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Issues with teacherI was wondering if maybe anyone was having issues with their child's teacher. My son had been in her emotional support classroom for 2 1/2 years now and it's been nothing but drama. He was diagnosed with PDD-NOS until this past summer, right before he turned 10. As soon as we got the dx I started doing research on pdd and found out the answers to so many different things. Like what we thought were "temper tantrums" were actually meltdowns due to sensory overload. I have given the teacher so many suggestions to help with his behavior when he is having a meltdown, I've given her signs of what to look for when a meltdown is coming on and she doesn't take any of my suggestions. She has told me repeatedly that he is doing this on purpose and I know that is not the case. All the other staff at the school seems to "get" what I'm saying but she just thinks he is a bad kid who doesn't want to follow her rules. Nothing could be further than the truth. I just don't know what to do anymore :(First of all, welcome to the board! This is a great place that has lots of support and great advice from many members.Second, does your son have an IEP? Does he receive OT services under that IEP? I would think that some sensory work would be in order and that the OT should be working with the classroom teacher on these issues. Also, do you have an autism specialist working with him or observing him? This would be a person who should consult with the teacher as well. I would want that person to be observing him in the classroom and taking down data several times to help figure out what is going on - I'll write a bit more on that later. What exactly is an emotional support classroom? Is that like an EBD classroom? If so, that is probably not a great placement for your son. EBD teachers are more likely to see kids who try to manipulate and not have as much training or experience with kids on the spectrum. It is not a good sign that she is saying that he is doing this on purpose. I would call an IEP meeting and make sure the principal or director of Special Ed is there. I would also bring an advocate, if you can find one. If there are behavioral issues (like meltdowns), ask for an FBA (functional behavioral analysis) so that the team can make a BIP (behavioral intervention plan). I am not an expert in these areas - but there are people on the board who will chime in I'm sure if you have questions about the FBA or BIP. You want an FBA done in order to figure out what is triggering the meltdowns. If it shows that it is sensory - then they will have to figure out what to do in order to give him the proper sensory input. Until that point, it is your word against hers and since it is her classroom - she will continue to believe how she wants to, unfortunately. I'm sorry you're going through this - it is sad that a professional just doesn't "get it". I'm dealing with that at our school as well - from ds' long-term sub autism teacher. Thankfully, he only sees her for about 1/2 hour a day - the rest of the time he is mainstreamed and his teacher is great as are all the shared paras that work with he and three other kids in his class. Basically, I just keep telling myself we will get through this year and the sub will be gone. Then we start over with a NEW teacher. Ugh. I am sure others will chime in - but I would call a team meeting soon. That does not sound like a good situation for your son to be in! Thank you very much for welcoming me, I need all the support I can get :) My son does have an IEP and he also recieves OT at school. The OT seems to mainly work on things like handwriting and tying shoes, etc. There really isn't any sensory work being done with him from that end. He also has a TSS but she is only there in the morning when he goes to his mainstream class. He has had no issues in his mainstream class, the meltdowns occur when he goes back into the ES classroom. My ds recieves services from the Center for Autism and Developemental Disabilites. The Dr.'s that he sees there have also given suggestions to the teacher in writing and she just will not apply them. It's to the point where he is refusing to go to her classrom in the pm after his mainstream class. Once he is back in her class he is so overstimulated that he cannot regain control of himself and has his meltdowns. Before his dx he used to bang his head a lot at school when he got frusrtated but since he's been recieving services at CADD that had pretty much stopped and now he is back to doing it again. He was suspended today, for tomorrow and Wednesday because of a meltdown he had in her class. The Asst. Principal said that they would be contacting me because they want to set up an IEP revision meeting sometime next week. I just know this is not going to be good. I'm not sure if I'll be able to remain professional and keep my patience if she says he is doing this on purpose one more time.If he is not having problems in his mainstream classes then ask that he be taken out of her class. This does not mean he will no longer receive services, just not from this class, which is clearly shown to be ineffective. A child should not be suspended for having a meltdown. Do they want to support him or punish him? If he still needs a break during the day from his mainstream class, ask that it be provided in a more appropriate place, or since he does not need the TSS in the morning when things are going fine, ask that that person be provided in the afternoon. Many modifications can take place in the classroom without him being removed. I would definitely get an advocate and brief them on this so he/she can thoroughly read through your IEP and come up with a good proposal when you meet. They scheduled the IEP revision meeting for April 20th but I have no idea what is going to happen until then. In the mainstream class, the teacher has given him cards that say "I need a break", if he feels he needs a break then he either holds up the card or he can walk up to her desk and hand it to her and she lets him