W
WearyWoman
Guest
Hello all,
Our 9yo son's (Bubby's) annual IEP meeting was on December 16th of last year. He is in 3rd grade and has Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified, as well as apraxia of speech, ADHD, and some occupational therapy issues as well. We requested some minor modifications, including help with his math facts and reduced homework. We also asked that he be permitted to use a portable word processor for assignments requiring sentence writing, as writing is extremely difficult for him and getting in the way of showing what he knows.
At the meeting we learned that his classroom teacher was not using a visual schedule, providing sensory breaks, or some other things that were in the IEP in effect from the prior year. We had requested the portable word processor the previous year, and the school autism therapist was supposed to check into it and never got back to us. It turns out she never spoke with his new classroom teacher for this year, and thus, this year's teacher was not informed about our son's specific autism needs. We did talk with Bubby's classroom teacher at the start of the school year, but we didn't go line-by-line through the IEP with her.
And . . . we weren't notified before the most recent IEP meeting that the school autism specialist would not be present at the meeting. Apparently she didn't come to school because her daughter was sick that day. Since the IEP meeting, we have not heard anything at all from the school. We haven't received an updated written IEP or notification of whether or not the portable word processor will be used, etc. While I don't think the autism specialist is required to attend the IEP meetings, it sure would be helpful!
Question 1: How long does the school have after the annual IEP meeting to provide an updated written IEP and to implement it?
I have tried to look up the rules regarding the time period in which the school must provide us a copy of the new written IEP, but so far, I've been unsuccessful.
Question 2: What is the role of the school autism specialist? Shouldn't she be contacting Bubby's classroom teacher at least at the beginning of the school year to help the teacher understand the impact of autism and necessary accommodations? Shouldn't she also contact us at some point? So far, she was only involved in the initial school evaluation for the IEP.
Our 9yo son's (Bubby's) annual IEP meeting was on December 16th of last year. He is in 3rd grade and has Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified, as well as apraxia of speech, ADHD, and some occupational therapy issues as well. We requested some minor modifications, including help with his math facts and reduced homework. We also asked that he be permitted to use a portable word processor for assignments requiring sentence writing, as writing is extremely difficult for him and getting in the way of showing what he knows.
At the meeting we learned that his classroom teacher was not using a visual schedule, providing sensory breaks, or some other things that were in the IEP in effect from the prior year. We had requested the portable word processor the previous year, and the school autism therapist was supposed to check into it and never got back to us. It turns out she never spoke with his new classroom teacher for this year, and thus, this year's teacher was not informed about our son's specific autism needs. We did talk with Bubby's classroom teacher at the start of the school year, but we didn't go line-by-line through the IEP with her.
And . . . we weren't notified before the most recent IEP meeting that the school autism specialist would not be present at the meeting. Apparently she didn't come to school because her daughter was sick that day. Since the IEP meeting, we have not heard anything at all from the school. We haven't received an updated written IEP or notification of whether or not the portable word processor will be used, etc. While I don't think the autism specialist is required to attend the IEP meetings, it sure would be helpful!
Question 1: How long does the school have after the annual IEP meeting to provide an updated written IEP and to implement it?
I have tried to look up the rules regarding the time period in which the school must provide us a copy of the new written IEP, but so far, I've been unsuccessful.
Question 2: What is the role of the school autism specialist? Shouldn't she be contacting Bubby's classroom teacher at least at the beginning of the school year to help the teacher understand the impact of autism and necessary accommodations? Shouldn't she also contact us at some point? So far, she was only involved in the initial school evaluation for the IEP.