My son qualified for one hour a week of occupational therapy, but I just found out it is an hour a week with 5 other children. Isn't it supposed to be individual direct instruction for one hour/week? Good thing I didn't sign his IEP yet, I want to get clarification on this. I just assumed that a related service was individual to each child.
Direct instruction does not mean 1:1 instruction. 1:1 would need to be specifically stated, and based on evidence that the needs require 1:1 instruction.Thanks for answering my post!
In my case, I was so glad he qualified that I didn't even think to ask about that. If it is for group OT, then should I make sure IEP specifies how much of that time will be spent with him? Especially since his teacher told me, "He's doing great with scissors, he's more advanced than the other children!" That sounds like a red flag to me!
The time with the OT is specified in the IEP already- those are the direct minutes. Direct minutes are the amount of time the service provider spends with the child. It does not reflect whether this is in a small group or 1:2 or 1:1. It is an incorrect assumption that 1:1 service is always best or most effective- quite often having other students available for modeling or peer instruction can be an effective part of service time.
Instruction given specifically to your child during these service minutes will be individualized to your child's needs and IEP goals. However, your child's individualized instruction may match very closely with another child's so peers could be learning alongside each other.
If you want 1:1 service time for your child, you will need to request that specifically and the team will likely honor it if there is data from the most recent assessment to support this need.
And if the school OT eval does not support one-on-one but you still suspect your child NEEDS it, request and Independent Educational Evaluation. They have to pay for you to take your child to the evaluator of your choice.