I am very new to this but I have been surfing the web looking despirately for support.
Recently we requested an IEP meeting at school because we noticed since the first day of school our son went completely downhill. The reason is because he is getting NO HELP or SUPPORT from the school system. He is A classified child with SLD and also has a diagnosis of ADHD from the Developemental Neurologist. My husband and I have been struggling with him since he began two months ago in fourth grade and fighting so hard for what he needs and deserves. He is overloaded and stressed out. Our household is also suffering. We have three other daughters along with our son. It breaks our hearts to see that he is so overwhelmed and we have done everything possible to get him organized at home and now its the school failing him, The proof is in the pudding.
After his I.E.P. meeting that I worked SO HARD for DAYS on preparing things and ready to fight, we were completely pushed aside, talked down to and certain issues tossed aside and ignored. I even went as far as inventing a color code system for his becuase his organizational skills are horrible and the school hasnt even been support for him in that aspect. His Neuro wants an extra set of books at home, but the school system refuses to make that a part of his IEP because they “Dont have extra books, so we cant add it to his IEP…” this is because if they DO add it to his IEP they MUST BY LAW provide him with the extra set of books. And the town doesnt want that responsibility I guess. How sad for our son…yet we pay such high taxes. We do have a volunteer advocate working with us. We just are looking for more “moral” support as we feel very alone in our quest to help our child succeed. Hes got the potential to and we feel very strongly about that.
We are struggling with him…we feel for him and his saddness and his struggling with being so overwhelmed. As a whole, our entire family is struggling together. We love him so much. He is a GREAT kid with no behavioral issues. He wouldnt harm a fly. We feel very strongly that is why the school system pushes him aside because he is a good kids and NOT a trouble maker.
IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE PLEASE that can respond to this and offer advice and support. We have reached the end of our rope and we are really suffering from this whole insident. So much so that I spent the entire rest of the day after the two hour meeting feeling frustrated angry and like we failed our son somehow that day. I cried all day.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE HELP!
thank you. :( [/b]
Re: SON W/ SLD/ADHD-SCHOOL SYSTEM TURNING THEIR BACKS...HELP!
If he stays in this school, you can expect a long fight with the system. You need to determine whether or not you are up to it. Many families opt out because they cannot tolerate the stress. If you decide to stay and fight, you will probably need to find an advocate and/or lawyer to help you.
Many families decide to opt out. One way to do this is to find a public charter school, as many are more committed to helping children (and they still receive public funds to do it). If you are in a small town, this may not be an option.
Another way to opt out is to homeschool. This allows parents to choose appropriate curriculum materials for the child and incorporate therapies likely to help. There are many homeschoolers of special needs children and many resources available. Special needs children usually flourish with the kind of one-on-one attention that homeschooling allows.
If opting out of school is not a possibility for your family, then you may want to look for private tutors and pursue private therapy. Often what a school provides falls far short of what a child needs anyway.
Nancy
Hang in there, it is going to be a long battle. I am not sure if your child is having a hard time reading. I am assuming so, since you are requesting an extra book. My school is saying the same thing. My child is a member of the Recordings for the Blind and Dyslexic and I am going to see if they have the same text book on CD. RFB&D will make a recording of the text if they don’t have it, but it requires time. I just started RFB&D it was an expensive initial investment ,but my child is allowed to listen to books and write book reports from that. In IEP meetings I try to find my allies. I find the teachers usually don’t say much as they don’t understand what is going on with my child. I find the speech pathologist or the psychologist are the biggest help to get what my child needs. Usually they are the hardest people to get, as my school district has them at two to three different schools. But I also have had one of my speech pathologist going in the opposite direction of where I wanted my child and had to ask the school to get an expert on speech and reading to help my child. I was lucky we had one in our district. I keep a notebook of my childs lastest evaluation and IEP and test scores from the levels test , state assessment and WIATT and Woodcock Johnson. I carry this to school every time I go.
I saw the school wasn’t making progress when my child was in 2nd grade so I found good tutors to help her.She is now in 6th grade. Unfortunately the reading is still not coming together as not enough time in day and the school was not doing anything effective, so I am still trying to resolve an IEP from June. I am thinking of pulling her and having a tutor that I pay for instruct her during part of the school time as I don’t think the school has the trained personal for it. Go in with your son and have the teacher and I assume you probably have a learning support person for your child get them all together and discuss what your child can do to get himself organized. Be sure to check out the LD in Depth and make sure you all get out and have a great weekend.