Martie,
thanks for answering and for your support. The deal is that he goes for the first three periods of the day. that is non negotiable. In Jan he goes for the first three periods plus his Special Education periods (which is 2 or 3 times a week, depending on the week) unless I think it is a waste of time, but right now I think it is valuable. Should he choose to remain for the whole day, then he can. That's what negotiable. I don't want to make him feel like he has to come home (lol)!
I think we need to make up a little contract with him and the school to formalize things. And we also need to make sure that he and I and his Dad are on the same page in terms of how available we intend to make ourselves in during the 11:15 to 3 pm period that he is out of school and at home. (Available, but not slaves)
I was wondering to myself wether it is that middle schools tend to be more flexible than high school (as was your experience); whether districts that are not super competitive and Ivy bound are more flexible; small districts more than large; or whether it is completely idiosyncratic and depends on who is head of Special Education at the school. Not that it matters, just a question that crossed my mind.
Anyway, we will see how it goes. I expect some testing I guess. If he gets adamant about staying home totally, then I guess it is back to school and he can sit on the couch in the Special Education room until they figure out what to do with him (and maybe begin to ultimately see the need for a therapeutic placement!)
Chris
