Chances of getting an aide - thoughts?

pattyb

New Member
Can anyone share their experiences with trying to get a 1:1 aide for your child as part of their IEP? Also, if not full-time in classroom aide, has anyone been able to get an aide just for certain times, like recess, lunch, transitions? What information do they need to prove it is needed? Thanks for any info!
 
T

TeDo

Guest
The only way I could get an aide for difficult child 1 was to fight like h*** to keep them from just pulling him from mainstream classes and putting him in an EBD classroom. Every time we met (every month toward the end), they proposed pulling him out of another class because he was disruptive and putting him in a classroom with EBD kids with behaviors worse than his to mimic. I really hope you don't have to go through that. The only other thing is if you can prove that it helps. Another student in difficult child 1's science class had a 1:1 and she would sometimes let difficult child 1 come out of the class with her to work in a quieter environment with her student. The best work difficult child 1 ever did during classtime was on those days so they had the proof in their hands.

There is so much variation from school to school that it's hard to narrow it down to just one or two things. It depends on the teacher's "mentality" (for lack of a better word) and how cooperative the school staff is. Good luck. Hopefully you don't have to deal with "one of the worst schools in the state for this kind of thing", as our neuropsychologist stated.
 

InsaneCdn

Well-Known Member
Really depends on a number of factors, like...
- dxes
- behavior in school
- what specific things the aide is expected to do
- age/grade

1:1 is the hardest to get - because it's the most expensive. I've seen it most often with severe medical challenges (quad, severe CP, etc.), or with the more serious pervasive developmental disorders - Downs, at least moderately-severe Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), etc.

In-class shared aide is easier - we often have one aide working with 5 or 6 students who have challenges - this aide takes notes for anyone who needs them to get a copy (including the kid who was sick yesterday...), helps explain assignments, walk through addiitonal examples, etc.... all while keeping an eye on behavior. That's just an example - and this is obviosly older kids, as grade 1 kids don't take notes!
 

JJJ

Active Member
Our district is fundamentally opposed to 1:1 aides on educational grounds but Tigger was able to get one for two years and I have seen a few others. The key is somehow demonstrating that the child can be maintained in a less restrictive environment if a 1:1 aide is provided.

If it is just those unstructured times - lunch, recess, transitions - you might start with asking that he be provided with 1:1 support during those times to teach him the skills he needs to handle them. If they have been documenting his problems without 1:1, have them continue to document how he does with 1:1, a decrease in problems would support the need for a 1:1 aide.
 

ALogan3

New Member
I did get an aide for difficult child in 4th & 5th grade but his behavior was atrocious and honestly it didn't help he wound up in an alternative school. I fought like no other to obtain it with help from this site.

Me~51~Been a nurse 32 years
*Katie~29~adopted 2000~undiagnosed~has no hip socket so is on crutches for life~living successfully on her own
*Lindsay~29~easy child~ works at Red Cross
*KJ~27~difficult child~computer degree working at Panera
*Dyl~20~Bipolar disorder, chemically induced 5/99, Currently has 2 girls pregnant due the same week :/
*Nicole~17~difficult child~ Senior in HS, Baby due Dec 8, 2012
 
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