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Newbie with questions

Submitted by an LD OnLine user on

My youngest (13 yr old) has A.D.D. and I am thinking there are other learning disabilities.

How can I find out or ask for testing without getting the school upset??
I go to his IEPC next week - I finally got him some help last year with a special ed teacher. It has taken me since 3rd grade to get this far.

The main problem I am seeing is that he knows his info but has a hard time getting in writing. — It is like a pin ball is bouncing around trying to collect the words he needs but then when he writies them down it takes forever OR if they do get written they have to be perfect or he erases them and starts over.
So far we can do his spelling words orally - spelling them out with a definition.

Does anyone know what this could be???

Submitted by rebelmom on Thu, 09/04/2003 - 1:26 AM

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Hi MUM

I wish I could help you interpret his specific learning disorder symptoms, but hope fully someone else will reply.

What jumped out at me was the backwardness you feel over his testing by the school. You should never ever feel that the school will be upset. Getting upset isn’t an option for a school. Thats an option for us, the parents. They have a job and they have to do it (educate our kids). If they cannot do it in a usual way, they must find out why and find a better way to do it. You should be the one upset. If you knew your rights and your sons rights, you’d been fuming! If he is 13 and has been having this problem this long, there has been a terrible injustice done to your sons education and you need to get pissed about it.

Go to www.wrightslaw.com and get cracking on your sons education rights.

Next, call a meeting with the school principal and his teachers, the school psych, the cafeteria lady, everyone and anyone. Get a big fat book from the library with “educational rights” in the title, a note pad and a clipboard and when you show up for that meeting, drop them all on the conference table and say”OK! What are you going to do about my sons unaddressed learning disabilities!” Then sit down, pick up your pen and pad and see where it goes. If that doesn’t get you somewhere, the same act can be put on for the board of Ed. Its very very rare you have to go farther than that.

Good luck

Submitted by Mayleng on Thu, 09/04/2003 - 9:19 PM

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Momof4, did the school do an initial evaluation for your son to get the IEP? If you need more help figuring out the LD journey, go to
www.schwablearning.org and post your questions. The moms there will be able to tell you the steps to take, what the evaluations mean, what needs to be on the IEP to help your son.

And Millermom is right, you should never be worried about the school getting upset when you request testing. It is your son’s right, and your son will get the services he needs if you advocate for him and show the school you mean business.

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