. I guess my view is start at the top.

Debbie

Click reply to all for messages to go to the list. Just hit reply for

messages to go to the sender of the message.

[Guest guest]

I have today made a descision about tims current school placement and went to

see the head teacher in the school in the

village next to ours to formally ask for a place for tim. I feel so relieved,

apart from having now to inform his

current school knowing that I am effectively putting his aide out of a job come

the summer and I still have to work

with these people til july. Anyway, I was sat yesterday writing my 'parental

response' for tims annual review, kind of

equivalent to your annual IEP meetings. In it I was rather forthright in my

complaints about speech therepy when lo

and behold the ST rings me today and it was a very enlightening conversation. I

was complaining that tim only gets 4

of his 6 S & L sessions from this ST and the other two by a S & L therapy

assisstant. Well turns out he in fact only gets

2 sessions form the ST and 4 from the other lady. I was about to blow her apart

(I fought for almost a year to get 6

sessions a term) when she said that really, given that tim doesn't get his daily

speech programme carried out in school

that speech therepy from her is not cost effective or even of much use. I have

to say I agree. And it was this ,

something I had suspected but not actually followed up on, that swung the

balance about the new school. Hopefully we

will find staff that actually look at his statement. The new school is tiny,

only about 100 children age 4-11 in 4

classes. 3 classes are mixed year groups. They have had a child with ds before

and coped, that in itself is SO

reassuring. Tim will repeat year 3 (my request) as he has not really got much

out of it this year, with a mixed year 2

and year 3 class. He is not known in the school so there will be no stigma to

him in doing this. He will have access

to infant resources and have time for play within the structure of his days

probably as a reward (and in addition to

usual break times). I have to go see the teacher after the easter holidays to

talk at lengh but the whole atmosphere

of the school and of the head teacher is so refreshingly inclusive that I am

really a lot less stressed today.

On an aside, The head at Bens school has agreed to give him naomis fee remission

so ben does not have to leave his

private school and Naomi has a place at the local high school should my husband

still be out of work by the summer.

For the first time in months school problems seem to be disintegrating and

floating away.

sue wong

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/20/02 10:44:47 PM Central Standard Time,

loulisa8184@... writes:

> Something I think is very important is if you begin in an inclusive class,

> you can always change your mind, and look at different options. If you

> begin in self-contained, in most cases, it is very difficult to get out of

> it. I guess my view is start at the top.

>

> Debbie

>

That has always been my idea too. You can always move down but it's

very hard to move up. Jessie

[Guest guest]

Hi Group,

I am working and fighting to get my daughter in fully inclusion.They keep

throwing in my face about the Standards. The asst of Sp. Ed said to me that my

daughter would have to sit in back of room in Regular Ed w/ assistant if she got

Full Inclusion. How many of you have been told that? I would like to hear from

anyone with any suggestions or input.

Thanks in advance.

Mom to ,8, DS

Deborah Fleischmann <dfleischmann@...> wrote:

I really tried to stay out of this discussion, because my views are usually

not the most popular. But...

I think one point that seems to missing in this discussion concerning

inclusion is that children with IEPs included in regular ed classes

do not have to " keep up " with anyone. I think the curriculum should be a

parallel one, but with modifications and adaptations, if/when needed.

I truly believe, and studies show, that inclusion does work. I think that

in many cases people tend to jump to conclusions when there are behavior

problems. The problems are not always that the child is frustrated because

of the difficulty of the class work. And, the solution is not always

removing the child and placing them in a more restrictive environment.

One more thing that you may not want to hear. Don't be afraid of inclusion.

It's a way of life, not necessarily a program. For those of you looking at

self-contained and inclusive classes, why not start with the least

restrictive? Give it a chance and give your child a chance. Who knows what

the outcome will be. It may take a while, and like most classes, it may be

good one year and not so good the next. That's just how school tends to be.

Something I think is very important is if you begin in an inclusive class,

you can always change your mind, and look at different options. If you

begin in self-contained, in most cases, it is very difficult to get out of

it. I guess my view is start at the top.

Debbie

Click reply to all for messages to go to the list. Just hit reply for

messages to go to the sender of the message.

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/20/2002 9:44:47 PM US Mountain Standard Time,

loulisa8184@... writes:

> I guess my view is start at the top.

