Help! Need advice w/apraxia child & preschool program

January 4, 2007

hello,

let me introduce myself. I have a apraxic daughter getting ready to

age out of EI and " was originally " on target to start preschool

disabled program in less than two weeks. She will be 3 in exactly 11

days which happens to fall on a holiday.

Here's where my dilema comes in. I feel the school is trying to back

door me and find every way to disqualify her from the program. She

is already registered with the district, pending placement. The

school originally accepted all my outside evaluations and

then " officially retested her without my informed prior written

consent " Needless to say, I have spent my holidays burried in laws

and codes and seeking any advice available to acquire the knowledge

to fight for my daughter. The school is up to their ears in

noncompliance. She has made great progress with her intensive

therapy. She has a functional vocabulary, but still needs intensive

therapy to maintain her progress. Her articulation is still a big

concern, along with intelligibility. She also has sensory

integration issues and behavioral. I know this is going to end ulgy

with the school, but I am trying to stay hopeful, since I have not

received her final reports or eligibility yet. Any advice on

exactly what to present to the team in terms of Apraxia..and her need

for sustained therapy, regression,..etc...Does the diagnosis alone,

qualify her?

I poked around the apraxia kids website..and it has some wonderful

articles ...but how much does this bear weight? I have been butting

heads with the special education system with my son, even with mounds

of documentation, and can forsee it happening with my daughter.

I am wondering if anyone has experience this much trouble in getting

special needs service for their apraxic child. The SLP, that

retested her didn't do a comprehensive assessment, and then had the

nerve to say, " she isn't that apraxic " The only testing she did, was

receptive. Of course she is going to score well. Arghhhhh. I know

my rights and will request, yet another evaluation...this time

independently. In the mean time..i am trying to collect any

information anyone might have to help. Thanks so much in advance.

Trying to remain hopeful,

January 4, 2007

Hello,

As far as school goes, as long as your child is found eligible under

the

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, your school district is

required to provide your child with a Free and Appropriate Education.

Depending on your state, there is a criteria by which an IEP team

(consisting of parents, teacher, appropriate therapists, etc)

decides if the

child is eligible to have an IEP (Individualized Education Plan).

Here is a

blurb from wrightslaw.com on eligibility:

Who is Eligible for Special Ed?

To be eligible for special education, a child must have a disability

and

must need special education services and related services. If a

child has a

disability but does not need special education services, the child

is not

eligible for special education under IDEA but may be eligible for

protections under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.

These issues are confusing. We suggest that you read the definitions

of

" Child with a Disability " and " Special education " in slaw:

Special

Education Law (pages 25 & 29)

http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/elig.index.htm

Q: What does the school do with these evaluation results?

A: The information gathered from the evaluation will be used to make

important decisions about your child's education. All of the

information

about your child will be used:

a.. to decide if your child is eligible for special education and

b.. to help you and the school decide what your child needs

educationally.

Q: How is a decision made about my child's eligibility for special

education?

A: There are two criteria that must be met for your child to be

eligible for

special education.

Does your son or daughter have a disability?

Does your child " by reason thereof, need special education and

(NOTE: See page 128 of slaw: From Emotions to Advocacy for a

discussion of these issues)

The decision about eligibility will be made after your child has been

evaluated and the evaluations results are complete.

Under the IDEA, parents are included in the group that decides a

child's

eligibility for special education services. This group should look

at all

information gathered during the evaluation and decide if your child

meets

the definition of a " child with a disability. " This definition is in

the

IDEA. (See Chapter 15, IDEA: Definitions in slaw: From

Emotions to

Advocacy)

If your child is found eligible for special education services under

the

IDEA, you and the school will work together to design an educational

program

for your child. You can learn more about this in FAQs: Your Child's

IEP

[LINK}

Q: Can I get a copy of the school's evaluations on my child?

A: Yes. As the parent, you have the right to receive a copy of the

evaluation report on your child and the paperwork about your child's

eligibility for special education and related services.

Q: What are these " disability categories? "

A: The Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1997 (IDEA) lists 13

disability

categories:

a.. Autism

b.. Deafness

c.. Deaf-blindness

d.. Hearing impairment

e.. Mental retardation

f.. Multiple disabilities

g.. Orthopedic impairment

h.. Other health impairment

i.. Serious emotional disturbance

j.. Specific learning disability

k.. Speech or language impairment

l.. Traumatic brain injury

m.. Visual impairment, including blindness

To find out more about these disabilities and how IDEA defines them,

read

Chapter1 16 and 17 of FETA and visit the NICHCY site for " General

Information about Disabilities. "

Q: What happens if the school says my child is not eligible for

special

education services?

A: If the group decides that your child is not eligible for special

education services, the school system must tell you this in writing

and

explain why your child has been found " not eligible. "

Under the IDEA, you must also be given information about what you

can do if

you disagree with this decision.

Read the information the school system gives you. Make sure it

includes

information about how to challenge the school system's decision. If

that

information is not in the materials the school gives you, ask the

school for

it.

Contact your state's Parent Training and Information (PTI) center.

The PTI

can tell you what steps to take next. To find out how to contact

your PTI,

check the Directory of Parent Training Information Centers in the

Getting

Help section of this site.

http://www.fetaweb.com/01/faqs.eligibility.htm

As far as what sort of class your child goes into, that all depends

on the

child. Not all special needs children go into " special schools " .

Some are

fully integrated into the mainstream but have an IEP with certain

goals that

they are working on. Yes, the school must pay for your child's

education as

long as your child is found eligible under IDEA. As far as the

location of

the school your child attends. By law, your child is supposed to be

able to

attend the school that he/she woudl attend if he/she did not have a

disability. in other words, the district shouldn't be bussing your

child

across the county. The child should be served at your local school.

What did the school state in writing? " She is already registered

with the district, pending placement. " Maybe they feel she should

be in a more/less structured environment than preschool disabled. I

would attend the CST meeting with records in hand. Keep precise

notes and allow each team member to speak and give their reports.

It is then your turn to speak. If there is anything that you would

like to debate have documentation to back up your argument. You

have the right to bring the evaluation home and sign at a later date.

You also have the right to a FAPE, Free and Appropriate Public

Education, as well as IDEA (No Child Left Behind Act). If your

district cannot accommodate your child in an appropriate setting you

have every right to seek one in your area.

January 4, 2007