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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Living close to a school with a program doesn't mean you'll be admitted to the program.

Also, OP, I doubt you'll have any difficulty in getting into a PEP program.  I have heard good things about Bethesda Elementary being inclusive, but it's faced over enrollment and some kids (without IEPs) were sent to Rosemary Hills in the past.

I do think consulting with an advocate would be helpful in coalescing the anecdotal information you're getting as well as being able to highlight the different schools/programs.

Also, if you do decide to do a private SN school, most require a full evaluation by a developmental pediatrician or educational evaluation by a psychologist.  Given the age of your kid, you'd probably want to go with a d.p.  Probably the easiest route is going through Children's or Kennedy Krieger.

This group hold a SN school every fall at AU:  http://www.exceptionalschoolsfair.com

Lastly, and I'm really not trying to stir up any controversy, but MERLD is no longer in the DSM.  My kid was not on the spectrum (initially diagnosed with MERLD and fine motor issues), the only IEP designation MCPS would consider was autism for several years.  He actually has Specific Language Disorder, but generally getting that diagnosis the kid has to be at least 6 years old (b/c of the testing involved) and don't get me started how long it took with MCPS.   Your kid is very young and diagnoses can be fluid, but I just wanted to give you a heads up.[/quote]

FYI, kids from Bethesda Elem were never sent to RHPS due to overcrowding.  RAther, kids in E. Bethesda were zones to RHPS for K-2 and then zones to BES for 3-5 as part of the effort to integrate the school sytem from the late 70s on.  Recently BES parents lobbied successfully to have their kids removed from this pairing and now they articulate K-5 to BES.  It had nothing to do with overcrowding.  There is zero chance that a child in the BES district could get sent to RHPS due to overcrowding.  An IEP can decide to offer a placement at a special program at another school, but that is different.

Also, on MERLD - yes, the MERLD diagnosis is no longer in the DSM, but it's not like that is some kind of reflection that it was never real.  MERLD is now under a broader category called "communication disorder.". MERLD can encompass a very wide range of skills and ability.  Some kids diagnosed with MERLD are pushed into autism programs on the theory that the degree of lack of communication is the same so the autism program envirknment might work.  Other kids have MERLD but have more funvtional language skills and may timately be categorized with specificlearning disabilty but this doesn't usuall happen hntil kids reach 7 or 8 by which time the expectation to read and write is strong.

Also[/quote]

It wasn't the 70s, and overcrowding was what the parents who were slated for Bethesda Elementary [i]told me[/i].  It a few years ago and it was not a re-zoning issue; they were slated for Bethesda Elementary and lived within that school's boundary.

Secondly, a kid with MERLD won't be coded with "communication disorder,"[b] for an IEP[/b] simply b/c [b]MCPS doesn't have that[/b].  They have "04 Speech/Language Impairment" which is basically stuttering or other fluency issue,

"The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA, defines the term “speech or language impairment” as follows:
(11) Speech or language impairment means a communication disorder, such as stuttering, impaired articulation, a language impairment, or a voice impairment, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.” [34 CFR §300.8(c)(11]"

I already mentioned that a kid would need to be older to test into the Specific Learning Disability.  So stop babbling about the range of what MERLD-diagnosed kids have.  It has [b]nothing[/b] to that.  It has to do with what codes are available to the OP:  http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/uploadedFiles/departments/ims/support/IEP_Disability_Codes.pdf[/quote]

MCPS SLP here. A child who has MERLD, or the current equivalent, would typically be coded as Speech/Language Impairment in MCPS unless the child has significant academic disabilities (which may or may not be related to the language) and qualifies for a code of SLD. We all have different terms to mean generally the same concepts-One district might use communication disorder, another speech or language disability, etc.