>

Not only your view, but the law. You need to look at the continuum on your

IEP form. That is what the " team " is supposed to follow. (Remember, IDEA

does not dictate " full inclusion " it ditates LRE ...{of which full inclusion

is an option})

Depending on the IEP goals and your child's needs, the child will need/have

an aide, which on OUR IEP is the 2nd option.... support services in the reg

ed classroom. Also depending on your child/needs, the child can stay in the

classroom with no pull out services. My son has been fully included in the

reg ed class since kindergarten. He is now in 5th grade. Still doing well,

and getting a much better education than he would have if he'd been in the

self-contained classroom. He also gets pulled out ONLY for speech therapy

which meets with a group. This is what works best for MY son at OUR school.

It will depend on program to program.

When the rest of the class is working on memorizing the states, he is also

memorizing the states,,,,, he just had to memorize 8 of them. Then using his

IEP goals, he praticed his counting, handwriting, sequencing, etc using those

states. During LA time he spends part of it at the side of the room on his

computer doing his Edmark Reading program. While they are doing L.A

worksheets, he is doing his Edmark worksheets. When they go to Mr.

Marshall's math class, he also goes and he just works on HIS math goals while

the rest of the class works on theirs. But the goal is, when they are

working on science, he is working on science, not at the same LEVEL, but he

needs to learn a certain # of body parts and then we incorporate his goals in

there.

I am a FIRM believer in Inclusion, but I am also aware it is NOT for everyone.

As for the standards.. There ARE standards written just for sp needs

students also...and they don't contain many academics at all, mainly self

help skills...and minimal skills. I know, I got a copy of ALL the state

standards when I began homeschooling another son. Either way, they can not

use those against you. Your child has an IEP which means he will have his

INDIVIDUAL goals and THAT is what is going to be the bottom line.

I strongly recommend that you get an inclusion specialist and monthly

inclusion meetings written into the IEP. (BTW, the first year we went for

full inclusion, we had to file a due process against our school district. It

was a fight, but for us, worth it.)

I could go on and on, but if you have more questions, email me privately.

[Guest guest]

Hi

Your post caught my eye because it describes my daughters class to a tee!!!

She is in kindergarten and sits in the far back away from the other kids and

not in a regular students

desk but a huge desk with a huge chair and her feet dont even touch the

ground!!! She is segregated in a what I thought was a full inclusion

setting!!! , mom to (6d.s.)

and (18mos. d.s)

[Guest guest]

,

My Corrie (10) is in a typical 2nd grade class. She has a wonderful

teacher and 1:1 aide. We are now discussing placement for next year. I am

being told by the SPED director that my daughter will be isolated

(segregated) in a reg. ed classroom because she will not be able to keep up

with the 3rd grade work. She will have to be doing her own level of work

with her aide and therefore not really be a part of the class. I have not

been told (and better NOT be, that she would have to sit in the back of the

room). They even tried to say she should stay in 2nd grade for another year

(it would be her third year of 2nd grade), because she is close to doing 2nd

grade work. I want her to go on to third grade with a group of her peers

from this year. The kids in her class know her and work well with her now. I

don't want to have to start all over again next year with a fresh group of

classmates.

I agree with Debbie that :

>

> I think one point that seems to missing in this discussion concerning

> inclusion is that children with IEPs included in regular ed classes

> do not have to " keep up " with anyone. I think the curriculum should be a

> parallel one, but with modifications and adaptations, if/when needed.

> I truly believe, and studies show, that inclusion does work. I think that

> in many cases people tend to jump to conclusions when there are behavior

> problems. The problems are not always that the child is frustrated

because

> of the difficulty of the class work. And, the solution is not always

> removing the child and placing them in a more restrictive environment.

My $.02

B

...

>

> Hi Group,

> I am working and fighting to get my daughter in fully inclusion.They keep

throwing in my face about the Standards. The asst of Sp. Ed said to me that

my daughter would have to sit in back of room in Regular Ed w/ assistant if

she got Full Inclusion. How many of you have been told that? I would like to

hear from anyone with any suggestions or input.

> Thanks in advance.

> Mom to ,8, DS

> Deborah Fleischmann <dfleischmann@...> wrote:

> I really tried to stay out of this discussion, because my views are

usually

> not the most popular. But...

