I will be attending an IEP meeting for my son this Thursday and I have a few questions for someone who knows the process and the laws better than I do.
First of all, my son is in 6th grade this year. He has had a 504 since 2nd grade because of problems with fine motor skills and visual perception……basically he just has terrible handwriting and has extreme difficulty getting thoughts down on paper. Some of the accomodations and modifications outlined in his 504 are shortened homework assignments, more time to complete tests or other assignments, being allowed to take tests or parts of tests orally, using a word processor or computer for some assignments.
None of this has been done this year. None of it. He works on homework from the time he gets home until its time to take a shower and go to bed (but that does include a lot of stalling, arguing, crying, etc). Sometimes he gets it all done and sometimes he doesn’t. His homework is graded so he does try very hard to get it all done and goes into a panic if he doesn’t get something finished. His teachers will not except an assignment that is only partially complete. He is allowed to turn it in the next day for half credit. He has so many zeros in his grades that it is causing him to fail math, english, and reading…..possibly social studies too, but I am not sure about that yet……if it is not an F, it is definitely a D. I feel that if his teachers were following his 504, he would not be failing. If they could just shorten his assignments, that would make a world of difference. Also, I know at least one test, he got a 20 on because the teacher wouldn’t let him finish it. His teachers keep writing comments about his bad handwriting on his papers. (i think by now he KNOWS his handwriting is sloppy). The teachers are having other students grade the homework. (the students swap papers with each other to grade) These kids can’t read a lot of his writing and they are not going to put forth much effort in trying to read it so they just mark it wrong. Almost every day I find where something has been marked wrong by another student and it was NOT wrong. Then, after all the students have graded each other’s papers, they hand them back and the teachers calls each student by name and the student has to announce their grade to her in front of the entire class. This is completely humiliating for my son. It especially bothers him when other kids actually write comments on his papers about his sloppy handwriting or more detail needed.
Anyways, I forgot where I was going with that.
The 504 was originally done in TN and we just moved to KY this summer. I do not remember what words they used, but they basically told me that his 504 was not valid in KY and we would have to do a whole new evaluation to see what services he is eligible for. I’m all for a new evaluation. I wanted that anyways. I asked for that. I think he will qualify for even more services with a complete evaluation. But I thought that section 504 was a FEDERAL law. Is it not? I know that if a school disagrees with the 504, they can re-evaluate, but when I talked to them, they seemed to agree with it and seemed to also agree with me that he needs even more than this 504. But shouldn’t they have been implementing his 504 that he already had in the meantime? Now the term is almost over and there is no way that we are going to be able to bring his grades up to passing before report cards come out.
So……
getting to the point.
Here are my questions:
on the 504:
Shouldn’t they have been implementing his 504 these last 6 or 7 weeks as we were waiting for the evaluation to be completed?
Can I make them go back and adjust his grades since they have not been following his 504 and he is failing because of it?
Should I bring this up at the beginning of the meeting or at the end?
On the IEP:
Can I ask for less homework?……MUCH less homework?
Can I ask them to stop letting children grade his work?
Can I have them stop making him announce his grades out loud?
I have done so much research on LDs and ADHD and 504 and IEP and IDEA and I still feel so completely clueless.
Oh, yes. One more question. At what point should I consider getting a professional advocate? Would it be jumping the gun to do it now?
Sorry this is so long and probably incoherent and hard to understand.
I’m at my wits end and so worried.
Suzie
Re: IEP meeting ??s
You said exactly what I have been thinking. I thought maybe if we just started all over again as if he were in 1st grade learning to write for the first time, it might work better this time around. He was taught D’Nealian in 1st grade and I have always thought that he would have done much better if he had been taught just plain old fashioned manuscript from the beginning. I wonder if it is a bad idea to try to teach D’Nealian to left-handed kids with fine motor problems.
Do you know of any good programs out there? I have heard of a program called Writing Without Tears or Handwriting Without Tears or something like that. Do you know anything about that one? What about Audioblox? I have read that it can be used to treat this problem. It is too expensive to buy though unless I know there is a good chance that it will work.
IEP's
Suzie,
First, I am writing from Ontario, Canada, so I’m sorry that I can’t answer the questions you so desperately need answers to. I did want to let you know, though, that we went through the same thing with my son last year in Grade 4.
In Ontario, a child needs to be deemed “exceptional” (learning disability) before an IEP will be put in place. My son does not have an LD, so nothing was put in place. We asked his teacher on many, many occasions to allow Kurtis to have modified homework, etc. To no avail.
He, too, has sloppy handwriting and difficulty with thoughts on paper. We tried using a computer, but that seemed to slow him down even more. He spent many evenings crying in frustration over his homework.
We are looking into a way around our IEP problem - I know when he gets to Grade 6, he will have many more difficulties.
Anyway, I wish you luck in your meeting - and never give up. If we can’t advocate for our children, nobody will.
Sonya
Re: IEP meeting ??s
A lot of people here speak very favourably of Hadwriting Without Tears. I have see sample pages and find it to be too cutesy for me, but des who also posts here a lot says that you can leave out the cute bits in the instructions. The general outline of the printing is the effective time-tested methods, yes.
IEP
I would request immediately that he be reevaluated. Tell them that you do not want to wait any longer. In NC once a parent requests it they then begin the process. The first step is usually looking at his papers. If he is failing there is no doubt in my mind that they will test him. This should include an evaluation by a professional that the school brings in to do the proper testing, etc.
Yes, you would be part of the IEP team. You can request just about anything but then the entire IEP team has to decide. I would request for modified assignments, separate testing room, extended testing time, study guides for ALL tests, and even possibly a scribe. My son is in the 5th grade and he receives all of this. He is also provided with an Alpha Smart which is somewhat on the lines of a laptop. This has helped him greatly as he now types all of his assignments in this. I would be more than happy to share with you his IEP if you wish to e-mail me.
Hope this helps!
Heather
Re: IEP meeting ??s
Oh, thank you, Heather. That helps a bunch. Those things you listed that are being done for your child are all things that would help my child tremendously!
He has been reevaluated and we meet this afternoon to go over the results and come up with a plan.
I will write down those things you listed and request the same things for my child.
Thanks again.
I will write again this evening or tomorrow, about how the meeting went. I just hope that it doesn’t have to be a fight. I hope we’re all on the same page.
Thanks again.
Suzie
Go where you have to go with the 504 etc. I won’t get involved in that because it’s not my field of expertise.
Meanwhile, here is a different take on the issue. I’d start helping him with the handwriting skills. In almost every case I’ve worked with in the last five years, the kids had never really been *taught* handwriting, just left to pick it up here and there, and direct teaching has made a big difference. NOT forcing him to make it pretty or anything like that, but helpling him develop a basic legible handwriting. This is a long-term project, training a physical skill, and it doesn’t come overnight. Kids spend three or four years from K to 3 developing writing skills, so to make that up you are looking at a year to teach and a couple of years of further practice. But it can usually be improved greatly. This is a physical skill and needs coaching, like a sport. Coordination can be improved by slow, gradual steps. Worth a try.
Ask me if you want my handwriting posts (tell me if you just want the writing and not the reading stuff) Email [email protected]