Homeschooling a special needs child (ID)

[CitaClark]

I am seriously considering homeschooling my special needs daughter, she will start Kindergarten this fall and has an mild intellectual disability/apraxia. I worry though about the lack of social interaction with peers....PLEASE ADVICE!

[Anonymous]

Don't do it. Learning is a social process. Why would you deprive your daughter of that experience?

What do you know about teaching reading? About how children develop math concepts?

[Anonymous]

The OP probably understand her child better tHan most teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The OP probably understand her child better tHan most teachers.

Of course parents know their children best. I understand my children better than my pediatrician, but that doesn't mean I don't take my kids to see the ped. The ped and I work TOGETHER to best meet my kids' needs. The same is true with my kids' teachers.

[Anonymous]

I'm a special educator, and I think this is a plan that has a lot of potential! Kids can definitely thrive when being homeschooled.

A few things to consider

1) What is your plan for therapies? If she has apraxia, will she need speech and OT, do you have insurance, will your school system provide them?

2) Kids learn social skills from a consistent peer group. If she won't get that from school, what's the plan? Kids groups at house of worship? Afterschool classes, a neighborhood where there's a lot of playing back and forth, cousins, a homeschool coop, I think there are lots of options to investigate.

3) What are you thinking about for curriculum. In my experience, and of course you know your daughter best, apraxia can make it hard for a student to learn from the environment so you may want to consider options that include some direct instruction. Luckily there are lots of great curricula out there to choose from.

[Anonymous]

OP,

I don't think it will be impossible. There are many home-schooled in this area as well as associations and resources online. With some digging, I bet you could find other parents in the same situation who have chosen to home school.

If your daughter will still be 5 in the fall, I would consider applying to LEAP Preschool at the University of MD:
http://hesp.umd.edu/content/about-leap

(There's nothing wrong in delaying Kindergarten.)

[CitaClark]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a special educator, and I think this is a plan that has a lot of potential! Kids can definitely thrive when being homeschooled.

A few things to consider

1) What is your plan for therapies? If she has apraxia, will she need speech and OT, do you have insurance, will your school system provide them?

2) Kids learn social skills from a consistent peer group. If she won't get that from school, what's the plan? Kids groups at house of worship? Afterschool classes, a neighborhood where there's a lot of playing back and forth, cousins, a homeschool coop, I think there are lots of options to investigate.

3) What are you thinking about for curriculum. In my experience, and of course you know your daughter best, apraxia can make it hard for a student to learn from the environment so you may want to consider options that include some direct instruction. Luckily there are lots of great curricula out there to choose from.

My daughter currently receives private ST, OT and also through Medicaid she gets ST, OT, PT which she will continue throughtout school. It was my understanding that home school kids still receives services, but I am not counting on them as the main source..

[Anonymous]

Also, there are program offering like these:
http://www.serc.si.edu/public_programs/home_school.aspx

[CitaClark]

I am new to this homeschooling world but I hope to find some parents that have been there, done that....

[Anonymous]

Get on the following yahoo groups: MDHomeschoolingSpecialNeeds, MHLN (MD home learning network), and BWHE (Balt. Wash. Home Educators). Focus on peer group. Also physical education is important so figure out how to meet those needs. If you think your granddaughter would ENJOY being in school, you might consider that. It all depends on preschool has gone and whether she enjoys it or is stressed out.