I could write for days. Lots of info is being taken in and many things are looking different than I thought it would. We’re at the beginning of this transition process for the fall, and things are already different than we had understood them to be only recently. It’s not all doom and gloom, but there are some mental adjustments already needing to be made on my part, so input is welcome.
So I want to start with this…. if you have a kiddo (DS or other SpEd situation) that is prepping for Kindergarten or has already been through the Kindergarten thing in the last few years, can you share how it looked for you? Feel free to email if you’d rather… braskasmom atgmaildot com
I’m specifically looking for glimpses at how the day looked…how much time in the reg ed room and for what activities/subjects, what para support was there and if it was one person all day or different throughout, what pull-out/SpEd/resource room time looked like…also anything from your experience about how your district handles your home school vs. other school in the district placement and how that’s determined… those kinds of things, and anything else you’d like to share.
Thanks. More on this when I can formulate properly. Meetings upcoming will hopefully shed more light and help clarify.
Sending you an e-mail now...
ReplyDeleteObviously I have no idea but writing to wish you good luck, energized engaged flexible school peeps, and a steel toed boot (just in case kicking is necessary).
ReplyDeleteAlso, selfishly, glad that you & Cate are dealing with this now - because I'm going to be in a STATE 2 years from now.
I'll email you. not that I have anything too useful.
ReplyDeleteWhen Kayla first started K we were in NM and she was in the reg classroom w/the teacher and and aide (the aide was there already, not for Kayla specifically.) She eventually had some pull-outs to the resource room, but I honestly don't remember how much time that was.) Half-way through the year we moved to MD.
ReplyDeleteAt the school there she was in what was called an inclusion classroom. There were several kids w/IEPs in that classroom (although more kids w/out). I didn't really see it as inclusion because all the kids w/IEPs were in one room. Anyway, it was like a co-teaching room. The reg ed teacher and her aide, the spec ed teacher and her aide. The kids w/the IEP worked in a group together during some parts of the day, but still in the classroom.
Kayla repeated K and this school no longer had this inclusion classroom. She remained at the school in the reg ed K class (again w/the teacher and aide who is there for the class, not Kayla). The spec ed teacher rotated among a few classrooms and spent some time in the room w/Kayla (but I don't remember the percentage.)
If we had stayed in MD the IEP team recommended a more restrictive environment which would have been at another school, not the home school she was at while we were living w/my mom.
And that is pretty much what happened when we moved to SC and she started 1st grade - she is not at her home school and I'm still bitter about that.
Good luck with the decisions; they aren't always easy - at least I don't think so, and I'm always second guessing myself.
Thanks so much!! If anyone else has more to add, please do!
ReplyDeleteI have lots I could say but obviously our situations are dramatically different. Yet they are much the same in many ways. We find ourselves in a place right now in a situation where our district is considering that Moise might need to be moved out of our district to "accomodate his needs." I have and will continue to fight hard against this. Three very important words for you to remember should you ever find yourself needing to fight (maybe you have already)..... "Least Restrictive Environment" You are the one who determines what LRE is for Braska.
ReplyDeleteIs it important to you and M that B be in a regular classroom? If so, Why? A previous poster commented about inclusion classrooms, we have also experienced this,from both angles, Several of my normal functioning kids were regularly placed in inclusion rooms. Our experience is that many of the students with higher academic achievement were placed in the same classroom as those with IEPs. This allowed the high achievers to work more independently and opened more time for one on one with the IEP kids. While I feel like this worked very well, one thing I will caution about is that often these classrooms have several students with behavioral issues in them because in the general scheme of things, IEP kids are more likely to have behaviors. (have a feeling I may have just stepped on some toes with that, but it is a fact)This can at times be very disruptive to a classroom. This is not necessarily a bad thing, just something to keep in mind.
Make a list of what you feel are the most important factors in B's education. Lay them out very clearly before your IEP team and move toward achieving all of them.
Prayers for you as you begin this roller coaster of emotion that is education in the special needs realm.
Call anytime with questions or if you just need to hear yourself work something out.
We are right there with you! How on Earth can our girls be old enough to go to Kindy???? Our options are an intergrated Kindergarten which is half "typical" kids and half kids with IEP's, a gen ed teacher, a special ed teacher, an aide and a para OR we have a Charter school in our district and as far as registration number wise Ella has a slot. I am going tomorrow morning to meet with the special ed teacher (the only one for the whole school) and the Kindy teacher. I am really hoping that they will just give me honest answers as in is Ella WANTED there and will they be happy to work with us or will she be just more work for them and seen as a burden. If I get good vibes from the Charter school it is where I am leaning, it's a K-8 school with just one class per grade, there really isn't kids with IEP's there but because it's technically a public school they have to have all services available. We will see!! I actually have no problem with the intergrated Kindergarten at our Kindergarten Center (which is our home school for Kindy) but I have problems with where she would go after which is where my son goes and there are no intergrated classes beyond Kindergarten and our district does not supply para's outside of special ed classes. Anyhow, good luck I hate having to make all of these decisions!!!!
ReplyDelete