How can we find help in MCPS for a child with severe behavioral problems entering K in the fall?

[Anonymous]

I am the parent of a boy who has recently turned 5 and whose behavioral problems at school (though not at home) are so severe that he has been asked to leave two private preschools (one Montessori, one not) in the past four months. He frequently flies into explosive, and unpredictable rages with no warning. He is also often (though not always) impulsive, overly active, and prone to running around wildly and refusing to stop when requested. He does not appear to have any developmental delays (except to the extent that his behavioral problems might be consiered social or emotional delays). He makes friends easily with other children, and the teachers are fond of him but find him completely out of control. After he threw a chair at the wall, which resulted in a large hole, his most recent school became concerned that he was a danger to himself and the other children in the class. We have begin to have him evaluated by a neurologist and a psychiatrist, but don't yet have any definitive diagnosis. Staff at both preschools have hypothesized ADHD and sensory processing disorder. He does not appear to have any developmental delays (except to the extent that the behavioral problems might be considered to be social or emotional delays). We would like him to attend public kindergarten (Rosemary Hills in Montgomery County) next year, but doubt that he can function effectively in a mainstream classroom unless a miraculous change occurs in his behavior in the next few months. What we believe would help our child would be a smaller classroom setting for at least part of the day so that he can avoid being overstimulated and where he can work on a one-on-one basis with teaching staff who are specifically trained to work with helping children overcome behavioral challenges. We don't know if this kind of setup is a realistic prospect at all. We have no knowledge of special education services in MCPS and the websites we have found are very confusing. How do we start the process of seeking some kind of special accommodation for him? Through Child Find? Or some other way? Are there any deadlines we have to worry about? Should we be seeking an IEP or section 504 service? Do we need a definitive diagnosis first? Are there any deadlines we have to worry about? Is it advisable to hire an attorney or other professional person to help us work with MCPS to get our child the help he needs? If so, any referrals to such a person would be greatly appreciated. Many, many thanks to anyone who can give us any advice on these or related issues!

[Anonymous]

op, i don't know anything about the moco questions, but i do have a question for you. any thoughts as to why he doesn't have these problems at home? that seems like it could indicate something.

though this is not relevant to your moco questions, there is a new inclusive public charter school in DC called bridges. i imagine if things continue like this and money is a concern, you could always move over the line. i hear great things about this school. they have specialists in the classroom (all the time!).

[Anonymous]

OP, you should think about going to your pediatrician to discuss these issues. Rule out anything medical first, including ADHD, sensory processing issues, etc. Your ped may refer you for evals, such an OT or a psychologist. Get them done. Then call Child Find and request evaluations. Child Find is good, but they are not going to offer any services they don't have to provide. So, do your homework first.

[Anonymous]

Get a private referral from the therapist ASAP before you start down the 504 and IEP track. You want to get the best idea of what is going on, b/c these diagnoses can and will stay with a child forever. But if needs help and the private eval shows it (he obviously does), go through your local school's counselor for assistance...

[Anonymous]

Once you receive your private reports (or have an idea of when they will be available), contact your home school (Rosemary Hills) and request a screening meeting as you are interested in your son possibly receiving special education services. Share that you would like your private reports formally reviewed (if you are willing to share this info with the school). They will need to schedule the meeting within 30 days. It will be beneficial to everyone to get the ball rolling before your son gets to kindergarten.

For the poster who commented about why this doesn't happen at home, the academic/social demands, dynamics, sensory input, etc. at home are often VERY different than they are at school so it's not uncommmon for behaviors to also be very different.

Good luck! I'm sure this is very overwhelming.

[Anonymous]

My 5 year old son has similar issues and is scheduled to go to Rosemary Hills in the fall. I have an appointment on April 1st with the principal, school psychologist and counselor. If you would like to hear what I learn please feel free to call me at 301-520-5382.

[Anonymous]

I would also like to suggest that you get your son privately tested. You will get a better idea of some of the challenges your son is facing. I have a DS who also had behavior problems and had poor social skills in elementary school. I am happy to say that through a lot of hard work that he is a much different kid than he was when he was 5 years old.

