Sorta Special Education question but sorta not...

[rlsnights]

I'm pondering the approach of summer with deep concern. Ok, make that fear.

What am I going to do with difficult child 2 to keep him on track. Which is code for out of the house, doing constructive activities with peers and adults on a set schedule that requires him to get up and out of the house in the mornings.

At his last IEP when we changed his classification to ED and moved him to the stand alone ED classroom we also added ESY services.

We were also told that there was probably only going to be 4 weeks of "summer school" for ESY high school students, for 3 or 4 hours a day and that they wouldn't get any high school credit for going. Plus difficult child 2 goes to 2 one week long summer camps for kids with Crohn's and they are during those 4 weeks.

So I was thinking about this just now and wondering if I could come up with something for the summer that I could get the school to pay for as his ESY services that is out of the box - not their "summer school" program but something else that would provide some of that structure and social interaction.

Anybody have any ideas? Once difficult child 2 gets out of the house he can usually handle structured situations like school pretty well as long as he goes consistently. Otherwise he gets really anxious about having been gone and then won't go - so it's a vicious circle.

Thanks,

Patricia

 

[BusynMember]

Any camps for special needs children? I know Easter Seals does that here. It's free!

 

[JJJ]

Salvation Army runs a cheap ($25) camp and they can handle 'high energy' kids.

Vacation Bible School (if you are Christian) as a jr counselor. In our area, I could have my kids do VBS every week all summer long by hopping from Church to Church. Heck, maybe the local synagogue and mosque have their own summer program -- you could create your own comparative religions course

He's too young for a job still but maybe he can volunteer every day somewhere?? Maybe at a nursing home...they always need people to play cards, read to them, scribe for them, etc.

 

[nvts]

This is going to require some research on your behalf (I don't know much about Cal. Education systems) but if you can show that he will regress without the structure necessary during that long of a vacation time (statements from his psychiatrist and/or therapist), you COULD file for an impartial hearing for them to provide money for a program that will keep him occupied in a structured environment. HOWEVER: you have to find out what programs are available and petition the IEP team to add it to his IEP. If they won't then you have to go for filing an impartial hearing. Now in NY, some districts quake at the idea of going to impartial hearing because (in the NYC Dept. of Ed.) it costs the school $10,000 for one - win or lose.

I'd put this question to the gals on the Special Education forum - they're the ones that really know this stuff through and through!

Good luck!

Beth

 

[rlsnights]

We already have agreement on extended school year services being appropriate. The problem with getting the district to pay for a structured setting like a NPS (non-public school) is that his attendance is a key issue. If he's only going to show up part of the day every day, it's hard to push the district to pay $100+ a day to place him in that kind of program for the summer. While I think it might be helpful for him, I'm also a tax payer in a school district on the brink financially and want to be responsible in my use of services. Going to due process would take far too long and really I don't think that's what is needed. I think if I brought a solid idea to the IEP team that didn't cost an arm and a leg and there was a way for the Special Education people to pay for it - the team would go for it.

I guess I put it out on the general board because I was wondering what other people have found works for their kids who are anxious and want to just sit home all day. It's hard to find a place for him to volunteer much because of his age. Here it's nearly impossible to volunteer until you're 16 unless your parent is the primary volunteer and supervises you. I have explored that quite a bit actually.

Although the idea of creating our own comparative religions experience is intriguing, we have a policy of not supporting or being involved in organizations that object to our family's very existence or that have a really lousy track record for involving/supporting people with mental illness. That would include the Salvation Army and most of the organized religious groups. We have been active church-goers in the past but after a series of traumatizing experiences at several different churches/denominations we have stopped doing that. I doubt my partner or I will ever step into a church except for a wedding or funeral again. Regardless of how "welcoming" they say they are. You only have to kick us three or four times before we stop coming back for another kicking. Ick. Sorry to dump that on you guys but if I told you some of the stuff we've - and more to the point our kids - have been subjected to you would probably be at least as upset as we were.

I'll keep plugging away here looking for something.

All the best,

Patricia