take the break. This seems to be working really well for him. I do have a phone conference with an advocate today. I can't give the advocate the IEP because the ES teacher hasn't provided me with a copy yet (the original IEP meeting was in February) and I also do not have a copy of the behavior plan.He def. needs to be moved from the ES classroom because the teacher is never going to believe that his behaviors are not intentional. At the last IEP meeting I asked if he would need to be in an Autistic Support classroom and they told me no and that there are no support classes in district for kids who are considered high functioning. You also need to ask for a manifestation determination. They can only suspend him for so long if they determine that his negative behavior is caused by his disability (here I say DUH!). Type up a letter today asking for all of those papers in writing. Good Luck! First of all, if you had the IEP meeting in February and you STILL do not have a final copy of the IEP, the school is out of compliance. You should also have a copy of the behavior plan. Request IN WRITING that the school provide these immediately. Make sure that you have written documentation of any exchange (telephone conversation, etc). to create a chronology you can refer to. As far as the upcoming IEP goes, I would suggest that you use it as an opportunity to include that all teachers/therapists on the team go through mandatory training in autism spectrum disorder (which includes PDD-NOS). It is ludicrous that it is your child's mainstream teacher that gets it, but his ES teacher does not (and kudos to the mainstream teacher!). Use the examples you've cited above - the mainstream teacher's supports via picture cards, etc. - to demonstrate WHY your son is functioning in the mainstream classroom but then going into meltdown in the ES classroom because those supports are not continued. I would also use the opportunity of the IEP meeting to request his removal from her classroom, as she has been resistive to suggestions from your son's experts - meaning you and his physicians/autism team - and it is obvious she has no intention of finding a way to work with your child. Whether there is a behavior plan in place at the moment or not, it is obvious that it is either (a) NOT being followed; or (b) not working. Therefore, request another FBA - and that it be performed by a qualified person (that means NOT the ES teacher!) to assess why the meltdowns are occurring. Request testing for sensory integration - or get the OT's recommendations on what goals/objectives need to be put in place to help with sensory integration. While you may feel that the meeting has been called as a "diss your son" - turn it around and use it to your advantage by establishing that what is currently in place is obviously not working and not in your son's interests, so it needs to be changed. Turn it into an opportunity to move forward in getting your child the supports and services he needs. I have kept documentation of phone calls that I have recieved and made to the school but stupid me, I don't have a paper trail to back anything up as far as asking for paperwork from them. As for asking for the copies of the IEP and behavior plans in writing should I send them through the mail perhaps certified or would it be okay to just give the letter of request to the principal? I will of course make copies of any letter that I give to the school from now on. I would address everything to the Director of Special Education and send a copy to someone else (teacher, psychologist, principal -- someone). Ask for an IMMEDIATE copy of the IEP and the BIP. Also, the answer to how many days a child with an IEP can be suspended outside of school. is 10 days. After 10 days, they are no longer allowed to suspend unless they have a Manifestation Determination meeting that decides that the behavior in question is not at all connected to the disability. If the group decides that your son's behavior IS connected to the disability (or if it is determned that the IEP was inadequate, tho this is harder to prove because you are essentially asking the group to say that they were incompetent), your son can no longer be suspended for THAT behavior AND the IEP MUST be adjusted to better serve him. Oftentimes this means a change of placement into an environment that works better for the child (for example, a self-contained situation). BUt all of that depends on what the group decides. You are definitely a part of that group. I would use your advocate as much as possible and make certain s/he participates in the Manifestation Determination meeting. Your state might even have stricter (on the District) rules about discipline, giving you and your son more rights. The advocate should know those rules. Keep us posted.Yesterday I spoke to my ds psychologist about the situation and she gave me some really great tips about the upcoming meeting. She also recommended a book called Wrightslaw From Emotions To Advocacy and let me tell you it's a lifesaver. I had no idea that a thank you note for a phone call or a meeting could be so important. Today I will be hand delivering a note to the Head of the Special Ed department and also to the principal at my son's school requesting copies of the IEP and Behavior Plan from February. I want to thank everyone for their help, you all are PRICELESS!!! I will keep you posted. I recommend FROM EMOTIONS TO ADVOCACY repeatedly on this Board, so I'm glad to hear it's helping. I am a professional advocate and it helps me and it has also helped me as a parent. Looking up information on www.wrightslaw.com is also helpful. Just go their search engine and type anything in . There is bound to be a good article there on the subject you're interested in. Remember that all the info on Wrightslaw and in the book is based on FEDERAL law. Your state may give you and your child even more rights, so contact your state dept. of education for a copy of your state's regulations.I just got finished with my letters. My dh just left to drop them off to their recipients .