The good news is that with right interventions (i.e. sometimes kids need OT to help with sensory integration issues, speech and language therapy and counseling) your son will probably be fine.

I would also recommend that you join the gifted talented learning disabled group [e-mail]. This is a newsgroup made of up parents and educators County and they often share many wonderful resources.

Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the parent of a boy who has recently turned 5 and whose behavioral problems at school (though not at home) are so severe that he has been asked to leave two private preschools (one Montessori, one not) in the past four months. He frequently flies into explosive, and unpredictable rages with no warning. He is also often (though not always) impulsive, overly active, and prone to running around wildly and refusing to stop when requested. He does not appear to have any developmental delays (except to the extent that his behavioral problems might be consiered social or emotional delays). He makes friends easily with other children, and the teachers are fond of him but find him completely out of control. After he threw a chair at the wall, which resulted in a large hole, his most recent school became concerned that he was a danger to himself and the other children in the class. We have begin to have him evaluated by a neurologist and a psychiatrist, but don't yet have any definitive diagnosis.

OP, here is something I have posted a time or two on this forum when the topic of "explosive" children comes up.

I have found the book "The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children" (Ross Green) to be of great value in dealing with my child, who at times could be considered Explosive/Oppositional/Defiant to the extreme.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/006077939X/bookstorenow57-20


A website devoted to introducing the concepts of "Collaborative Problem Solving", as explained in more detail in the book, is here:

http://www.thinkkids.org

The section specifically for parents is:

http://www.thinkkids.org/parents

a sample quote:

We think challenging kids lack important thinking skills. Researchers have learned a lot about children’s brains over the last 30 years, and a lot of that research suggests that challenging kids came up on the short end of the stick when it comes to certain skills…for example, flexibility, frustration tolerance, and problem solving (and a bunch more). So in the same way that kids who have trouble reading lack skills related to reading, kids who are challenging lack skills related to handling life’s social, emotional, and behavioral challenges. That’s why your child is crying, sulking, withdrawing, screaming, swearing, spitting, hitting, destroying property, and all the other things challenging kids do when they don’t have the skills to do any better.

Now, this is a very different perspective for a lot of folks. In fact, some of the books you’ve read…and TV shows you’ve watched…and mental health professionals you’ve consulted…might have convinced you that your child isn’t motivated to behave adaptively, simply “knows what buttons to push,” is manipulating you, is testing your limits, and is seeking attention. You may also have become convinced that your child’s difficulties are the result of your poor parenting, and that the best way to fix that problem is to teach your child who’s the boss and give him or her the incentive – through sticker charts, time-outs, and other rewards and punishments – to behave more adaptively.

Don’t believe it. At Think:Kids, we know if your child could do well, he or she would do well. We know that poor parenting isn’t why most challenging kids are challenging. And we know that reward and punishment programs don’t teach challenging kids the skills they lack and often don’t durably get the job done.

additional resources are:

http://www.explosivekids.org

(with a discussion forum)

http://www.ccps.info

(Center for Collaborative Problem Solving)

and locally, Dr. Neal Horen at Georgetown uses CPS among other approaches with his clients.

http://gucchd.georgetown.edu/programs/hoya_clinic/index.html

Good luck, and I hope you find some answers and help!

[Anonymous]

Dear OP,

Montgomery County is a great place to live for the types of challenges that your child is facing. I have personally witnessed the who spectrum of individual schools across the county which have different approaches to their students. What I have seen from my own experience is that the more contact the parents have with the teachers, administrators, and other parents of students in the school, the more successful ANY child is.

In your case, it wouldn't help to have the advice of a lawyer, to coach you through the process. There is an incredible amount of jargon and many, many deadlines when it comes to children who have the kinds of experiences your son is facing.

Whatever you do, my personal experience, is be careful with the labeling, but don't let any naysayers convince you that these things stick forever. Yes, they will be in his record, and many educators, and admissions counselors do have the best interest of children in mind when making decisions. Many are just impressed that children can make it through these experiences, and become perfectly content members of society who contribute really positive, beautiful, brilliance to those around them.

I wish you the best. It's great that you're reaching out!