But the OP's child would almost certainly be coded as Developmental Delay, due to their age and the fact that they have an "equivalent" code already for DD.[/quote]

Hi SLP! OP here, thanks for your input. So, my son is 3.5, almost 4. He has sensory processing issues, and in the school setting it really impacts his ability to process information quick enough to respond/follow directions as quick as his peers. Its been described to me that there is a traffic jam in his head. He sees everything, hears everything, cant filter things out and then has to work very hard to process whats being said and done. Its mainly in the school setting that his happens but sometimes you will see it when hes excited at home or playing on the playground as well. He works hard to find the words. You can like see him searching for the words and then he will buy himself time by repeating a word over and over until he finds the right word. He used to stay silent when he couldnt find the word but hes learned to say "i dont know," "hmm" or just repeats (seems like hes stuttering) until he finally gets there. In preschool, he looks around for visual prompts and usually requires additional verbal prompts.  Hes making progress from his ot and speech therapy, as well as from getting older and experiencing more. I can tell classroom support is important for him and I suspect it will continue to be. We shall see. Ive just been trying to gauge how the mcps system works in terms of things like this and if it has a good reputation in terms of services/teachers for kids like mine. I know its a big system so hard to know. We are targeting our home search in Rockville area. If you have any other pointers/recommendations/input please feel free to share with me :)[/quote]

Hi OP, welcome to the area! I saw that your son already has an IEP, so the services/goals that are current on his IEP are going to drive what happens *to start*. The central IEP team will look at his current IEP and place him in the closest equivalent that MCPS has to meet his current IEP goals while trying to match the services the best that they can. At his age there are a couple of options for a child like yours.

The first is Itinerant service. This is where your son would go to his home school, or one very close by, for one-two 45 minute sessions of speech therapy and one-two sessions of OT. If he had an hour a week they would likely just give him an hour, but most pre-k blocks are 45 minutes. If your son doesn't have much service time on his IEP, this is definitely a possibility. Itinerant service can also include a special educator and SLP going to your child's nursery school if they have one and providing services there, but that seems unlikely from what you've described.

The next option is PEP. There are 6 or 7 different types of PEP classes, ranging from two days of 2.5 hours per day to 5 days of 5 hours per day. The only reason I wonder about this one is that you didn't mention academic goals. Children in these classes often, but not always, have language and academics/behavior (or both) and then may have other services such as OT or social skills. If your child's IEP has more than language and sensory goals on it, this is a likely placement based on what you described. Each class is taught by a special educator with at least one assistant and speech, OT, PT etc are provided during the child's school day.

The other option that the team might consider is a language class. It is taught by a speech pathologist with an assistant and there are two types. One for articulation twice a week for half days, and one for severe receptive and expressive language needs *without* accompanying behavior or major academic needs. It is supposed to be for kids with pure language delays. OT is not a disqualifying factor, but they won't be thrilled. (I've gotten kids in with OT though.) These classes are incredibly difficult to get into, so if they offer, jump on it! There is one in Rockville at Beall ES. Having Beall as your home school does not in any way increase your chances of getting placed in the language class.

One more thing to consider, OP. Where your child is initially placed doesn't mean that they will stay there for the year. If after your child is in the class for a few months the teacher finds that he needs more services or that he's too high for the class and needs a less restrictive placement, there will be a meeting to update his IEP to better reflect his current needs and the services/placement that can meet those needs. It's not uncommon to move mid-year to another program that's a better fit. You can also request this meeting, OP, if you find that after giving your child a few months to adapt that he isn't progressing the way you would like. The team would then meet to discuss why he isn't progressing and a change in placement may be recommended then.

At your initial meeting with the team I would talk to them about the things that you mentioned-that he needs wait time and prompting and benefits from a prompt hierarchy (starts with visual prompts and then adds verbal if he needs more help) Things like that make a big difference to the team. Some of it may be in his IEP already, but if not, go back to any notes that you have from his old teacher. Does he need visual schedules? Repetition of directions? Checking for understanding? Breaking assignments down into smaller steps? Organizational supports? Knowing this in advance is really beneficial.

As to MCPS, in general the county has a great reputation. There are so many families that are happy with the supports that their children receive, especially at the pre-k and elementary level. There are also unhappy families. Some of that is a mis-match in expectations. Some of it is a poor match between a teacher/therapist and student or family. Some of it is pure bureaucracy. (The government mandates least restrictive and families want more intensive, etc) I encourage you to go in with an open mind and communicate often with your child's teachers/therapists. Staying on the same page is really important, and one of the reasons that I think satisfaction sometimes wanes as kids get older and have more teachers. Nobody gets into education for the money.

Good luck, OP, I hope this helped!

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