My child wasn't dyslexic, but had a significant expressive/receptive language delay. He was excused from attending FLES for the first several years because we all agreed that it would be counterproductive for him. He needed to be able to communicate in English first and foremost.

In the latter grades, once he was able to communicate in English, he joined the FLES class from then on.

I think the IEP team is pushing back because there is no identified detriment to attending, other than he hates it. It's not a legitimate reason to take him out of his least restrictive environment and being educated with his peers. You would need to have data that shows his attending the class has an adverse affect on his present level of performance or contrary to his IEP goals.

Can he have some noise cancelling headphones and some alternate activities not considered "services" while joining his class?

I sympathize, OP. I am dyslexic and my kid is dyslexic. Learning another language from books and “study” is not happening for either of us. That said, he took foreign language in elementary school (hated it, learned a few colors and numbers and that’s it) and then didn’t take it though middle school and high school. It is required in college and he’s actually sort of looking forward to it.

I’ve learned three other languages over the years, two to fluency, through immersion. I know this isn’t what you were asking, but when talking with your kid you might be careful in how you frame language learning. If they want to learn another language they absolutely can! They may need a different methodology, though.

Both my son and I have phonological deficits that come with dyslexia and yet we are both really good mimics of sounds and accents. I have no idea how that works, but it actually is super helpful in language learning. So you never know.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP Here:

Answering a couple of questions.

1) Child is severely dyslexic in second grade, can’t read in English. They will likely not ever take a foreign language in High School.

2) Spanish is 1 hr a week. He hates it, I don’t think he understands most of it. I think it is waist of time.

3) IEP team says they can’t use specials for intervention time. However, I can’t find any policy in this regard.

4) Ideally the school would use this time for intervention. However, I would be happy if he could go to a different special with a different class or do anything else.

Just FYI, in VA you can substitute computer science for a world language (for 2 credits) in high school if that is part of an IEP for a student pursuing an Advanced Studies Diploma: https://www.doe.virginia.gov/parents-students/for-students/graduation/graduation-requirement-resources/credit-accommodations

My kid did ASL to complete the language requirement before I learned about the comp sci option. ASL was painful, but not nearly as painful as Spanish or another spoken/read language.

don’t worry about advanced diploma when the kid is in elementary school the only people that care about the advanced diploma are parents because the colleges never see them. They just look at the classes the student took. My DC just explained in his college applications why he did not take a foreign language and he was admitted to University of Maryland college for honors college as well as several other highly ranked colleges.

Anonymous wrote:OP Here:

Answering a couple of questions.

1) Child is severely dyslexic in second grade, can’t read in English. They will likely not ever take a foreign language in High School.

2) Spanish is 1 hr a week. He hates it, I don’t think he understands most of it. I think it is waist of time.

3) IEP team says they can’t use specials for intervention time. However, I can’t find any policy in this regard.

4) Ideally the school would use this time for intervention. However, I would be happy if he could go to a different special with a different class or do anything else.

Just FYI, in VA you can substitute computer science for a world language (for 2 credits) in high school if that is part of an IEP for a student pursuing an Advanced Studies Diploma: https://www.doe.virginia.gov/parents-students/for-students/graduation/graduation-requirement-resources/credit-accommodations

My kid did ASL to complete the language requirement before I learned about the comp sci option. ASL was painful, but not nearly as painful as Spanish or another spoken/read language.

This is a helpful thread.

My DC has profound dyslexia as well as profound dysgraphia. He is now in graduate school school (for which he still receives many of his accommodations )

You need to think of this as a marathon and not a sprint. There will be something or somethings that frustrating and problematic every single year. In order to not get burnt out advocating, you need to triage and prioritize. Fighting this hard for a one hour enrichment class is not the hill to die on. Fight to get the tools he needs for the class - like a scribe and a reader.

Anonymous wrote:OP Here:

Answering a couple of questions.

1) Child is severely dyslexic in second grade, can’t read in English. They will likely not ever take a foreign language in High School.

