I am not sending my child to the assigned class
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Anonymous
I get that. But I only have until September 15th to request a transfer and I do not anticipate it being a seamless process. That gives me less than 2 weeks. We kept her back from moving on to kindergarten this year because her previous ECSE teacher said with the progress she was making, an extra year of ECSE could mean not needing services at all once she got to kindergarten. We made plans based on the fact we were told she could be in that teachers class again this year only to find out she can't be. I would not have made the same choices otherwise. It's a critical year. We kept her back from kindergarten to give her a leg up of one more year of ECSE and I feel like I cannot waste this year. The difference between a good class and a bad or even mediocre me could mean the difference between needing services next year and beyond and possibly not. If she still needs them after this year, I'm fine with that, but only if I know we gave her the best opportunities for success. I'm not willing to put her in this class and simply hope for the best so as not to make waves. That is typically my personality, go with the path of least resistance, etc. but not when it comes to my child's potential. I fully respect others would do it differently but trust me, I have gone over and over this in my head, with my husband, with friends who are educators and I can't make myself put her there. |
Anonymous
| Good for you, OP. Advocate for your kid. (I'm a former teacher and admin saying this, btw.) |
Anonymous
+1. Not sure why the trolls are coming out of the woodwork here. I would try to get her back into last year's school. Be the squeaky wheel. |
Anonymous
I am 99% sure that can't happen. From what I have been told the class is filled and I know they can't just bypass state laws on class size because I say I want that team. I have accepted she can't be in that class again but I know there are many other good classes she could be in. |
Anonymous
| I've been at this over 10 years, op, and I totally agree that you have to advocate for your child. This doesn't sound like a good placement for her but, as a pp said, she might have to actually spend a few days in the class for you to make that argument. Not sure how Loudon works. That being said (and I think you know this) there are ways to advocate for your dc without becoming "one of those parents." You also may want to check out www.wrightslaw.com to bone up on your rights. The website is an excellent resource and will explain important concepts such as what is an appropriate placement. You (and all parents) want the perfect placement for your dc but that is not what the school district is required to provide under the law. Hopefully, they will be able to find you a placement that is more appropriate to you than the one that is being offered to you now and you will be happier. Good luck and keep us posted. |
Anonymous
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OP - I did a split model preschool education as you are doing for your daughter and it worked out quite well as far as giving her as strong a start as possible culminating in a final year of two regular preschools with five or six therapies scheduled after the classes in the neighbor elementary school. However, I would also say that if I was the placement person, I would therefore be looking at "the full-time" students in the ECSE program and giving them preference on placement needs - and perhaps for just the reason you stated that they do have more severe disabilities and need the more experienced teacher. Your daughter is thriving and has the advantage of the private placement, too, which the others may not so. In a way, you can't necessarily make a case for a certain placement for just two days a week and deprive a child who might really, really benefit from that teacher's experience and instruction. It is important to consider both sides, though there may be a better class fit for your daughter. |
Anonymous
| OP here- my daughters spot would not be depriving anyone else of placement. The county policy is you can request placement IF there is room at the school after inbound and prior students have been placed and you are willing to transport. If there is room at a school (I have narrowed it down to 4 including her prior school that I will be asking about) she can go there BECAUSE it won't be displacing another student. That is the reason she got the boot from her old class- even though the county assigned us there she was not technically inbound and thus had to go to make room for other inbound students. I am not trying to steal another child's spot, just trying to squeeze in where there might be room elsewhere. |
Anonymous
I am with you. I am not even kidding when I tell you we were told directly by ChildFind our son didn't qualify but to come back before K because he would need services then. It comes down to resources available. Take what they offer. |
Anonymous
| Why would you ever settle for only "what they offer"? You can always ask more/better/different if it would benefit your child. The worst they can say is no and then I'm no worse off. My child was found eligible for services. There are other programs that possibly have room for her... How does it hurt to ask to be put in one of them? If they cannot, I will pull her and figure out how to pay for private speech therapy. I'm not sure why there's outrage at a parent wanting to do the best they can for their child. We are in a county known for their schools- I'm not asking the world of them here. Just a switch to another class with space OR the class they told me she could attend at her iep meeting in May. |
Anonymous
I agree with you OP; I don't know why people are giving you such grief. Besides, paying for a private preschool is not the same thing at all as paying for therapy/SN school. At least in MoCo, the preschool program for most people is part time, and so the kids also go to private preschool; that doesn't make them less deserving of the state-provided services. |
Anonymous
Agree |
Anonymous
As I said, I am willing to go that route if I have exhausted the resources the public schools will provide. If there's room in a program she can switch to, that's a much quicker and easier process than pulling her out of the ECSE class and finding private services. I am truly not asking anything untoward here. I do not care for things I have seen in her assigned class and will ask if there's room in another. That's it. If there is not, we will send her to the private preschool 3 days a week as planned and find private speech services for the other two. I would prefer to keep her in the ECSE program because it all encompassing though. |
Anonymous
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Good for you, OP. Wrong classes can absolutely make things worse for your child. |
Anonymous
OP, assuming you are a county taxpayer--and by extension this is YOUR school system, and your DS has needs, people need to move beyond this concept of "displacing other students." You and your DS have rights. As a pp mentioned, brush up as needed. Good luck! |
Anonymous
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Sorry, meant DD!
(I have a DS and hence hands usually type accordingly.) |