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I have a 6 years old boy with mild asperger, first grade , charter school in Arizona, bilingual. He has struggling all year with reading, spelling, but not with math, but now, he keeps telling me about to repeat the first grade, the teacher sais "it is ok David, you don't have to cry.... " Anyway, I am very mad cause she talked with my son first, this is very delicate and I don't want to repeat first grade, and I want to put him on IEP. I don't have an official diagnostic, we don't have medical insurance. my question is: How do I get this IEP?

I agree that it was inappropriate for the teacher to discuss this with your son. This matter needs to be addressed with the teacher.

As for repeating first grade, what are your worries about him repeating?

As for your question about how to get an IEP, request in writing that you want your son tested for a learning disability in reading.

The possible causes of poor performance in first grade include many possibilities including learning disabilities, being developmentally behind his peers, and an increased learning curve for children who are bilingual (they are intaking twice as much information as the average child in the area of language and can appear behind in the early grades). Also, some children perform better in non-verbal tasks like math, while other perform better in verbal tasks like reading. Also boys performance in early reading skills is often slower than girls. An extra year in first grade is often all many children need to "catch up" to their peers.

This is not to discourage seeking testing for your child. The process takes time, and it is worth the effort to start the process early.

Being diagnosed with AS, there is a high chance he will need support socially in future grades as the social demands increase dramatically each year. An IEP can provide this support as well.

~Erica

You need to request for the school to test him.... make a list of all his issues and request that they find the cause so that he will be given the correct kind of help. We had issues where they were going to just try this and that, without knowing the cause of his problems; I told them that their solutions could in fact cause more harm and delay in education if their assumptions were incorrect. They will test him for free. The school psychologist observed our son, and noticed the obvious social issues. The teacher and I both had to fill out questionaires about behavior, which are quite subjective especially if you don't know exactly what to look for-- the video glossary on autism speaks were somewhat helpful for me. The school psychologist will also give an IQ test, which was a big indicator for us because of the huge spread between VIQ and PIQ. Also, the speech therapist gave a test for pragmatic language, which was very low.

Kcal has a good point, I didn't think of: in addition to testing for a learning disability, he should be tested for social concerns, and pragmatic language concerns as a part of his AS.

He should have a learning assessment done to determine if he has any learning disabilities or dyslexia if he has not already have one.

Reading difficulties can hold back otherwise intelligent children, or prevent them from reaching their full potential and make them hate subjects they would otherwise do well in. What reading method does his school use?

Phonics works best for the vast majority of children, but children with dyslexia benefit from being taught differently. Also, how frequently do you read to him?

In our case, the process started by our telling the school, in writing, "we want our son assessed for an IEP."

In our case, they were required to respond to the request by conducting an assessment. At first they were humoring us, and it was obvious. Then they thanked us for pushing the issue, because they finally saw we what we saw and agreed an IEP was necessary.

Good luck.

Obviously this is not being handled well, and proper assessment will help you make decisions. I wanted to mention, though, that holding him back may be helpful, even if he is very bright, and even if he has an IEP. Socializing with younger kids is hepful to my son, as long as they are not agressive. If his strength is math, teachers can usually keep him challenged with the very bright kids in the younger class.

FYI, Arizona did have insurance for children through the state, but dropped it about a year ago. However, if your child meets the criterion, you can still enroll in the program in the hopes that your governor will realize that leaving it unfunded is a bad idea.

http://www.azahcccs.gov/applicants/cate ... sCare.aspx

Very good advice.

Also, please check out my free website, www.freevideosforautistickids.com, particularly the "ebooks," "reading links," and "reading and alphabet" pages, and my free YouTube Reading and Grammar Channel www.youtube.com/user/vids4autistickids). The website is in the process of being overhauled, so keep a watch out for improvements/upgrades.

Call the school's social worker. Explain the situation and ask for a clear explanation of what hoops must be jumped through to get your child the assistance be requires.

Different school districts have different hoops. Lacking medical coverage may be an obstacle, but the school will need to accommodate.

Do what DW says....you send the school a letter saying that you want your child tested for an IEP and they have a certain time frame in which to do this. This is the law in the US. Make a copy for yourself as well and date the letter. Also look up online the laws for IEP in the state of Arizona.

Penguinmom: it is a charter school , I think they don't have so much personal, specialists and the only person who '' is in charge" is the principal. I talked with her and first thing was to send me at specialist and after that "we are gona put him in IEP"but I don't want to go there, I want to be tested at school. It's total different how I learn here on this website about IEP.

blondeambition: thank you

aann: no way no how! it is ussless to repeat first grade: all people will gona learn to read someday. some people slowly some people faster. if we are gonna move back in Europe, he is gona be hold back at least one or 2 years, so we have no reason to holding him back. ( oral reading: N= need improvment, N, S= satisfac. ; reading comprehension: 41%, 86%, 66%, math: 90%, 94%. 85%, spelling: 91%, 81%, 61% )

DW_a_mom: thank you for good look! what to you mean" they were humoring us?"

Cronos: Method? I'm new in this country and all I can tell we have 30 words each week, 2 stories nightly ( blue hills book), and something from their site: "The Spalding phonics method is a hallmark of the Valley Academy curriculum. This method uses phonograms, the ‘keys’ to reading. By the end of first grade, all phonograms have been mastered and are reviewed weekly" . I read always first the 2 stories.

Eureca-C: thanks for your reply! but I really need my dictionar for " pragmatic language" and all this new informations!:)

Kcal: thank you! I don't know if they have a psychologist. where do I find the video glossary on autism? I found a book about IEP how to write papers, but I'am affraid cause they are gonna focus only on reading problems when David has anoother issues wich caused another.
He was my first child but I always suspected something...until I read about Asperger( from a friend) and it was like a lightening! Now I see all the spots, but my hubby was the same. he is a little weird but normal, with job, smart and everything he needs to function normally in society.

If it is a public school, they are required to provide this service through the District somehow (actually, this applies to any school - if your child needs an evaluation regarding a deficit that might affect his or her ability to succeed at school, the school district is required to provide it.) Ask the principal who to contact at the District.

Schools are usually required by law to have the child evaluated by an outside specialist at some point, to prevent fraud on the part of the school (some schools receive extra funding for kids on IEPs and want to increase them, while other schools receive no additional funding to support IEP programs, and want to reduce them.)