FoggyRock General Forum

PeterPan · 2008-02-28 14:57:09

I am looking for input from people who have tried to mainstream their autistic child into the general 5K class. This was suggested to us by his school Autistic coordinator, and we had the IEP for us to sign the approval for them to proceed with re-evaluating our son to help determine if he could be successfully mainstreamed. I have several concerns regarding this. I definitely do not want to hold my son back, but below are my concerns:
- How much one-on-one therapy time will this cut out?

- Will his teacher be aware of his situation and know how to handle everything professionally and in my son's best interest if he starts stimming or has a meltdown?

- How will this effect his social progression in relation to non-autistic children interacting with our son (especially when they find out he is different)?

- Since the school day will be longer, this will have a direct impact on the schedule and time he receives in therapy outside of the school? (My goodness in addition to 15 hours of school each week, he also gets 15+ hours at home with professional therapists.)

- I do not want a shadow (assigned adult companion) with him in the class (imagine the stigma and perception associated with that)?

- Since he will be receiving less therapy time, what is the estimated negative (or perhaps positive) impact will this have on his development?

- What has been their success rate with similar children in the past?

As of now, the last nine weeks of school, CJ will attend the Kindergarten class with close observation by his ECD teacher. Hopefully that will provide more definitive input to the answers to the questions. But right now I am just looking for real world experiences.

Thanks Everyone,
Peter Pan

PeterPan · 2008-03-03 08:53:50

I posted this same discussion on another board and received some interesting links in a reply. I thought I would share them on this board as well.

Inclusion Solutions - http://www.positivelyautism.com/volume2issue1.html

"Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew" - http://www.ellennotbohm.com/ten_things_article.html

"Teaching Tips for Children and Adults with Autism" - http://www.autism.org/temple/tips.html

I am still checking some of these out, but I hope they will help if anyone else is having the same or similar questions.

shannonj · 2008-03-03 21:07:06

My son was mainstreamed in Kindergarten with a one-on-one that was also the classroom aide--so she was available to him, but was also assistant to any child in need. You may want another adult there to be able to help make the necessary accomodations for your son. The teacher, no matter how good she is, will not have the time to customize all activities and kindergarten is usually very hands-on. If your son has any motor-planning issues, it would be helpful for an aide to be there to assist--or to prepare your son ahead of time with some pre-teaching activities.

Also, another adult in the room might be able to help the other students know how to respond respectfully and appropriately to your child's differences---to prevent isolation or bullying.

Just a few thoughts....

hikinmary · 2008-03-03 22:40:55

I agree with Shannon. Your child is still very young and I would recommend the 1:1 ABA aide to remain. Please be aware that once you give up that aide by signing a new IEP, it will be extremely hard to get it back again. I recommend reading Disability Deception by JoAnn Collins. I have been fighting with my school district for almost a year, because I was encourage to change placement. The school district wants you to give up the aide and they will say whatever they can to persuade you. I believe you can request reevaluations every three years. However, I would not encourage a reevaluation, especially if the school district is requesting it. If the district becomes pushy you might want to consult with an advocate or attorney. I am writing this because I don't want anyone else to live my nightmare.

hikinmary · 2008-03-03 22:51:16

Another book recommendation I have is "Teaching Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder" by Clarissa Willis. Great Book!!

PeterPan · 2008-03-04 06:40:02

Thanks for all the responses. I will have to check out some of the book, in case I need to recommend one to his new teacher. After my son's very first two IEP meetings and evaluations 2 years ago, I learned very quickly about trying to be pushed in the direction they wanted. I consider myself very good at IEP's now when it comes to getting what is best for my son, but I have on occasion called the local parent advocacy group to sit occasionally and even requested and got the Director of Students with Special Needs for the county school boards to attend 2 of my son's IEP. (Turned out I attended High School with her.) This is what really helped me turn the direction of his IEP's around.

FoggyRock General Forum

#1 2008-02-28 14:57:09

Mainstreaming into 5K

#2 2008-03-03 08:53:50

Re: Mainstreaming into 5K

#3 2008-03-03 21:07:06

Re: Mainstreaming into 5K

#4 2008-03-03 22:40:55

Re: Mainstreaming into 5K

#5 2008-03-03 22:51:16

Re: Mainstreaming into 5K

#6 2008-03-04 06:40:02

Re: Mainstreaming into 5K

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