Public schools in Nova that are supportive of ASD

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Louise Archer elementary school in Vienna is really great with SNs and IEPs. They give services freely, never have demand/ask/beg. Sometimes I wondered if kid was getting too much support with an aide that would scribe. It also is an AAP school if either of your kids needs gifted services.

An aide that scribes is pretty common especially for children that are easily distracted, write slowly, have slow processing speeds, poor handwriting, need instructions read to them, need help organizing thoughts (though additional graphic organizers would be written in as well), etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in Fairfax and loved that our two boys would be together at our neighborhood elementary. But when our autistic son started kindergarten, it turned out that he needed the support of an enhanced autism classroom, and the one at our school was full. So despite all of our plans, our boys are at two different schools. I think it’s worked out for the best for us - this second school is much smaller and a better fit for our younger son. But I share our experience just to say that things can change in ways you might not expect. Also, in Fairfax, you’ll also need to think about whether your older child might be eligible for Advanced Academic Placement - that might impact your school choice.

OP here. This is a useful perspective. Thanks. I am having trouble wrapping my head around everything, knowing as you said that it could change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you'll find all of the NoVa school systems similar in both positives and negatives. The experience you have will be school, teacher and grade dependent. Those can change in any given year so one school may be fabulous/terrible one year and terrible/fabulous the next. My advice is to focus on location - what will give you the best commute, easier access to service providers and is within your budget.

OP here. Thanks. I appreciate this. We are somewhat flexible on location bc we both have flexible jobs and service provision is plentiful around falls church/mclean/Arlington. I have heard negative things about Fairfax and Arlington only due to the sheer sizes of these districts. Any insights there?

You'd like FCC better, partly because parents have a lot more input and it's easier to get to anyone in any position in the district. Also, services are high quality. Some have a tough time finding a place to live they can afford though, high prices and low inventory.

OP again. Yes the prices in FCC are but it seems like the best fit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Arlington public schools

nope

[Anonymous]

If had to do it over again, definitely FCC public schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have been having a good experience at Terraset ES. Principal was a SPED teacher and creates a very welcoming environment. Also, it has a longstanding local AAP program which could be really beneficial for a 2E child that has ASD or ADHD.

The problem is that principals can change and a bad one can quickly change things, especially since there’s a shortage of special Ed teachers, therapists, speech therapists, etc. and they will all move to another school with the wrong principal.

PP. Yes, that can and does happen. And it could happen anywhere, public or private. It could happen to us next year. The poster asked a question, and I gave an answer. Not sure what your point is.