Elementary school for moderate functioning autism

[Anonymous]

Hello i am looking for an elementary school for my son that has a dedicated resource room but is mostly Gen Ed. I am looking for a school that will set the expectations to keep him on track with his school grade. I also have a neurotypical daughter so i would prefer them to be in the same school. We are looking for a place that offers a community feel. Anywhere near Bethesda, McClean, Fairfax, Arlington, Washburn area. Please name the school, new to the area!

[Anonymous]

Auburn or Ivymount. I assume you are asking about private. But they are both quite expensive. Why not your public school? Where do u live?

[Anonymous]

I should have said no private school they are too expensive! I'm trying to locate a good school then move to that area. Currently I live in Michigan.

[Anonymous]

Public school? Almost entirely dependent on the quality of the staff and they move around a lot.

[Anonymous]

Can you describe what you mean by moderate autism? and do you currently have an IEP in place ? What grade? Also, your budget and where you need to commute to are huge factors in this area.

[Anonymous]

Yes of course. Moderate is he still needs prompts to stay on task and regular help. He needs a resource room for breaks and a one on one for some subjects. He's capable of entering gen Ed but not full time. I agree it's the teachers and staff that make the school, that's why it's so important for me to get feedback. It will make the transition for him easier if there is a capable staff.i will commute to d.c but I'm willing to travel a 45_1hr each way if it means he can receive great teachers and services in the area. We are going to be living in an apartment until we find a subdivision we like.hope this helps.

[Anonymous]

Also, he's in 1st grade.

[Anonymous]

My son sounds similar to yours. We are in Montgomery County and we have found that the public school does not offer very good options for the kiddos in the middle. I only tell you that to prepare you. I have heard very good things about Burning Tree Elementary and also Kensington Parkwood.

Good Luck with your move!

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the warning! I have to tell you I feel like the support for our kiddos riding the edge is minimal everywhere! I was so hoping for better services! Thanks again!

[Anonymous]

I also have a similar child... these types of kids are very underserved in MoCo. They are mostly mainstreamed with supports to varying degrees of (un)helpfulness.

If you have a more restrictive placement now that you think is working, you could ask to be considered for the MCPS Aspergers program. This program takes on-grade-level capable children with an autism coding on their IEP. If your child is below grade level, you could look into one of the Learning Center programs located at various schools in the county.

If you have an IEP now and are in a mainstream setting with supports, I would imagine that's what you'd get here. But, there are no aides in mainstream classes. Typically, you will see a special ed or resource teacher who rotates around different classrooms throughout the day.

[Anonymous]

Chesterbrook ES in McLean- in FCPS. However, as in Montgomery County you will not get a one to one aide.

[Anonymous]

MCPS doesn't have every special ed program in every school. Many MCPS elementary schools don't even have inclusion options. That being said, MCPS will bus your son to the elementary school that MCPS considers "local" that has the program MCPS for which MCPS determines your son to be eligible and provide transportation to school and to home (but not to early care or from after care). Generally, MCPS will allow siblings to attend the same school and ride the bus together. This may expand your geographic horizons slightly in Montgomery County. You can find which schools have which programs (at least last year's 2015-16 school year) by reviewing the "Schools at a Glance" here: http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/sharedaccountability/glance/

It's probably easiest to just review the "Entire 2015-2016 Schools at a Glance" pdf. Based on the discussion, the programs you may be most interested in are the "Elementary Home School Model" (inclusion in a general classroom setting with rotating paraeducator support), "Elementary Learning Center" (self-contained classroom with children generally on diploma-track), and "Asperger's Program" (children with ASD at or above grade level academically, but generally with behaviors that interfere with learning in a general education environment). Note that only two elementary schools have the Asperger's Program, so there would likely be a long bus ride for your children (to either Gaithersburg or eastern Silver Spring). There were 11 schools last year with Elementary Learning Centers. And, there were a number of elementary schools with the Elementary Home School Model.

I don't know how FCPS works.

[Anonymous]

What is your budget? This will help a lot in giving advice. 45 minutes is not that far out of the city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son sounds similar to yours. We are in Montgomery County and we have found that the public school does not offer very good options for the kiddos in the middle. I only tell you that to prepare you. I have heard very good things about Burning Tree Elementary and also Kensington Parkwood.

Good Luck with your move!

Heed the warnings. This isn't a normal area . If you think private school is expensive have you looked at the housing prices ?
You might look into Carderock Springs.

[Anonymous]

That program is self-contained for more severely impacted children who cannot be in general education. At the other end is the Asperger's program for kids on the mild end of the spectrum and who are at or above grade level.

If you are looking for something in between, I think learning centers might work and Burning Tree has a great one. These programs are designed to support children with a mix of gen ed and self-contained. The danger with MoCo is that the district might want to stick him in gen ed without supports first to see if he sinks or not before spending the money for a program.