>

> I think one point that seems to missing in this discussion concerning

> inclusion is that children with IEPs included in regular ed classes

> do not have to " keep up " with anyone. I think the curriculum should be a

> parallel one, but with modifications and adaptations, if/when needed.

> I truly believe, and studies show, that inclusion does work. I think that

> in many cases people tend to jump to conclusions when there are behavior

> problems. The problems are not always that the child is frustrated

because

> of the difficulty of the class work. And, the solution is not always

> removing the child and placing them in a more restrictive environment.

>

> One more thing that you may not want to hear. Don't be afraid of

inclusion.

> It's a way of life, not necessarily a program. For those of you looking

at

> self-contained and inclusive classes, why not start with the least

> restrictive? Give it a chance and give your child a chance. Who knows

what

> the outcome will be. It may take a while, and like most classes, it may

be

> good one year and not so good the next. That's just how school tends to

be.

> Something I think is very important is if you begin in an inclusive class,

> you can always change your mind, and look at different options. If you

> begin in self-contained, in most cases, it is very difficult to get out of

> it. I guess my view is start at the top.

>

> Debbie

>

>

> Click reply to all for messages to go to the list. Just hit reply for

> messages to go to the sender of the message.

>

>

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/21/02 11:46:49 AM Central Standard Time,

sudsystuff@... writes:

> Hi

> Your post caught my eye because it describes my daughters class to a tee!!!

>

> She is in kindergarten and sits in the far back away from the other kids

> and

> not in a regular students

> desk but a huge desk with a huge chair and her feet dont even touch the

> ground!!! She is segregated in a what I thought was a full inclusion

> setting!!! , mom to (6d.s.)

> and (18mos. d.s)

Not only that but no kid with low muscle tone should be sitting in a chair

where their feet don't touch the ground. I know that isn't the major issue

but make them get her a desk that fits her.

Karyn

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 03/21/2002 2:34:30 PM Eastern Standard Time,

jcburg@... writes:

<< She is segregated in a what I thought was a full inclusion

setting!!! >>

There is a name for this, in isolette or something like that. To me it means

they do not understand the concept of inclusion. I would gently point out

what is wrong with what they are doing and give a few suggestions on how to

avoid repeating the same type of think with any future activities.

Cheryl in VA

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/21/2002 4:54:29 AM US Mountain Standard Time,

jcburg@... writes:

> that my daughter will be isolated

> (segregated) in a reg. ed classroom because she will not be able to keep up

> with the 3rd grade work. She will have to be doing her own level of work

> with her aide and therefore not really be a part of the class

Well, this is NOT inclusion and needs to be dealt with. Do you have an

inclusion specialist? If not, get one written into the IEP. The school will

listen to her more than they will to you, as a parent. And I would also get

INCLUSION TRAINING written into the IEP.

My son is in 5th grade and he DOES NOT do 5th grade work. He does his level

of work, his IEP goals, while doing the same subject that the rest of the

class is doing. When they are going to begin a certain unit, like for

example, memorizing the states, the teacher will call me and we will sit and

brainstorm on what Mav can be expected to do and how we can accomodate the

unit to meet his goals. We decided that he would have to identify 4 out of 8

states that we listed. I then chose states that relatives, friends,

Disneyland, his " girlfriend " , etc live in so that they would have more

meaning for him. He also had to identify our state, our town, and his home

address. He ended up memorizing all 8 of the states and wanting to do more.

He reached " Expert status " as quickly as the top students in the class. One

thing I do when we make goals like this is to make sure that he can be

successful at them. I was fairly sure that he could learn all 8 states, but

gave him that safety net. The way a child is included is so much up to the

teachers, and the fact is that most of the teachers do not KNOW how to do it

and it will take the parents being there and reminding them over and over and

over how to do it. The goal is to make sure that your child can be

successful while working alongside the class. You want your child to be

getting an education, but not neccessarily the same education that the rest

of the class is doing. Maverick has his Friday morning spelling test just as

the rest of the class does. HOWEVER, his spelling words are now the Edmark

spelling words. Before he reached the Edmark spelling level, they would

choose 4 or 5 of the reg ed spelling words for him to trace, and then to

match as he got older. Inclusion is alot of imagination and not being

afraid to try something new and if THAT doesn't work try something else!!

