He mastered lots of skills (lots of PT ones this time) and has several that need to be carried over (ST, OT). I think that we have a really awesome team of people helping us, and really, right now, we are kind of just coasting. Chase is making progress, and I think the best thing that we can do is keep on keeping on.
I am, however, scared to death of the transition to preschool (which we will go into full blown transition mode for in October). Not that he won't be able to handle it, but that his home school is a special needs school, where I hear they have really great teachers, but I'm just not sure I want him plugged into a self contained classroom rather than integrated into a typical class. I don't think he needs it, and I'd rather try him in a typical classroom and move to a more structured setting if he needs it.
I don't know. I just don't want kindergarten to come around and have to fight extra hard to get him into a typical class because he is always has been in a "special" classroom. Then again, maybe the special needs school would provide extra support to prepare him for a typical class later...?
I just don't know.
3 comments:
Laurie - I'm not looking forward to these decisions. Chase is older than Micah, so I look forward to gleaning wisdom from you. :-) We might opt for both. Our school system lets us decide how often (or not) that Micah will attend school. And as long as he's capable, I'd like to also put him in a private preschool setting.
I think that kids have the best chance at being successful in an inclusive environment in the preschool years. I might change my tune after we actually DO this, but it seems to make a lot of sense to me.
Evan has been in a special-ed preschool since he turned 1. He has gotten great therapy there, and has made really great progress. How much of this is due to the school, and how much is just him growing up, I don't know. What I do know, though, is that I think he's ready to try something else, which is why we're putting him in a typical preschool in the fall. I think he could learn so much from other kids who are typically developing. We'll see how it goes.
What it boils down to is this: I want my son to have the same opportunities as his brothers. If it doesn't work out, then we'll regroup and go another route. But I think he deserves the chance to try. Good luck in your decision.
It's much easier to move into a more restrictive environment if a less restrictive environment doesn't work. And remember placements aren't made in stone, so you can always change your mind if it isn't working.
With Kayla, she started in a self-contained special ed class. She actually started when she was 2 1/2 and had just started walking. She looked like a baby even in the special ed class! She would have been trampled in the integrated class which was mostly 4 year old boys!
However, last year we switched her to the integrated class, even though she is probably the "lowest functioning" kid in the whole school. The PreK director was very hesitant about moving her due to her functioning level, but Kayla has a 1:1 aide and she's been doing wonderfully!
Does she "keep up" with her typical peers. Not even close. But she has developed so much this year. The class is co taught by a special ed teacher and a regular ed teacher. It's been a perfect situation for her.
Unfortunately, no such placement exists for her for Kindy, so we're back to a special ed school. We don't even know which one yet, and it's frustrating.
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