Princess Peach
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Posts posted by Princess Peach
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I can tell you that I wouldn't respond, but it's simply because I never respond to surveys in the mail. Every time we use our doctors or the hospital, we get a survey in the mail and I always toss it. I just don't want to take the time or effort to comply.
As for this letter, it seems like they just want to see if they can offer improvements to their school and maybe attract more students. It didn't read as pushy to me at all.
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Oh. My. Goodness. She is so adorable! And I'm not even a dog person! :D
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Perhaps the easiest thing to do in your situation is to link *her* bank account to the itunes account. Then when *you* buy something, you would be better able to remember to change it beforehand.
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I definitely think that these things need to be addressed on a case by case basis. Not only academics but emotional intelligence needs to be considered. I am still waiting on the call. I am really worried because I do not want to have to rock the boat first thing. I hate confrontation!
ETA: I saw your edit after I posted. Our biggest concern with DS is socially and the fact that he presents as a younger kid. He will need "supports" whether he is in 3rd or 4th grade for his academics. Ugh, I hate having to worry about this!
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Not a chance.
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A couple things that have helped me...one, don't try to implement all the changes at once. Try for one change at a time. And two, take things day by day. Don't be worried that you won't keep up or that you won't be able to do x, y, or z tomorrow. Just do it for today. And pretty soon, you'll be doing it everyday. Good luck!
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I never buy travel size stuff. I always bring my full size or buy what I need there.
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It's never been a problem for us, but we have high-speed cable internet.
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DH is a master electrician. Every state is different, so you'll need to check what yours requires for licensing. Generally the best bet is to find a company that will take you on as an apprentice. Some larger companies will pay for classes.
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We go to the beach once or twice per week, and to the playground a couple times per week. We also go once a week to the library.
I do like to play with my kids. We play games, cards, play basketball, catch, Wii, or sit and talk. They also play a lot with each other or on their own doing their own thing. My kids rarely say they're bored. I also have plenty of time to do the things I want or need to do.
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Ultimately, I think it is your call as the parent. My son has always been in public school. He has an August birthday as well. I called the principal the summer before he (chronologically) should have been entering kindergarten to check if I had to do anything since I was delaying his start by one year. The principal said I did not. The way he explained it is that I was giving him the gift of time. It has made a huge difference for him, and it is one of the best parenting decisions I have ever made. I would just tell your contact person that you are giving your child the gift of time and you feel as though it is the right decision based on their current developmental stage.
We had DS9 repeat the 2nd grade as a hs'er. He has a spring birthday, so well within the cutoff. They are wanting to register him in ps as a 4th grader and we are wanting him to be a 3rd grader.
They have tentatively allowed him to register in 3rd and the principal is discussing the situation with the spec ed dept and then he'll get back to me. If he then says that he needs to be 4th, I guess we'll request a meeting and explain our position further.
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What specifically was it about the testing that was done last year that did not agree with your own experience?
Simply put, he tested below average or lower on every single area and they said that because there was no differentiation, he did not have a SLD. They attributed his reading difficulty to lack of instruction, which is complete nonsense.
I totally agree this is a dumb excuse.
FWIW, there have been some threads on getting a dyslexia diagnosis on the Special Needs board, e.g.: s/o Who Diagnoses What? (question about dyslexia, auditory processing and more) ; dyslexia can only be diagnosed by a mental health professional??? (I don't see much of an issue with a school psychologist diagnosing dyslexia, except that I prefer the quality of private psychs.) Personally, I'd go ahead and let the school psych do some testing, since you are not able to do private neuropsych testing. It is very important to note that a kiddo can "look" dyslexic and have other issues instead.
He has far beyond the reversals of b's and d's. He has a family history (DH has it, as well as a couple close relatives on my side). He is pretty much a textbook case.
Secondly, I'd very strongly consider ruling out developmental vision issues with a covd, because such issues can share symptoms with dyslexia (and it's not entirely uncommon for a kiddo to have both). Even if you can't afford the full developmental vision evaluation, a regular eye checkup with a covd optometrist might allow the covd to at least screen for such issues, and a regular eye checkup should be considered at a minimum where a kiddo is having trouble reading.
