My son is gifted/NLD. He’s enrolled in ninth grade at our local public high school. We have an IEP, which only involves organizational accommodations. My son has severe problems processing info (written and auditory) in a class setting.
I have spent my own money paying for tutors, when the work became too high level for my husband and I. He needs one on one verbal remediation across the curriculum—every day. I can no longer afford the tutors, and there are no private schools in our area that accommodate LD kids. I am not qualified to homeschool this bright young man.
Can anyone out there give me any tips on getting the district to either make sure my child processes the info in school, or they cover the cost of my son’s outside tutors? How do other high functioning NLD kids manage in public school? I would be interested to see how their needs are dealt with in their IEPs. Without the “one on one” remediation, it is as if my son were never in school at all.
Re: NLD
The path to getting the district to cover the cost of outside tutors would mean getting them to say in writing that that’s what he needed, and then providing it. Conceivably it could be done in the school setting, giving the kid a reduced course load and a “tutoring period” or two — hopefully with tutors you’ve used, who I assume understand his needs, just in school instead of after. It really is tough to find people who understand NLDs and kiddos who just don’t process things well. And one of these years someone should go through the IEP process and legally determine that yes, homeschooling is the least restrictive environment for the kid in question — but it’s a little hard to imagine.
Why are you not qualified to teach him at home?
I hope you get some answers. My son is also very bright and NLD. He’s only in 5th grade, and on an IEP with a SPED teacher in his integrated classroom, who works with him as needed. Right now, that seems marginally OK… He’s got a good attitude, and I know that between the SPED teacher at school and me at home we were able to keep most things from falling between the cracks.
Unfortunately, when you only look at his papers, it’s hard to see how much he doesn’t “get”. It’s when you talk to him after he’s read something, or has watched a news report, and you realize how garbled his understanding is. (even though he’ll have many of the “factoids” right) That’s what I find very scary. That and the fact that 6 days into school, he soent 2 hours on homework last night. I don’t think his good attitude will continue with that sort of load.
I have a friend with an NLD son who just started middle school in our school system this year, and the difficulties of giving on-the-spot academic support when the kids are changing from class to class and teacher to teacher is already taking its toll.
Karen