Schools for kids with AS

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I've been following the rather heated debates on this forum
This is a question of curiosity, not meant to replicate existing threads.

My son goes to a school for normal to gifted children with AS or HFA.
Normal curriculum is taught, but in a more creative/flexible way that suits the individual child.
Sensory issues are considered.
The degree of autism-specific structure and visualisation is flexible according to the child.

Do you other parents, from other countries, have public schools like this?

Would you consider this a good alternative to mainstreaming/homeschooling, if it were a possibility?

Your son's school sounds fantastic, and if such a school were available I would move our son there like a shot!

Sadly, where we live there are either mainstream schools, or special schools for autistic children with learning difficulties. Our son is high functioning so he is stuck in mainstream school which does not cater for his emotional, behavioural and sensory needs.

The choice of public schools in the US varies widely by state, and then again by district within the state, and even neighborhoods within a district.

Our district does not have such a school available as a public school choice, but I have been really, really pleased with the support provided to my son through the special education department at his mainstream school. He is absolutely thriving.

There is a private school nearby that is very much as you describe. We know a family with a daughter that attends there, and it has been excellent for her. The child was actually doing OK in my son's school, but her parents felt there could be something more, that she could do better. And they were right. Their daughter went from being OK with school to LOVING school. The right fit is everything. And parental instinct is very powerful.

Im in the Uk and looking into this at the moment. Its hard here as they have special schools which cover all special needs which is not right for him. I know of a school that has a unit attached to it for asd children which I am currently looking into for my son as mainstream is very hard on him.

My son C., now almost 23, attended New Way Learning Academy for grades 9-12. Located in Scottsdale AZ, it provides 'a way that works' structure for K-12 with a class-teacher ratio of about 9-1. When C. was about to move from main-stream middle school to a 2,000 student public HS, we knew he would not get the IEP help he needed and investigated what options there were. He wanted nothing to do with going to New Way UNTIL he visited for a day. Once he started there, he NEVER wanted to return to public school.

It was expensive ($15,000/year then - now $18,750/year). But it was the difference between being educated among a small group that each had some learning disability under the guidance of special ed teachers or being lost in a 2,000 student HS where his AS/ADD would single him out for harassment and ridicule.

The school draws students from around the greater Phoenix AZ area ("Valley of the Sun"). Parents are responsible for transportation. Some area school districts actually pay New Way to handle these students rather than having the expense of operating a 'special education' program of their own.

I know this won't be of much help if you don't live in the Valley of the Sun, but it could prove helpful if you compare what New Way offers to other private schools in your area.

You can find the schools website at http://www.NewWayAcademy.org <-- I've corrected and added a hot link now that I've been a member for more than 5 days. 0 :>)

Last edited by Dad_of_Aspie on 03 Apr 2008, 5:53 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Wow! This school sounds great. Do they have a website that covers the program? Of course, if they did, it's in Danish, and I wouldn't be able to read it any way.

Tak

Your child is extremely lucky, I want to go to an aspie school SOOO badly, but my dad cannot afford it.

Thanks - we are lucky (also pay 50% in tax in Denmark - but I'm not complaining )
Of course there are bad things about the school, too. Nothing's perfect....

J doesn't go to an aspie school, i don't think we have them here in Australia. He does however attend a pullout program run by Our autism school. He attends this program one full day of the school week, here they teach the kids social skills, they do music, arts, they play games, go for walks and build each childs interests into the program.

Example; the last Wednesday before school holidays.
They started the day with free play- either clay animation,drawing,computers, music or reading.
J had taken a science book, so the whole group took a walk to the local super market where they purchased supplies to do some of the experiments when class's start back next week.
They all ate lunch together, then they went for another walk to the park where they tried to play ball games as a group, then they had an easter egg hunt.
More pc time. Music time. Board game time.
Then home time.

J wishs he could go every day. it sounds like they aren't learning much but its all done incidentaly. J hate physical exercise but is now telling me that walking can be fun. Yay!! !!

