Brett and IEP

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Boy, do I feel for you! That sounds like a terrible meeting, and if they weren't TRYING to steam roll you, they did it anyway. I have never taken a professional (of any kind) to an IEP meeting, but I sure thought about it early on, when was three and I HATED her placement. Instead, I just ended up pulling her out of the public system for about a year and having her in a Montessori school instead. I avoided the conflict and it worked out for us. At the next school the teacher and administration were great, and I have been very happy, but I wouldn't hesitate to contact someone and take them with you.

Our best asset is through the ARC, although it is a separate organization housed in the same building -- called Parent to Parent. They have access to great educational liaisons, whose jobs are to support parents in these types of meetings. If you're not sure where to start, email me and I'll see what our office knows. We're fairly close (Spokane) that they may know organizations in Oregon.

As for school therapies, I've never believed they are enough. That may just be my bias, but I've always doubled up 's therapies, receiving all 3 at school, as well as OT/PT privately as well. This year we made a great connection through the university. They have their own speech clinic, where the students (in their last quarter of SLP school) are supervised by camera by a licensed SLP/professor. When you sign up to do it, it is 2 - 50 min. sessions per week, and we did it the whole school year this year. It made a huge difference. I know this doesn't work for every family, and it helped that was only in 1/2 day Kindergarten this year, but you may have to resort to outside, private therapy if the school won't accommodate your request. On the other hand, you ARE NOT being too demanding to request more than 30 minutes/week with a SLP (not an aide). My understanding is they aren't allowed to say "it's too expensive, we don't have the staff, that schedule doesn't work" etc. If Brett needs it (and perhaps a doctor's prescription or an outside eval. would help) they have to find a way to make it happen.

As for the autism suggestion, is this the first you've heard of it? Have other teachers/therapists suggested it in the past? If this is the first you've heard and he's 9, I don't know that I'd be too concerned until I got a second opinion. Do you have a developmental psychologist that could evaluate him? Is it possible they are suggesting it to justify a certain classroom placement for next year (like one with a lot of autistic kids)? Here is a website a friend was checking out, when it was suggested that her son may have a dual diagnosis.

http://www.altonweb.com/cs/downsyndrome/index.htm?page=autism.html

As for test scores, I'm in the same boat. They did some Kindergarten standardized testing (without me knowing it) as they do for all K kids, and I have yet to see the results, even though I've requested them multiple times. I have no advice there, except perhaps to put it the IEP that there is to be no Standardized Testing, IQ testing, High Stakes testing, etc, without you're written permission. That would at least make sure you knew about them and could decide whether or not you wanted him to take them.

Good luck, and please share how all this turns out. I'll be thinking of you and hoping for a good outcome.

Casey, mom to (DS) and , 6