This is the letter to the teacher: Dear Mrs.(her last name), On February 5th of this year the IEP team conducted an IEP review meeting for my son Aaron. As of today 4/14/09 I still have not recieved a copy of the IEP or the behavior plan. The last copy of the behavior plan I have is dated 11/18/08. On 4/11/09 I recieved from you another invitation to participate in an IEP review meeting that is scheduled for 4/20/09. So that I can be better prepared for the upcoming meeting I am asking that you please send me the most recent copy of Aaron's IEP and behavior plan. It is important for me to review these so that I can draft some ideas for the team that I feel will help Aaron be more successful at school. If you have any questions or concerns about my request please call me at home (stated phone number) or on my cell phone (stated cell number) . You can also email me at (gave email address). I would like to thank you in advance for your quick response to this matter. Sincerely, ( my name & signature) I then wrote a separate letter to teh principal, Director of Special Ed and the Special Ed Coordinator. Here is the letter: Dear (Name) Enclosed you will find for your records a letter I sent to Mrs.(name) regarding copies of Aaron's IEP and Behavior PLan. There is a scheduled IEP review meeting for Aaron on 4/20/09 at 10am . I look forward to seeing you there. I would like to thank you in advance for all your help. I ended this letter with the same ways to contact me as in the teacher's letter. What do you all think? Are these letters good enough or should I have put something else in them? I tried to word it as nicely as possible because I don't want the teacher to feel like I'm attacking her or flat out accusing her of being incompetent. I have another update.... The ES teacher called me a few minutes ago and she was not very happy she said that she does not have the IEP or the Behavior PLan. According to her the Special Ed Coordinator has it and the ES teacher (after recieving my letter) called her and asked her to send me a copy. I have 2 problems with this #1 every time I have gotten a copy of the IEP and/or Behavior Plan it has come from the ES teacher and I have the envelopes they came in to prove it. #2 If she doesn't have these documents in her possession how can she be sure she is following them correctly? As everyone here knows there is a LOT of information in those reports and she has 5 students in her classroom that all have IEP's specifically designed for them how is she supposed to comply with them if she doesn't have them? I don't know what to think except she just put herself, and the school district in a lot of hot water. P.S. I did document this phone call in my call log book, including date, time and a brief paragraph of what was said between the both of us.Any team member or teacher working with your child is to (a) have a copy of the IEP and/or BIP; and (b) be familiar with it in order to implement it in their classroom/therapy setting. If they don't, they are out of compliance.Yesterday was our meeting and I'm happy to say it went well I basically got everything I wanted out of the meeting. My ds will not be going to the emotional support classroom for the rest of the year. She will be involved only to lend the mainstream teacher support. I also used a parent attachment to get more services for ds. He will have an increase in OT which will include sensory integration therapy. I also requested that teachers be educated on ASD or someone trained in ASD be provided to the school. I kinda used a "scre tactic" with them at the meeting, I had a copy of IDEA and put it on top of my paperwork on the table hee hee hee. I just didn't want to take any chances that they wouldn't listen to my concerns. I would like to thank everyone for their help, you are all such a blessing and it's wonderful to feel like there are people who understand  |
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