And another thing, there are certainly some teachers that do NOT want to

include a child or just do it poorly and won't try to improve, but there are

also some GREAT teachers out there really willing to try, to take ideas,

direction, and suggestions and can make a very successful class. It's that

time of the year for me to go visit the classrooms for next year and see

which teacher has a teaching style and a willingness to work with Mav. Then

he/she will start attending the Inclusion meetings and going to visit Mav in

class and creating a pre-bond for next year.

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/21/02 2:34:15 PM Eastern Standard Time,

jcburg@... writes:

> Then, I requested a team meeting to find out what was going on and why LM

> wasn't being included in the reading time. They said she was included most

> of the time. We also decided to have regular meetings to discuss LM and how

> to make this year successful (but it was already Jan.). We have not had a

> meeting since.

>

I just thought that I'd mention that the SINGLE BIGGEST component to

successfully including a child is regularly scheduled team meetings. We put

this in Jimmy's IEP - that the team will meet every 2 weeks to discuss his

program - curriculum and behavior plan. It's a wonderful forum to bring up

issues and to make the team accountable for following up. Without these

meetings, I don't know how the team would be able to hold it all

together........especially since DH and I are an integral part of the team.

I also make a habit of stopping by the school on a regular, but

unpredictable, basis to " peek in " and see what's going on in the classroom.

Most of the time, they don't even know I'm there. LOL - I just stop in

every time one of the kids forgets their lunch money, or library book, or

instrument.............which gets me into school several times a week!

(whose kids seem to have inherited their mommy's absentmindedness!)

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/21/02 4:11:09 PM Eastern Standard Time,

lauralk38@... writes:

> I just thought that I'd mention that the SINGLE BIGGEST component to

> successfully including a child is regularly scheduled team meetings.

WHOOPS! LOL - I meant to say, in my OPINION, the single biggest component

is......... PLEASE, please don't flame me, saying that an enthusiastic

teacher is the biggest component, or someone who knows how to modify, or

whatever else!!! I know that there are lots of important

components........but the team meeting has been a huge one for us.

[Guest guest]

My response to that is that sitting in the back with an aide is not

inclusion. They are trying to do this with Kaitlyn as well. They do this

because they do not understand the idea of making accomodations or

modifications to regular curriculm. They think that there is no way our

kids can do the regular work so stick them in the back of the room doing

something else and call it inclusion. It's much easier for them that way.

I understand what you are going through and wish I had the easy answer. It

is turning into a slow frustrating process for me. You just have to keep

educating them. I hope that you will have better luck than me.

Darcy

Re: Inclusion..

Hi Group,

I am working and fighting to get my daughter in fully inclusion.They keep

throwing in my face about the Standards. The asst of Sp. Ed said to me that

my daughter would have to sit in back of room in Regular Ed w/ assistant if

she got Full Inclusion. How many of you have been told that? I would like to

hear from anyone with any suggestions or input.

Thanks in advance.

Mom to ,8, DS

Deborah Fleischmann <dfleischmann@...> wrote:

I really tried to stay out of this discussion, because my views are usually

not the most popular. But...

I think one point that seems to missing in this discussion concerning

inclusion is that children with IEPs included in regular ed classes

do not have to " keep up " with anyone. I think the curriculum should be a

parallel one, but with modifications and adaptations, if/when needed.

I truly believe, and studies show, that inclusion does work. I think that

in many cases people tend to jump to conclusions when there are behavior

problems. The problems are not always that the child is frustrated because

of the difficulty of the class work. And, the solution is not always

removing the child and placing them in a more restrictive environment.

One more thing that you may not want to hear. Don't be afraid of inclusion.

It's a way of life, not necessarily a program. For those of you looking at

self-contained and inclusive classes, why not start with the least

restrictive? Give it a chance and give your child a chance. Who knows what

the outcome will be. It may take a while, and like most classes, it may be

good one year and not so good the next. That's just how school tends to be=

[Guest guest]

My kindergartner is in a reg. ed class, but she is also at a table by

herself, with her aide. (But, not in the back) One time I went in to help with

art projects and the whole class was gathered on their rug for reading with the

teacher.... except Mae that is. She was on the other side of the room

eating crackers with her aide! I almost cried. Then, I requested a team meeting

to find out what was going on and why LM wasn't being included in the reading

time. They said she was included most of the time. We also decided to have

regular meetings to discuss LM and how to make this year successful (but it was

already Jan.). We have not had a meeting since.

