Special ed schools in MOCO

[Anonymous]

What is PEP Collaboration program? How many days/week and student-teacher ratio?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is scarY to hear about Stephen Knolls. I would not want to send my child over there. I am hoping to find a school that has inclusion program

WHOA. WHOA. WHOA.

Stephen Knolls parent here.

My daughter is graduating from PEP -- a combination of Pep Classic and Pep Beginnings this year. She has been at Stephen Knolls for 2.5 years and I thank my lucky stars we were assigned there. The teachers are the BEST in the PEP program, and the school has fantastic facilities -- she swims in the school's therapy pool once a week and has access to an amazing amount of equipment -- therapy bikes, sit-to-stand prone standers (she was in a evaluative program for this technology), eyegaze technology. Just incredible. I can't tell you how amazing her teacher is because it would take me a War and Peace style post.

The classroom you toured may have been purposely dark because there are students who cannot be sensorily overloaded. THIS IS TRUE OF MANY PEP ENVIRONMENTS, not just Stephen Knolls. In fact, my daughter was at Ashburton for summer extended services and it was even darker in her classroom. The teachers lighten specific areas where the students are playing.

Shame on you for dissing Stephen Knolls. It is an INCREDIBLE school.

[Anonymous]

PP, does your DD's classroom is bright at Stephen Knolls? What class your DD attends?

[Anonymous]

Another Stephen Knolls PEP student parent here. I completely understand the hesitation to send a child to Stephen Knolls due to the lack of typically developing peers because I was concerned about that too. But this school has been so wonderful for my child- first in PEP INC, then in PEP Classic. Every staff member that he encounters there, from the front office to the nurse to the music teacher, is all about serving special needs students. My DS gets far more than what is written in his IEP. We have found other ways to ensure that my DS has exposure to and experiences with typically developing peers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thank you 9.11. http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/pep/locations.shtm list all the locations. How do we judge the good ones?

You will be assigned to PEP based on whether and what level your child qualifies and based on YOUR location. You really can't pick and choose the location. And I've never seen a bad PEP classroom.

My child would have gone to Stephen Knolls in Kensington. The school is dark and is a school for only special needs kids. I'm not saying that it is a bad classroom, but it is a school where my special needs child would have no opportunity to interact with typical peers. Most schools have opportunities for children to interact with typical children who are in head start. So if you want interaction with typical schools ask about whether there is a head start in the school and if there are any activities which the children get together for. I think another parent may be able to add to (or correct) this. My child ended up in a SN class which is not PEP.

Actually, there are many kids at Stephen Knolls PEP who I look at and wonder "What's so wrong with him?" They are going on to a "normal" kindergarten.

[Anonymous]

You know, maybe we need a new thread for "Stupid things that parents of Special needs children say." Like, I'm glad my child is not at Stephen Knolls with the REALLY handicapped children.

[Anonymous]

I have to say I'm extremely upset by the way this thread has gone. This is so unquestionably unacceptable to me. I've never thought about pressing the "report" button on special needs before, but the idea that there would be insulting of one PEP program, or that a certain group of disabled kids would be somehow not as desirable as another.

DISGUSTING.

[Anonymous]

I didn't say there was anything wrong with the program at Stephen Knolls. I said it is dark and there are no opportunities to interact with typical children. I also visited Brookhaven and Montgomery Knolls and didn't find either of those classrooms dark. I think they should renovate Stephen Knolls and make it more modern. It is a school from the 1960's which has never been renovated and sorely deserves it. I can't think of another school that has not been renovated.

Many parents would like their children to interact with typical children. There is nothing wrong with wanting that for your child.

I heard that all SN classrooms in Howard County are inclusive, but don't know for sure.

[Anonymous]

any recommended schools names in howard county with inclusion?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I didn't say there was anything wrong with the program at Stephen Knolls. I said it is dark and there are no opportunities to interact with typical children. I also visited Brookhaven and Montgomery Knolls and didn't find either of those classrooms dark. I think they should renovate Stephen Knolls and make it more modern. It is a school from the 1960's which has never been renovated and sorely deserves it. I can't think of another school that has not been renovated.

Many parents would like their children to interact with typical children. There is nothing wrong with wanting that for your child.

I heard that all SN classrooms in Howard County are inclusive, but don't know for sure.

"It is a school from the 1960's which has never been renovated...I can't think of another school that has not been renovated."

Wrong. and Wrong. And of course, your anecdotal experience of comparing it with Brookhaven and Montomery Knolls and then stating there are no opportunities to interact with "typical children"?

You should just apologize.

[Anonymous]

Really this previous poster was commenting on the looks of the school not the children. There are still a few old buildings left in MoCo that need to be torn down... slowing this is happening. When you walk into these schools they do look old and dark compared to the newer schools. I know this because my kids attend one of the old looking schools. It has nothing to do with the kids inside the school. They actually brighten the school with their work and smiling faces.

As for inclusion it's the way of the world and parents want that for their kids. Nothing wrong with it. As a parent of a special needs child I want that for my child as well. Again, nothing to do with Stephen Knolls or the kids that go there. I am actually surprised MOCO has not changed that to an inclusive school but it has it's advantages which I am sure you see with your child. Everyone makes decisions based on the needs of their child and their family situation. After reading this post I did not get the feeling the OP was trying to hurt your feelings or comment bad on Stephen Knolls.

[Anonymous]

This is OP. I am asking for advice about schools, I have no idea about Stephen Knolls or any school in MOCO to comment in wrong way. I did not post any comments about Stephen Knolls.

[Anonymous]

If it was me (this county is huge and many people have varying opinions). I would find a place you like to live and go with it. If you can do it Bethesda, Potomac, North Potomac are good nice areas with good schools but I need to preface this with most of the elem schools in Mo CO are good. It's the middle and high schools that can become more of an issue. I have lived here all my life and have 3 kids who are all really diff (gifted and sped) and for the most parts all the elem are decent, it really depends on the principal. You might have a school in a lower income area that is better than one in the higher income because the principal is better. Also, people in this area base things on the schools performance on test scores. If this is important to you then i would look at the schools stats and base your decision on that as well. If you are looking for sped programs. Though they all claim to be the same let's face it they are not. It really depends on the teacher. Unfort, teachers move so one person could post XXX school is the best basing the exp on the teacher and then teacher moves to YYY school. I am happy to talk off line and can give you pointers on my personal exp. Take what you read here with a grain of salt, many things are not accurate and based on a families exp with a school or teacher. Let me know we can email. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is OP. I am asking for advice about schools, I have no idea about Stephen Knolls or any school in MOCO to comment in wrong way. I did not post any comments about Stephen Knolls.

Welcome to DCUM. Any thread can go off its tracks at any time and turn into a fight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is PEP Collaboration program? How many days/week and student-teacher ratio?

I only know of one PEP Collaboration which is for 4 year olds at Montgomery Knolls in Silver Spring. It think it meets 4-5 afternoons a week. Maybe another parent can clarify.