school started last week - teacher already calling!

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Ok, so my son is attending a new school. Instead of an elective he needs to take intensive reading. Well, they gave him an elective...tv production. Now this class has about 40 students and they work in groups. guess what? my son doesn't want to participate...so i get the dreaded call. His teacher said that she basically doesn't have time for him to refuse to participate when she has 40 other students (understandable). she said that she does have his "33" page IEP (this kinda made me mad when she said it like that), and that it didn't state on there about this intensive reading class. I told her that the intensive reading class doesn't have to do anything with his IEP. Because he had a low score on the state's reading comprehension test, he is required to take intensive reading. I told her that I had left a message with guidance so that he can be enrolled in the intensive reading class right away. She said that she would talk to them too. Anyway, i'm really upset right now. School just started last week and i'm already getting complaints!! Gosh, when is summer going to get here?

Yep, it stinks, doesn't it ! ! !

So why wasn't your son in intensive reading? Did the school mess up his schedule? We found out today that the same sort of thing has happened with our son (gave him a class that we had just been told was Reading Lab, and in reality it is really a regular ed reading class, but with the Reading Lab teacher -- which is FINE with us -- but what if it wasn't ok with us?)

Anyway, I hope that this all gets resolved for you and your son soon, and that he has an amazing year where you don't receive any more phone calls like this!

I had a similar situation with one of my sons.

Counselor: "Your son is not doing the work and participating in the Drama class."
I: "Why is he in Drama instead of the class we signed him up for?"
Counselor: "He is going to have to buckle down and get his work caught up or we will have to fail him."
I: "Why is he in Drama instead of the class we signed him up for?"
Counselor: "The teacher he has is very good, but just can't be expected to spend the extra time on a student who doesn't try."
I: "Why is he in Drama instead of the class we signed him up for?"

This went on for about 5 minutes before the counselor finally heard what I had said umpteen times. His response? "Oh."

Sometimes hyperfocus helps in a social situation.

Pops

it's so frustrating when you have to deal with those situations.....hope i don't have to deal with any of those this year......school hasn't started here yet.

What I would like to know is why teachers insist on "group" stuff in school. They put some people at advantage and others (like me) at a major disadvantage. All the classes I failed were due to this "group" nonsense. It should be about the subject, not about how you interact.

Thank god the school-trap has been left in the dust of the past.

I found group work uncomfortable, too. Most of the time they did ridiculous activities that had nothing to do with real academic work. Most of those activities were things I commonly did in my free time. There is a time and a place for everything.

the philosophy behind group work is supposed to be that everyone needs to get along with people of different demeanors, philosophies- in order to be a successful adult. it is supposed to teach teamwork, responsibility, respect, and sharing.

i've been in my share of groups that were HORRIBLE. and i've also been in groups that have worked out wonderful......somehow, i think teachers need to monitor group work more than they actually do. perhaps this would minimize the many problems that come with doing group work

When I think of group work, I think of my daughter's entire high school career (she's supposedly my one NT child, but I even wonder about her sometimes!) where she was in a group assignment, and she always, ALWAYS ended up doing all or most of the work! I'm sure you've all experienced this, right? Maybe the key is for someone on the spectrum to do all of the work by themselves, and get real losers for team-mates who don't want to do anything. Then everybody will be happy.

Thank you so much for your replies. I feel a little better knowing my son isn't the only one going through this stuff. When the teacher was talking to me over the phone yesterday, she also mentioned that he was out in the hallway during lunch, she asked him to go back to the cafeteria, but then when she went back into the hallway he back again (i could hear the frustration in her tone) and said that this was grounds for a referral. When I went home to speak with my son, he said that he was going to the restroom, saw some people go in there, and he left. then he came back to use the bathroom since he didn't go the first time and that's when she saw him for the second time. Why are teachers so bent on telling parents about referrals?

somehow, reg ed teachers feel that kids who "misbehave" do so because of a lack of discipline at home...........just like when my son was "defiantly sitting outside of class refusing to come in"- translation- son was rocking back and forth on his heels and shaking. visibly upset & scared. regular ed teachers ? bah!

Hi there,
So sorry to hear of your son's troubles at school, been there with my son.

Firstly: about your boy being in the hallways - did the teacher actually ask him why he was there for the second time and if not why not?

Secondly: a 33 page IEP - ridiculous. Research shows that IEPs are often ineffective because they place unrealistic demands on teachers. Most teachers would barely have time to read a 33 page IEP let alone absorb it and plan ways of achieving the goals it outlines. You may need to revisit your son's IEP with the school, or whoever, and slim it down so that his new teachers are just given one page with his current, most pressing, two or three goals. They are much more likely to read it and try to act on it then.

Thirdly: keep pressing for the reading tuition, it is his entitlement. Re. TV production - unfortunately for him this is very much a team-based sort of activity. Is there one aspect of this he could focus on so that he becomes the expert or is it possible for him to change electives? Learning to work in groups is a cornerstone of most education systems, something the individualists among us, NT and AS, find particularly difficult. Actually, I find that the kids who stand back and let the rest get on with it often have the most interesting ideas, they just can't work through them in a group.

Good luck and keep advocating for your boy.