This week in the teachers weekly letter it mentions that the class will have

a family reading program after their month of PARP (Parents As Reading Partners)

is over. This is the first I've heard of this, too. LM has not been included in

this either. I have not yet spoken to the teacher, but I surely will!

This makes me so sad and angry.

Burghardt

Mom to Heidi 11 DS, Caleb 10 NDA,

Corrie 10 DS and Mae 5 DS

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Hi

Your post caught my eye because it describes my daughters class to a tee!!!

She is in kindergarten and sits in the far back away from the other kids and

not in a regular students

desk but a huge desk with a huge chair and her feet dont even touch the

ground!!! She is segregated in a what I thought was a full inclusion

setting!!! , mom to (6d.s.)

and (18mos. d.s)

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/21/2002 11:02:10 AM Central Standard Time,

seads1@... writes:

> My response to that is that sitting in the back with an aide is not

> inclusion. They are trying to do this with Kaitlyn as well. They do this

> because they do not understand the idea of making accomodations or

> modifications to regular curriculm. They think that there is no way our

> kids can do the regular work so stick them in the back of the room doing

> something else and call it inclusion. It's much easier for them that way.

> I understand what you are going through and wish I had the easy answer. It

> is turning into a slow frustrating process for me. You just have to keep

> educating them. I hope that you will have better luck than me.

> Darcy

HI Darcy

These stories really upset me, so far lol Sara has always sat with her class.

In fact this year the teacher has put the aide on the other side of the room

from Sara lol and when the aide walks near Sara she will tell her " I've got

it handled " she wants to be the one who teaches Sara, 1 : 1.

One bad thing though lol Sara's buddy who sits next to her went home sick

today. Her mother called up to school to warn the teacher that has

strep throat, she was worried about Sara. When I picked Sara up today the

aide said Sara felt ill, said her throat hurt uggggg I was hoping this came

from sara's buddy being sick but when I got home and looked at her throat it

was red...........off to the DR we go in the morn. Heehee Inclusion is great

they share all...germs included lol

Kathy mom to Sara 10

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/21/02 3:10:54 PM Central Standard Time,

lauralk38@... writes:

> I also make a habit of stopping by the school on a regular, but

> unpredictable, basis to " peek in " and see what's going on in the classroom.

>

> Most of the time, they don't even know I'm there. LOL - I just stop in

> every time one of the kids forgets their lunch money, or library book, or

> instrument.............which gets me into school several times a week!

>

> (whose kids seem to have inherited their mommy's absentmindedness!)

>

>

>

I don't have any other kids at 's school so I can only blame my

absentmindedness for me being there. I " forget " a lot and so have to drop off

lunch money, field trip forms, lunch money. I just drop it off in the office

then take the " long way " out.

Karyn

[Guest guest]

I don't say a lot on here, and probably many of you will not even " recognise "

me. I'm , and I live in Sydney Australia with my husband and 3 children.

, 9yrs old and our middle child (with DS), goes to the same school as her

brother and sister. This year she is in Year 3 (which is her 4th year at

school). She is fully included in her class. She sits in the front row (she has

a hearing loss and so this is the place she needs to be) with her " normal "

friend . She sits at a normal desk and has all the same equipment as the

other kids. She does not have an in class aide, but gets " pull out " for 1hr per

day, which takes place when the rest of the kids have reading groups. The rest

of the day she does the " same " work as the rest of the class with no aide. The

special programs dept at her school develop work sheets for her which she works

on. So if the rest of the kids are doing math, then is doing math on her

own worksheet - and it is up to the class teacher to assist her along with all

the rest of the kids.

This is a pretty normal situation for here. There is not enough funding in the

school system for full time aides, so our kids HAVE to be fully included. There

are no laws like IDEA here in Australia that make it mandatory for kids with

spec needs to be catered to - just the attitude of the general education system

that our kids belong there. Having said that, I will say that I know that there

are still schools that try and discourage enrolments from kids with spec needs

and do not cater to them as well as my kids school, but on a whole most of the

people I know with kids with spec needs are happy.

Also, we do still have special units within some schools where there is a self

contained class of kids with more severe spec needs. We also do have a few

schools where the only pupils are kids with spec needs - but the majority of

kids with Down Syndrome do not qualify for positions in these schools, and have

to go to their local school and have full inclusion. I know of parents, with

kids with DS, who WANT their kids to go to a selfcontained school/unit, but

don't qualify and have no choice but to send them to their local school for full

inclusion... :-)

Thought you might enjoy reading how things are different in different places...

