Full time Se is great in my opinion. The neuro told us Daniel has bp and this why he is worse at home than school. Lang.disorder for 10 years isn't part of bp/adhd is it. Another option is Se in all but science/social studies. I know we have some here that have school this way. This way they still do pe/recess/lunch/art/music mainstreamed. Ugghhh!
My daughter's 2nd day of kindergarten I get a phone-call from the principal... 3 teachers had to restrain Sara. She took off out of the lunchroom when she was done eating (or grazing is more like it). She wanted to be in a different area of the playground then the rest of her class and was playing chase with the aids. When they caught her they restrained her and she tried the bite them. In her own words she said,"my head blew up into pieces". Poor kid
Anyway, she is in-district in a self-contained special-ed classroom K/1/2. She is the only student with an ASD in the class. They can have 16 kids with the special ed teacher and 1 paraprofessional.
We pushed a few things over the summer with the child study team when we developed her IEP. We think she needs more 1 on 1 with someone ABA trained. Her behavioral issues are priority in our mind. The team thought that she didn't warrant any behavioral interventions, nor a Functional Behavioral Assessment. The child they saw 1 on 1 during her testing is not the same child that takes off, throws tantrums, and just doesn't plain understand action-consequence.
Now we are scrambling to figure out where to place her. The team at her school agrees that her classroom as it is right now is inappropriate for her needs. They took me and my husband to 3 other in-district classrooms to see if they were a better fit. They weren't. The only thing I can think of right now is that she needs to go to Cappello school out-of-district into their kindergarten autistic program where she can get 1 on 1 help.
I am so frustrated.
FBA - Functional Behavioral Assessment/Analysis.
BIP - Behavior Intervention Plan
The following topic on our forum includes a reader-friendly introductory article with links to related material (including sample behavior plans).
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=20015&am p;KW=sample
I had never heard of APRAIS before (The Alliance to Prevent Restraint, Aversive Interventions, and Seclusion).
Thanks for sharing the link.
[QUOTE=tzoya]A "shadow" is a one-on-one aide who is supposed to be unobtrusive in the classroom and just step up to the plate when needed. I applaud the school for doing this so quickly. However, it will have to be added to his IEP officially in a meeting, so plan on participating in another IEP meeting soon. And while you're at it, get an FBA done so that a good BIP can be added to the IEP, too. And ask what training the "shadow" has. Aides not trained in ASD can be more of a problem than a help. Let us know how it goes.[/QUOTE]
What do FBA and BIP stand for? I'm going to schedule an IEP meeting with the school this morning and want to make sure I know what I need to ask for.
Site re aversives, including restraints:
It's a long process, but so worth the work and effort. Definately get the FBA/BIP in your IEP.
Best of luck
I just want to let you know I am going thru the exact same thing. my son just entered kinderg. and he is not cooperating - a group of 8 right now - but will go up to 12 children with 1 teacher and 1 para. he has behavior issues - hitting and kicking - the teachers and children - running away when he gets a chance. I am trying to get him a para right now - but it is still in the process don't know what they are going to do or where they are going to place him - i am sick over this and don't know who to turn to for help... i truly understand
I'm sorry to hear you're off to a rough start. The sensory-neutral testing situation is so different from the highly-stimulating school environment -- especially cafeteria, playground, and gym class. It sounds like she needs her own aide, so she can be protected from over-stimulation -- allowing solutions like eating lunch in the classroom with the aide and a buddy, taking breaks, etc.
I hope you can find a better solution. Good luck with everything.
Your daughte DEFINITELY needs to have an FBA done. Call and IEP meeting immediately. Ask that a BCBA or autism consultant be brought in to do the FBA and develop a BIP. Emphasize the safety issue of a kid bolting. At the very least, your daughter needs and aide and the staff needs indirect services of an autism consultant to help them understand autism. Put your request for an IMMEDIATE FBA in writing. This class may very well not be the appropriate placement for your daugther, but the BCBA may be able to give more input on that.Well I have phonecalls in to COSAC (our NJ based Autism Organization). I am waiting for the return call of course since you can never get anyone on the phone when you call.
They have a list of organizations that will do FBAs in the school.
Unfortunately, the school is closed for Jewish holidays today and tomorrow.
I agree with everything that was said here. And please to anyone new at this.... have everything in writing to cover your butt. We have the letter written up to the team again about getting these services ASAP.
It is such a dance back and forth isn't it.
