IEP vs. Maclean School in Potomac

[Anonymous]

DS will be entering Kindergarten. He was diagnosed with a mild speech
delay( pragmatic and word retrieval primarily and ADHD inattentive
type). Our developmental pediatrician did not diagnose DS with PDD, but
the child psychologist did state that the symptoms were possibly
associated with PDD. DS's academic and cognitive functions are fully
within the average range, however, so we didn't expect services from
Montgomery County. Armed with our private evaluations, we just finished
our IEP meeting with our home school, and we received all the services
we wanted; 45 minutes a week of language therapy, 45 minutes a week of a
social skills group, and classroom accommodations.

We are also considering Mclean school in Potomac. We heard it's a good
environment for quirky learners. We toured that school, had a good
impression. The teachers seem very experienced, caring and patient. The
class size is very small. Our concern is, if most of the kids there are
very active, need lots of teacher's redirection, will it be a little
overwhelming environment for DS. They only have 8 kids(5 boys and 3 girls)
so far for next year. Is it too small? Will DS have less chance to make friends?
In the mean time, DS will see other
kids similar to him, DS won't feel like he stands out, and may have more
chances to develop friendships. (I'm all confused)

However, we're conflicted now that the county has provided a good IEP
for DS. We were impressed with the staff at our home school. We felt
they understood the exact goals we wanted reached with therapy. Our
concern is the big class size, as there will be around 25 kids in one
class.

We are seeking opinions. Public school with a comprehensive IEP or
Mclean School in Potomac?

Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Wow, that is a hard choice. How big is the class he is in now? How comfortable are you with the classroom accomodations for attention?

Our consultatnt told us to try free first if there was any chance of it working. Sounds like McLean would have a spot for him if it doesn't work out, although I know that you want to have him continue at the same place.

How far are you from McLean? Our consultant also said that for kinds like ours, the shorter the day/distance the better, and that nighborhood schools can offer social advantages - easy playdates, perhaps walking to school together, etc.

We are in a similar spot, I look forward to hearing the opinions of other parents.

[Anonymous]

Sorry. Typo. The subject should be "Mclean School in Potomac".

[Anonymous]

OP here. His current classroom is small, but there's not enough structure for him. We are looking
for a structured environment.
Mclean is close to us. Our home school is good, it's in Walter Johnson cluster.

[Anonymous]

It sounds like your home school is willing to work with you. I would give it a go. In this economy you will probably be able to reapply to the private school if things don't work out. There is something to be said about community and going to school with the neighborhood. Just my opinion. Mom of 3 kids!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. His current classroom is small, but there's not enough structure for him. We are looking
for a structured environment.
Mclean is close to us. Our home school is good, it's in Walter Johnson cluster.

I have a child with a disability and have been there [wished I had]done that. MCPS and FCPS are NOT good situations for a child who has average to high iq and a hidden [non-physical] disability. Best advice? You know your child's situation and don't mess around with these huge public school districts.

[Anonymous]

PP, I think that you are right about the big districts but I think it is easy to be too starry eyed about the privates too.

I think McLean is a good school and they definitely have small classes and structure. But I have known parents less than thrilled with the amount of feedback they got re: their child, they also thought that they didn't have much of a chance for input. The teachers are not special ed teachers and may not handle issues other than traditional learning disabilities so much better than any other teacher.

Fwiw, I don't think McLean serves traditionally autistic kids - more like AS, PDD kids, kids with attention issues, dyslexia, etc. The teachers are supposed to be good but they are not trained to work with special needs kids, it was originally a school for kids with learning differences.

OP, how much is money a factor? Will you be able to pay for McLean to provide the services that you could get at your local school? According to a friend, they do a LOT of work on pragmatics with all of the kids throughout the lower school. They can also do some knd of lunch bunch thing to help kids socially connect. Not sure of the details on that, but it might work out well for your son.

I thik that McLean allows incoming students to "visit". Why not have your son spend an hour there and see how well the environment works for him? It sounds like you have 2 strong options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. His current classroom is small, but there's not enough structure for him. We are looking
for a structured environment.
Mclean is close to us. Our home school is good, it's in Walter Johnson cluster.

I have a child with a disability and have been there [wished I had]done that. MCPS and FCPS are NOT good situations for a child who has average to high iq and a hidden [non-physical] disability. Best advice? You know your child's situation and don't mess around with these huge public school districts.

MCPS and FCPS are also not good fits for kids average to high iq WITH physical disabilities as well. We have found that to be every school's biggest challenge--from private to public--not being able to support a very very bright child who 'happens' to have physical limitations. Just a little point, as I see numerous posts from parents of non-physically disabled kids who seems to think/assume the counties have it all planned out for kids like mine. We are all in this together, whether parents of kids w/cognitive, speech/language, ASD, SPD, or physical challenges.

[Anonymous]

PP, could you elaborate "MCPS and FCPS are NOT good situations for a child who has average to high iq and a hidden [non-physical] disability."?

Thanks!