School Placement Issues

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Last year my son was placed in a special day class preschool. This year I want him to be placed in a regular preschool with an aid since his AS is to mild to be an SDC class. The school disagrees. Has anyone been through this before? Any suggestions?

Have you asked the school to explain their concerns with the placement in a regular class? From what I gather from you post, the school could have a legitimate concern which should be addressed (or they could simply be trying to save some money). That would be my first suggestion.

Switch schools.

teachers think that kids with behavior problems are a PIA would rather get rid of them than work on setting limits and teaching them to sit quiet and sit still when class is in session. i went to a catholic school and the nuns taught us to sit still with the arms crossed and be quiet. they taught us with a stick. but it worked. i just sat still all through middle school and high school and college and that's how i managed to get ahead. yes it slowed my development big time. but if i let myself relax and act naturally i would have been expelled.

p.s. a special ed teacher is an extra expense for the school. the only way to force them to do this might be take legal action or to emphasize the laws that require them to offer accommodations for your child.

The problem is the school can already claim they are making accommodations for the child by having a special class available. They have no legal obligation to go beyond that.

Like I said, if you're not happy with that preschool, just switch. Unless you're in North Dakota and have 1 preschool in a hundred mile radius, there's no excuse not to just pursue other options. I could make a million complaints about all the preschools we didn't choose for our son, but that's the whole point of "shopping around", you find the one that suits your child the best.

I think this is going to have a lot to do with where you are. In my area, preschool is offered as an intervention for special needs kids, but ONLY for special needs kids. There is no "mainstream with an aid" available, because there is no publicly funded mainstream preschool - we all pay that from our own budget. If your child needs services, you go to the special county preschool; if your child does not, you choose - and pay for - your preschool. Or work with your child at home.

Look around and see what the options are in your area. If what you want for your child is not available, then you have decide how important you feel it is for your child and what you are willing to pay to get it. Once your child is in mandated elementary school, there should be more choices. But most places don't require preschool and, thus, the options are more limited.

I am curious. Is the special day school separate from the special needs preschool. A lot of school districts have preschool special education located at some schools. Some districts have special ed preschool and then a separate school for children that need more intensive therapy. Is that what your child receives? If your child is just in special needs preschool, that is what they usually only offer for preschool as they are not obligated to serve regular preschool needs students. It is like that across the country.

Some states do offer extra help through IBI (intensive behavior intervention) or PSR (psychosocial rehabilitation).I know how a lot of people on this site feel about IBI but it could still be an option to get the services. Do you have a case worker in your city? If you receive medicaid services, that should be easy to get. If not, then I would still seek out someone. Do you have any agencies in your area you can call? They may be able to help you. There has got to be some things we haven't brought up yet as each place is so different

First of all, I have to assume that since your child was in a special day class this year that he has an IEP. With that in mind, I would advise you to read the IDEA law - because a school has to provide the Least Restrictive Environment for a child - and a special day class is only to be used under certain guidelines, EVEN for preschool. School districts aren't required to provide public preschool education, but if they have it, they do have to make accommodations in the Least Restrictive Environment for anyone who qualifies. IDEA law is pretty clear about what districts do or do not have to provide in terms of services, so it's definitely a resource that all of us should have. I have a copy on my laptop!

I would ask for clarification about their concerns over changing settings