I had this problem last year, it was a total nightmare, regular special ed class, no training or experience in autism, 12-15 kids in the class with 1 teacher and 1 untrained aide. Everyone about gave up on Nikolas, threw their hands up in the air, said he's autistic we can't expect more. So I put him in a different school (with the help of the school psych) in an autism classroom with a teacher with many years experience specifically with autistic kids and he is a model student. He has had one mild tantrum and she knew exactly how to handle it and after a few minutes he did as requested, end of tantrum. (essentially you can't push nikolas, you have to push and then backoff. This method works perfectly, but no one else would listen to me about this) I would go look at the autism class and do what Tzoya says and get an FBA in there with recomendations.I have to chime in here and just say that before I had children I hated to see parents having their child on a "leash". I thought it was such an inhumane product....LOL
[QUOTE=tzoya]Does he have a one-on-one aide?[/QUOTE]
Tzoya, they just started having someone "shadow" him yesterday morning. His teacher called me and let me know while I was on my way to work. I'm not sure what that entails yet but I am going to call the school this afternoon and check in on the process. Sadly, I am not even sure what questions I should be asking. I would really like to go to school one day and observe him but I need a one way mirror for that or he will be all over the place trying to get to me.
LOL I completely understand about the leash. My husband was deployed for 8 months last year and I had to have Wal-Mart closed down twice in one week after DW ran off. After the second time I pulled a child leash off the shelf, took it out of the package and put it on him before we went to the check out line. Now I just don't take the kids shopping with me unless Dad or another adult can come. Of course, I think Wal-Mart can be sensory overload for anyone let alone an Autistic child. A "shadow" is a one-on-one aide who is supposed to be unobtrusive in the classroom and just step up to the plate when needed. I applaud the school for doing this so quickly. However, it will have to be added to his IEP officially in a meeting, so plan on participating in another IEP meeting soon. And while you're at it, get an FBA done so that a good BIP can be added to the IEP, too. And ask what training the "shadow" has. Aides not trained in ASD can be more of a problem than a help. Let us know how it goes.I am so gald to read these things! I know that probably sounds bad but what I mean is I am grateful to know that my son is not the only one struggling with kindergarten.
He just started a few weeks ago and it has been one ordeal after another. We had bus scheduling problems which blew the entire first two weeks of school. No one (and I'm willing to bet that's no one in this entire county) is trained to work with Autistic children. I will say that DWs teacher, EC teacher and the behavior specialist at the school are trying so hard to work with and be patient with him. They called me this morning to let me know that they are bringing someone in to shadow him over the next couple of weeks in an effort to keep him in the classroom. I'm assuming that they mean not transferring him to the EC class permanantly.
He has been trying to run away whenever he can. And is non-compliant about doing any work. Apparently, he starts talking very loudly and gets very disruptive when it's time to read. And in all honesty I just don't know what to do or how to handle any of it. He does some of the same things at home but of course at home we can be one on one and remove anything that is bothering him.
He was officially diagnosed about a year ago and I still feel like I am completely clueless about everything. The school is asking me for ideas on how to help him and I don't have any answers. It's so frustrating because I know DW is learning all the things they are doing in class because he comes home and understands what I ask him to do for homework, he sings songs that he has learned at school, etc. Even though it seems like nothing is getting through sometimes I can see some results.
Well, anyway it's really nice to know we are not alone.
DW's Mommy -- Make sure the school takes his running off (elopement) seriously. This is a big safety issue. There are tips about dealing with elopement under these topics on our forum, among others:
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=16989&am p;am p;KW=Lifesaver
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=17018&am p;am p;KW=missing
Good luck with everything!
Your child's IEP must specify restraint or no restraint, under EXACTLY what circumstances, who can do it and what, exactly the training of that person must be. You can absolutely REFUSE to allow restraints to be used. However, if she cannot be controlled in a less restrictive environment without restraining her, she will probably need to be moved to a more restrictive environment. That could be good for her. Lots of kids cannot tolerate less restrictive environments and the PLACEMENT is what is causing the negative behavior. Behavior is a form of communication. Perhaps your daughter is communicating that her IEP needs a change. You will only know that if a pro is used to evaluate the behavior and address it in a new BIP. If a child's behavior gets to the point of needing restraints, the interventions that are supposed to help have failed.The school has been very concerned about his running off. I've actually been pretty impressed at how on top of it they are. However, it still worries me.
Thanks for the links.
Does he have a one-on-one aide?