Oh, had her 9th bday party a couple of weeks ago. She had a video and

pizza night here at home, and we invited 12 of her friends from school (none of

whom have DS). They all accepted and came and had a great night! I only found

out a week later, that one of the other girls in her class (that she's not

really friends with) had a party on the same night and that about 5 of the girls

that came to 's party had had invitations to both parties, but had all

chosen to come to 's party!!!!!!!! I feel bad for the other girl, but was

very touched to realise that really does have friends!

Regards

Re: Inclusion..

,

My Corrie (10) is in a typical 2nd grade class. She has a wonderful

teacher and 1:1 aide. We are now discussing placement for next year. I am

being told by the SPED director that my daughter will be isolated

(segregated) in a reg. ed classroom because she will not be able to keep up

with the 3rd grade work. She will have to be doing her own level of work

with her aide and therefore not really be a part of the class.

[Guest guest]

I read this with sadness. I work in classrooms with kids with special needs

and I see this happen all of the time. The other day, I had a teacher in

one school tell me she didn't have a clue where a young boy was in terms of

the classroom work. This is very, very sad.

As a parent and a paraprofessional I find that so much depends on the

committment of the classroom teacher and the philosophy of the school. Some

schools here (in Winnipeg) will have the kids merely for the funding they

bring with them. And the schools are given the discretion to distribute

those funds as they see fit within their own walls.

There is no reason in kindergarten especially, for that child, first of all

to be sitting at a desk in the first place (none of the children should be)

and second of all to be placed that far back in the classroom. It sounds

like the teacher is a little afraid of her.

I always say that I watch when I walk into a classroom to see if I see

exclusion in an inclusive environment. And sadly to say, I see it way too

often.

Val in Winnipeg

Re: Inclusion..

> Hi

> Your post caught my eye because it describes my daughters class to a

tee!!!

> She is in kindergarten and sits in the far back away from the other kids

and

> not in a regular students

> desk but a huge desk with a huge chair and her feet dont even touch the

> ground!!! She is segregated in a what I thought was a full inclusion

> setting!!! , mom to (6d.s.)

> and (18mos. d.s)

>

>

> Click reply to all for messages to go to the list. Just hit reply for

messages to go to the sender of the message.

>

>

[Guest guest]

and as for me...

hehehe

i just tell them.....i am here...unpredictable to check up on YOU and my sweet

shan.

LOL

i tell them i like my surprise visits.

LOL

Arlene

I don't have any other kids at 's school so I can only blame my

absentmindedness for me being there. I " forget " a lot and so have to drop off

lunch money, field trip forms, lunch money. I just drop it off in the office

then take the " long way " out.

Karyn

[Guest guest]

--- JB66111@... wrote:

> In a message dated 3/20/02 10:44:47 PM Central

> Standard Time,

> loulisa8184@... writes:

>

>

> > Something I think is very important is if you

> begin in an inclusive class,

> > you can always change your mind, and look at

> different options. If you

> > begin in self-contained, in most cases, it is very

> difficult to get out of

> > it. I guess my view is start at the top.

> >

> > Debbie

> >

> That has always been my idea too. You can

> always move down but it's

> very hard to move up. Jessie

>

>

Yes, but it can be done with the right support. We

have moved up and down and back up from full spec ed

to part inclusion/spec ed to full spec ed to full

inclusion. We are looking at part spec ed/ inclusion/

and resource next year. I hope it will not be a zoo

and Bridget can handle it.

in SC mom to Bridget 8 ds

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 3/22/2002 3:58:44 PM Eastern Standard Time,

mom2bridget@... writes:

> Yes, but it can be done with the right support

Yes, , but what most parents lack IS support ... especially from the

administration to do that. Once they have your child placed in a self

contained class, it is very difficult to convince them that your child needs

to be somewhere else.

Cheryl in VA

[Guest guest]

Once they have your child placed in a self

contained class, it is very difficult to convince them that your child needs

to be somewhere else.

Once they have your child placed in a self

contained class, it is very difficult to convince them that your child needs

to be somewhere else.

