Kids who are disruptive or with behavioral problems are the red-headed step-children of the SN world. Even other SN parents don't really want kids with that profile in classes with their kids.

Private schools who claim they are inclusive really mean they are inclusive to well-behaved children who will sit quietly and struggle to learn without bothering anyone else. IME.

<<Lab is the only school on the list where you have half a chance, however if the school feels that your childs' disabilities get in the way of his ability to learn then your child wlll not be admitted. In our case, DS' impulsivity was the issue - i.e., not raising hand, getting out of line and not keeping hands to himself.>>

Im confused by this -- who does Lab serve, then/who is the ideal candidate? Its portrayed as a school for kids with an issue of some sort but would not find a mainstream school ldeal. But yet they wont take kids who has an issue that gets in way of learning? Not arguing, just trying to figure out..

Anonymous wrote:Forget about:

St. Patricks
St. Andrews
WES
Lowell

Not sure why they tout supporting kids with special needs. Lab is the only school on the list where you have half a chance, however if the school feels that your childs' disabilities get in the way of his ability to learn then your child wlll not be admitted. In our case, DS' impulsivity was the issue - i.e., not raising hand, getting out of line and not keeping hands to himself. BUT WAIT, that's what ADHD does to a kid so again, not sure why any of these schools say that they accept SN kids. who do they think they're foooling?

I second getting an educational consultant. FWIW, our DC with AS/ASD was accepted at one of the above mentioned schools before he was diagnosed. We chose a mainstream language immersion public charter over the private school. He does fine at the charter with an IEP and it was the right choice for him since he excels at the target language. I'm sure he would have done fine at the private school too. He mainly needs a small nurturing environment which he would get at either school. He also has motor issues. So far, we don't see any reason why DS should not be mainstreamed. Good luck in your search!

OP, I think your best bet is to meet with an educational consultant who knows all the area school very well. Maddux and Lab are excellent schools that can provide valuable support, but if you are looking for your child to be surrounded by typically developing kids these schools do not provide that. They may have kids typically developing in some areas, but one would not pay the incredibly high price for these schools if there wasn't an area of need.

A number of schools like St. Andrews, McLean School and Flint ill are will work with kids with mild special needs, but the support they can provide is limited and I assume if a child gets in but the needs are beyond what they can work with the child will be counselled out.

Every private school has some kids wth ADHD, but the degree of need is VERY, very mild.

We cannot tell you based on your description where your child would best fit in. An educational consultant could. Otherwise you will just need to apply to as many schools as possible and let them figure out if your child is match. An educational consultant can help you narrow down your search rather than spending time and money on schools that are not a good fit.

Anonymous wrote:

BUT WAIT, that's what ADHD does to a kid so again, not sure why any of these schools say that they accept SN kids. who do they think they're foooling?

Here, I'll tell you why: because not all 357 "special needs" are identical. They range from a child who can't hear/speak/see/toilet/walk by himself to the child who has 12% hearing loss in one ear and is otherwise 100 percent typical. And everything in between.

You can grasp that I'm sure. I, for one, am glad the area offers so many options and if there a school that, say, specialized in dyslexic children and doesn't want to be Ellis Island and take all the disruptive kids, too, that's their prerogative.

Whoa!! back off lady. No need to talk down to me. I was speaking from my own perspective and experiences - of which there have been many. I have an ADHD son who presents pretty typically in that he has accompanying LDs. Applied to 4 privates, all of which claim to take SN kids but none of which would take my DS.

Those on the SN board really try hard to NOT be nasty and condescending so please respect that.

I was going to suggest the Newton School as well. We didn't end up going because of the distance from us and cost but it is really an amazing place.

Look into the Newton School in Sterling, VA. They have a fabulous gym and have "movement" twice a day (this may include trampoline, obstacle course, foam out, core strength exercises and more. The kids work really hard on academics -they are pretty much on grade level. It is a warm, nurturing environment. We've only been there a few weeks and dc loves it.

BUT WAIT, that's what ADHD does to a kid so again, not sure why any of these schools say that they accept SN kids. who do they think they're foooling?

Here, I'll tell you why: because not all 357 "special needs" are identical. They range from a child who can't hear/speak/see/toilet/walk by himself to the child who has 12% hearing loss in one ear and is otherwise 100 percent typical. And everything in between.

You can grasp that I'm sure. I, for one, am glad the area offers so many options and if there a school that, say, specialized in dyslexic children and doesn't want to be Ellis Island and take all the disruptive kids, too, that's their prerogative.

Forget about:
Lab
McLean
St. Patricks
St. Andrews
WES
Lowell

Not sure why they tout supporting kids with special needs. Lab is the only school on the list where you have half a chance, however if the school feels that your childs' disabilities get in the way of his ability to learn then your child wlll not be admitted. In our case, DS' impulsivity was the issue - i.e., not raising hand, getting out of line and not keeping hands to himself. BUT WAIT, that's what ADHD does to a kid so again, not sure why any of these schools say that they accept SN kids. who do they think they're foooling?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are looking for a very structured but accepting/tolerant mainstream private school for our very bright son, who has ADHD, speech issues, and some motor planning challenges. Does anyone know of one?

Do you want/need him to get services at school? No idea how significant the issues are but what about a school like Lowell or WES?

WES counsels out kids with ADHD. The school is not very tolerant.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for the replies. I posted here because my son is definitely SN - but we think he needs typical peer models and the academic rigor of mainstream schools. Who knows what will happen, though.

OP - we used to say/think the same thing...We wanted nothing more than for our DS to have typical peers and and rigorous academic model but his disabiities get in the way of that happening right now. When DS was 6 he was diagnosed with ADHD (inattentive), processing/exec funtioning issues. The exec functioning is actually the disability that is keeping him out of privates. Each of the schools the PPs suggested said NO to us - with the exception of Maddux which we never applied to. Not for any particular reason except maybe we got tired of doors being slammed in our faces.

We were so hung up of the mainstream label that it got in the way of his ability to get help and succeed. One of the other PPs said it exactly. If you ever want your son to truly be in a mainstream environment get him all the help he needs NOW- even if it means special ed. and it may not in your case but don't turn your back on that option.

DS is now 9 and in MoCo public. He has an IEP, and NEEDS quite a bit of academic support. he is smart but his disabilities get in the way so much so that he comes across as much less than bright. its a process, sometimes we laugh and sometime we cry.

good luck

I would not send a child with motor issues to Lowell's ancient, decrepit, non-ADA compliant lower school campus.

Your son's issues do fit the profile of kids you may find at Maddux. Its charter is actually a regular education school (they put alot of emphasis on academics), but obviously it accommodates certain needs. One of their goals is to take basically bright children and work on fine tuning some of the issues in a preschool and early primary school environment so that they can succeed later in most school environments. Since he on;y just started 1st grade, he could possibly get 2 years out of it.

Your son's issues do fit the profile of kids you may find at Maddux. Its charter is actually a regular education school (they put alot of emphasis on academics), but obviously it accommodates certain needs. One of their goals is to take basically bright children and work on fine tuning some of the issues in a preschool and early primary school environment so that they can succeed later in most school environments. Since he on;y just started 1st grade, he could possibly get 2 years out of it.

I'd look at McLean.