What are some of the things that are not working at the school? Could you elaborate?

Sure!
There is always the worry that mainstreaming would prepare my son for the "real world" better. But in my heart of hearts I know he wouldn't cope very well.

Here's the whole story:
When my son was diagnosed, there were no kindergartens or schools for high functioning kids. I was very active and even went to the media with our story, as my son was clearly having an awful time at his kindergarten. He couldn't cope with a normal setting, and there were no "special" kindergatens that suited . It ended with the district starting a kindergarten group and later a school for high functioning autistic kids.

In the beginning most of the teachers were new to autism - because there are so many autistic kids being diagnosed, it is hard to get qualified teachers. It was very frustrating that the teachers knew so much less than we parents did. They hadn't even been on autism seminars! A lot of them had never met anybody with autism before. Some came from work with emotionally disturbed kids, and tried that tactic on autistic kids - BIG MISTAKE! (very tough I'm in charge kind of stuff).

I have to say that they have really learned a lot, and are still learning. They are pretty good at TEACCH and social stories now.

My complaints may sound silly, but in a perfect world...

I would love it if they were even more flexible - more physical activity (my son does go for a walk every morning before lessons).

Less focus on school books used in normal schools and more creative teaching - I think my son would love having a really gifted maths teacher, and could learn much much more if he could really ping-pong with a maths nerd! More "frisbee maths" "biology canoe trips" ect.!

More lessons in social skills.

A psychologist. A speech therapist. Both are present, but don't have enough hours to go round, so my son hasn't seen either yet!

A physiotherapist to work with sensory intergration. (She saw my son once for 4 minutes and decided her presence bothered him )

More help with self-help skills like personal hygeine, cooking, shopping and all the areas where my son really has problems, and which really will matter when he's grown up.

More work with self-identity: what autism is, and that it's ok. Also work with the CAT-kit for understanding feelings and emotions (KAT-KIT - now in English! Check Tony Atwoods home page)

As you can see, there are a lot of things the school knows it should be doing, but doesn't have the time/money to do.

If there was such a school I would LOVE for my boys to go there.

Helen

I like it in theory but I question long term, I mean eventually the kid will have to graduate out of such a school system and be thrown into the mainstream world, unless they have separate communities.

I'm worried about it becoming a form of segregation. What I'd like to see is something like this intergraded into a normal public Ed school system.

The reason: To bring awareness of autism in a more positive light to the non autistic peers...

Otherwise parents that can't afford such schools or choose to put their kids into the public school system may end up with rude comments like "Shouldn't you be in the "ret*d" school?" and other insensitive mean comments.

I may be flawed in my perceptions, but I'm looking at a bigger picture. To me I see sending autistic children to special schools is more like patching with a band aid than solving the cause. I'd like to see long-term change in our culture to be more accepting to autism. I fear if it gets popular for most parents to pull their children out of the public school system, then that only makes the segregation and misunderstanding worse in the long run.
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I went through the public school system, and yes I suffered mean bullying my elementary years. I'm just hoping that with change it doesn't have to be that way.

It sucks to be on the frontier of something. My mind flashes back to history when we read about "separate" but equal. Okay this time it is not skin color but neurological differences.

I would love to agree with you - however, sensory intergration problems can make it near impossible for many autistic kids (or at least mine) to survive in a noisy classroom.
I worry about the day my son has to function in the mainstream world - will it be possible?
But over all, I want him to be happy! And he IS happy at this school. So over-all, I guess I'm choosing his happiness and ability to thrive and learn over ability to navigate the mainstream world. Hoping we work things out as we go... I hope he goes to uni one day, and if he does, who knows? I may have to take him there every day...
I saw my son depressed once, and I never want to again!

There is a high school class (year 10 -13) starting for aspies in Copenhagen.

There is a company in Denmark called "specialisterne", first in the world to have all autistic employees - they do computer stuff! Maybe we'll see more of this in the future.

I have my worries, but this is way we have choosen to go... so I'm really hoping we're doing the right thing.