> Once they have your child placed in a self

> contained class, it is very difficult to convince them that your child

> needs

> to be somewhere else.

>

This can not be said enough!!! Once a placement has been made on the IEP,

the TEAM needs to all agree on a change of placement and THIS will be an

uphill battle.

[Guest guest]

I agree Cheryl. As we each encounter our own problems

in our own states and districts, I think it is

important to share both the positive and negative. i

do know parents where I am that do not advocate for

their children as I do for mine even when they agree

with me. i just wanted someone in this situation to

know you can do it....You just have to work really

hard at it.

in SC

--- Wildwards@... wrote:

> In a message dated 3/22/2002 3:58:44 PM Eastern

> Standard Time,

> mom2bridget@... writes:

>

>

> > Yes, but it can be done with the right support

>

> Yes, , but what most parents lack IS support

> ... especially from the

> administration to do that. Once they have your

> child placed in a self

> contained class, it is very difficult to convince

> them that your child needs

> to be somewhere else.

> Cheryl in VA

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Boy have I heard this before! I was told that my

child (who is in fifth grade now, regular class 1:1

aid) would not be able to function in a regular third

grade classr om! It would be too hard, he would

become frustrated, he would shut down!! We did repeat

second grade, but I am not sure if that was the best

thing to do. He did get more of the basics, but age

comes into play as they get older.

When it was time for tird grade the IEP team really

fought the regular ed placement. Fortunately, I had a

good special ed coordinator and she and I agreed and

convinced the rest of the team that since he had done

so well up to this point, there was no reason to

change what we were doing. If it did prove to be a

problem, then we would revisit the issue and see what

we needed to do diffrerntly.

Well, he's in fifth grade this year and it's still

working

I guess my point is DO what YOU think is best.

Doesn't matter if she can't do all of the curriculum.

She is to be exposed to/taught the same tings everyone

else is. Will probably need

accomodations/modifications. This does not mean she

will get everything, but she will learn all seh can

learn. She is not supposed to keep up.

A good question to ask is " Is she always the lowest in

the class? When she is having trouble with a skill,

aren't there others in the class that are having

trouble? " I have found that the teacher will tell me,

no my child is not alwasy the lowest, and yes there

are others in the class who struggle and they are not

being held back....

IMHO,

sissy

--- jcburg <jcburg@...> wrote:

> ,

> My Corrie (10) is in a typical 2nd grade class.

> She has a wonderful

> teacher and 1:1 aide. We are now discussing

> placement for next year. I am

> being told by the SPED director that my daughter

> will be isolated

> (segregated) in a reg. ed classroom because she will

> not be able to keep up

> with the 3rd grade work. She will have to be doing

> her own level of work

> with her aide and therefore not really be a part of

> the class. I have not

> been told (and better NOT be, that she would have to

> sit in the back of the

> room). They even tried to say she should stay in 2nd

> grade for another year

> (it would be her third year of 2nd grade), because

> she is close to doing 2nd

> grade work. I want her to go on to third grade with

> a group of her peers

> from this year. The kids in her class know her and

> work well with her now. I

> don't want to have to start all over again next year

> with a fresh group of

> classmates.

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Just some suggestions, the child and the aid should

not sit side by side all of the time and not always

seperated from the class. She should be included in

everything the other kids do. The aid should help

your child when she needs it, but should back off if

it's something your child can do herself. When the aid

isn't helping your child, she should walk the room and

offer help to other students who need it.

The only time they should sit seperatly from the rest

of the class is if the aid is giving her a test

(perhaps orally) or some etra help with something.

The desk at the back can be the aids, and other kids

can go to her also. This way your child gets the help

she needs, but it also fosters independence. It also

makes the aid look like a " classroom helper " and

doesn't single your child out. My child has a 1:1 aid

(this is the fourth year) and this seems to work

well....

sissy

--- wildwards@... wrote:

> In a message dated 03/21/2002 2:34:30 PM Eastern

> Standard Time,

> jcburg@... writes:

>

> << She is segregated in a what I thought was a full

> inclusion

> setting!!! >>

>

> There is a name for this, in isolette or something

> like that. To me it means

> they do not understand the concept of inclusion. I

> would gently point out

> what is wrong with what they are doing and give a

> few suggestions on how to

> avoid repeating the same type of think with any

> future activities.

> Cheryl in VA

>

__________________________________________________