Parents of ADHD kids... need advice
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Anonymous
| We are planning to send our son to public kindergarten next Fall. He has a diagnosis of ADHD. We plan to meet with the principal and talk about accommodations, teacher etc. But we are starting to get really concerned about how our son is going to deal with a class of 25-28 kids and 1 teacher, the noisy lunchroom etc. Even though we have missed many private school deadlines for applications, we are wondering if it's worth seeing if any private schools have any spots left. If they don't, we will have no wiggle room and will just do public. Our thought originally was that we would just try public kindergarten first and see how he does (he is not on meds as of yet). Then IF he has a hard time, we would apply to private schools. We are so confused though... IF there were any spots left, what schools would accept a kid with average and above intelligence (no LD) and ADHD? Some of these private schools sound very progressive and we feel like he needs a more structured program (having come from an unstructured program). Do people prefer private schools for active boys with ADHD or public? Our main thought always returns to classroom size and student teacher ratio. The public school and private schools we would be looking at would be in MOCO county. Any advice would be great. |
Anonymous
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My kid is in private school b/c of the huge class size in MoCo. Having toured many schools, there are definitely quite a few boys proportionately in many of the privates, especially in the younger grades. Obviously, not all are ADHD but I think parents realize the benefit of a small classrooms for kids that may be more socially immature or more rambunctious.
Many privates will accept a kid with ADHD but probably not what the private school forum refers to as the big 3 or big 5. It definitely cannot hurt to call around to private schools that interest you for openings. I would definitely suggest Auburn which has a specific program for kids with ADHD. Lab also accepts kids with ADHD. I would also say look into Harbor, Primary Day, Oneness, Lowell, Sheridan, or McLean, which are not specifically special needs schools but can be accommodating. |
Anonymous
| Forgot to mention Maddux, which is also SN. (Don't be put off by SN label depending how severe your son's ADHD is. An SN school may be the best fit especially when he's young.) |
Anonymous
| I have visited Auburn. It is really geared towards kids with social issues, Asperger's and HFA. Although some kids with ADHD have social issues, OP did not indicate that was her son's issue. I would look at the other schools the pp mentioned, especially McLean. They definitely have room in k for next year. |
Anonymous
| Thanks for your replies! May I ask: what private school does your son go to? I have heard about Lowell and Harbor.... are these schools structured enough for ADHD kids? I know that Green Acres and Oneness are more progressive... we don't think that that will necessarily suit him... we need structure so that he knows what is expected of him, yet a warm place.... |
Anonymous
| Does any one think that public is superior to private b/c at public an ADHD kid can get a 504 plan, whereas at private there are no accommodations per se and the kid could get kicked out (whereas public can't kick a kid out, right?) |
Anonymous
From the Auburn website: "Auburn's program is designed for students who can benefit from these supports, including, but not limited to, students who are diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome/ASD, PDD-NOS, NVLD or ADHD." http://www.theauburnschool.org/overview.cfm?subpage=1232882 |
Anonymous
I have known quite a few public school kids with ADHD labeled as having "behavioral problems" which may or may not have been accurate but seems impossible to un-label. I think it depends on the private school. I would be upfront with any issue a child has to make sure you get a good fit and are in an environment that will work with you. |
Anonymous
These are all excellent schools. You should tour and talk to staff to get a better sense of the structure they provide. I also think Green Acres and Oneness aren't as "unstructured" as you might be thinking they are. |
Anonymous
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Auburn also has a summer camp program:
http://www.theauburnschool.org/camp.cfm?subpage=1447636 |
Anonymous
| So even if a kid has an ADHD dx and a 504 plan, they could still be labeled a "behavior problem." Some of these private schools sound great, but they are so expensive and I wonder if I do private school first for kindergarten if I will always wonder if I should have tried public (b/c it's free). And once in private school, would it be super hard to switch back to public. Finally, his older brother, who is adaptable and easy, goes to public school.... |
Anonymous
We have the same situation with our 5 year old (except he has 3 good school options__McLean, Maddux and another I won't name b/c I'm not yet sure there is a good fit). Initially we were told to check out Green Acres and Lowell. Neither of these schools would have helped my DC, any, regardless of how progressive they might be. My ADHD child needs structure. I would not hesitate to call to make an appointment to visit. Try not to be desparate. It will work out for you. |
Anonymous
Yes, to the labeling question. Regarding picking public or private you can always switch from public to private or vice versa. It really depends on your kid and what they need and of course finances. I've also known a couple of parents to have kids at different private school and not just b/c it was a gender, all girls or all boys kind of thing but based on the personality of their kids. |
Anonymous
| Is Mclean and Maddux more schools for kids who have ASD or LD? If a child is only ADHD (no language/learning disabilities or aspergers) would these schools be appropriate? |
Anonymous
| Here's my take on it, speaking from experience. We were in exactly the same boat a year ago with our son. We have him in our public elementary, a highly rated school in MoCo. We did exactly as you are planning to to do ... I called the principal last spring and told her about the diagnosis, explained that he needed structure, an experienced teacher, etc. He was placed with the best K teacher. She is absolutely phenomenal and has worked tirelessly with us this year to keep him on track. We have tried all sorts of accommodations, with little or no success. I honestly don't think the class size (about 23) makes much of a difference in his case. And I volunteer once a month in his class, and I'll tell you, his teacher is as organized as they come and certainly keeps things highly structured. She has very clear boundaries, and nothing really gets by her. Even though he was on target academically at mid-year, we decided to try medication a couple months ago because his impulsivity was just really gettng in the way of him being able to attend and focus, and we felt the social implications were really becoming an issue. The improvement has been dramatic. His teacher is in awe of the transformation, and she's been teaching for 20+ years! I can tell you, I don't think things would have played out any differently if he was at a private school with a smaller class, and in fact, I'm not sure all schools would have worked so collaboratively with us and been so patient. He still would have been touching other kids, not respecting personal space, looking at what oher kids were doing, looking at the birds flying past the windows or the tree branches blowing in the wind whether there were 10 kids or 23. I think it's worth seeing if you can make public work for you. What do you hear about the K teachers? What's the word on the principal? Do you actually know that the classes are going to be 27 students? I believe 27 is the absolute maximum for K and 1st in MoCo, so that's pretty extreme. I have friends with kindergarteners at other public schools that have under 20 kids per class. |