2) Spanish is 1 hr a week. He hates it, I don’t think he understands most of it. I think it is waist of time.

3) IEP team says they can’t use specials for intervention time. However, I can’t find any policy in this regard.

4) Ideally the school would use this time for intervention. However, I would be happy if he could go to a different special with a different class or do anything else.

I can only answer the question about the IEP team, as a special educator..

Special Educators need time to meet with their grade level team, whose planning time is during specials. They need to be able to schedule IEP meetings when grade level teachers can join.

Also, their caseloads mean they need to do intervention in groups, and the other kids aren't available then.

I think that going to a different class, such as repeating music or PE is a good solution. Maybe he could go act as a teacher's helper in Kindergarten?

I'd also explore why he hates it. Are there solutions that would improve the experience for him?

You are the problem. Let your kid be with classmates. If anything, they can hate FLES with their peers and feel like everyone else.

Your child is not any more dyslexic in Spanish than in English, and having some spoken Spanish ability--even at a fairly low level--is a useful skill.

Anonymous wrote:We tried. Foreign languages are SUPER hard for dyslexic kids but FCPS will absolutely not allow you to pull a kid from foreign languages or PE for that matter, if you wanted extra instructional time. I get it. We tried. FCPS will tell you it is against the law, and all sorts of other BS.

We stopped fighting it and I just looked at that time as a chance for his little brain to rest because he wasn't learning anything and the teacher did not expect anything of the class except to stay seated. Elementary foreign language, at least at our FCPS elementary school, is crap anyway. My kids have had both Chinese and Spanish and have not been taught more than to say hello, goodbye, and count to ten. (I now have a 7th and 4th grader.)

You have enough on your plate, let this one slide. Don't worry about the grading or whether he is learning anything. Just let it be.

LOL! I know exactly what school you're at, and agree the Spanish instruction is abysmal. OP, your kid can sit through ES Spanish, they'll get a 3 or 4 no matter what. It's not worth the battle. He wouldn't learn anything even if he wasn't dyslexic. FLES is useless. It would be one thing if they had a good teacher who did 20 minutes five days a week, but 20 minutes once a week is completely pointless.

Anonymous wrote:My DD hated PE - she has a back problem and is extremely tall and uncoordinated. It was mortifying for her to sit through that class. It never once occurred to me to ask the school to give her something else to do during that hour. Your kid is going to have a lot of problems in their life - if you start snowplowing for them in elementary school, they will never learn to just grin and bear it.

OP here:

I understand your perspective, but I think it’s a little different when a child has a documented disability. Accommodations through an IEP or 504 aren’t about snowplowing — they’re about ensuring access and supporting learning. Every child has different needs, and for some, ‘grinning and bearing it’ can lead to frustration, anxiety, or disengagement. It’s not about shielding them from challenges, but making sure they have the right support to build confidence and skills.

It's only one hour - I would push for more support during that time if he needs it, rather than except him. And just because it's not illegal to pull kids from specials for special ed, it doesn't mean a district is obligated to do it.

A lot of kids hate FLES, especially if the teacher isn't great. But that's not really a reason to pull a kid. A chunk of FLES is cultural awareness.

Let's be honest, there's not a lot of language learning happening in 1 hour a week. Your kid really can manage.

My DD hated PE - she has a back problem and is extremely tall and uncoordinated. It was mortifying for her to sit through that class. It never once occurred to me to ask the school to give her something else to do during that hour. Your kid is going to have a lot of problems in their life - if you start snowplowing for them in elementary school, they will never learn to just grin and bear it.

Anonymous wrote:Think about it this way, would you rather the special education teacher be the one supporting your child during academics or take their planning then or, if your child requires support during specials usually that’s an IA. For my kid, I would much rather an IA in FLES than an IA during language arts.

I don’t want anyone to loose their planning time. At the same time, I think there are alternatives like attending a different special with another second grade classes. We can be creative.