As for the grade level, I'd wait to have that discussion until after the testing. The school may be more amenable to the idea afterward, or conversely, they may be able to better demonstrate to you where they are coming from. Kids with LDs that are properly addressed may catch up to their age peers eventually, which is something to keep in mind, and also, 2E kiddos are not rare amongst dyslexics (I would not want to hold back a 2E kiddo).
I'm not familiar with 2E, could you explain?
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Nope, no problem. My oldest has an August birthday and always worked about a year behind. In 5th grade, we decided to no longer try to catch him up and he "repeated" 5th grade. He didn't really know anything about it except that he said, "man, 5th grade takes a long time!" I've registered him for part time school this year (8th) and they don't care how old he is, only what grade I've put him in.
Lol, your DS's response made me laugh. :)
I wish it were that way here. They seem to have a real problem with not wanting to retain kids.
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Take the Yukon! You have very generous parents. :)
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3rd grade is a make it or break it year for those kiddos like your ds. Academically, the pace is quicker and some students can "fall thru the cracks" as it becomes evident there may be an LD issue. I get why the principal is doing it, but do not agree with the emotional damage that could be done for your ds. It could be humiliating for him at recess or lunch to be teased by some kid if he does get held back next year or they place him in 3rd grade and then by Dec put him in 2nd. Kids can be cruel.
Is there any openings for testing to be done before school starts? A simple evaluation? You need to ask for all of this in writing. Schools have to legally comply within 60-90 days of the dated letter. Keep a paper trail. And go to LDonline for more help.
Yes, I mentioned the 3rd grade year as being pivotal. We are concerned about all the things you mentioned. It would be nice if common sense could prevail. I will request testing ASAP if they do not let him stay in 3rd grade.
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It almost sounds like the prinicpal wants to place him in the age appropriate grade. Then test him later in the year (most schools have testing in the beginning of the year and it is a long list for the school psychologist to get thru) if you ask for it via an official meeting or letter.
I get the impression that because ds does not have an IEP on file, the principal is using the excuse (precedent) not to keep him back a grade, which is a lazy excuse IMO. You have ITBS scores and anecdoctal records based on your working with him as a homeschooler to prove why you held him back. And he is being slothful or lazy to do so as he thinks your ds will do well in the age appropriate grade level with extra remedial help if he qualifies for it. And it sounds like ds is in the primary grades too. Another lazy excuse that developmentally he may mature academically, which is not always true for boys.
Yes, you are probably correct. It came across as a CYA thing to me. He is going to speak with the spec Ed dept and see what they say. He agreed to tentatively register him for 3rd, but made it clear it may not stay that way.
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Schools are still supposed to, under federal law, provide testing, even for homeschoolers that reside in their district. Go to Wrights Law, on the web, for help in this area. Requests should be made in writing, by certified mail, to keep them on the required time line. They have to test, even if they know you aren't going to attend there. Testing and eligibility for services are two different things... Insurance doesn't normally cover educational, non-medical things, so I wouldn't expect that to change.
The principal mentioned re-evaluating DS and testing for dyslexia. I'm hopeful that this will happen regardless of which grade he's placed in. Thanks for the specific info to research. That is very helpful.
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Hmmm. It almost sounds like you are dealing with a newbie prinicpal?
The whole 4th grade "supports" thing could mean anything from tutoring to an IEP in place. Entirely different animal. I have known of many prinicpals at the school I worked for who were happy to look at the standardized testing, do their own testing, and place the child based on the results -- and the FINAL approval of the parents. Mind you, this was for homeschooled students transitioning into the ps setting. If it were a regular student who was faltering academically (no IEP or 504 Plan on file) or had numerous absences -- in the state I worked at years ago -- those were grounds for being held back a grade.
Many times students who get special education are either mainstreamed into the regular classroom a % of time with a side classroom/teacher called "Resource Specialist" (in CA) who would pull the student out for tailored curriculum in the areas of need. Has your ds been officially dx'ed for Dyslexia?
Hmmm, well he did think that his reading score of 2.5 meant completed second grade plus 5 months. :confused:
DS has not been officially diagnosed. We got a quote of $3000 and insurance covers zilch. It's just not something we can do out-of-pocket.
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My DD turned 8 in Jan; my DS turns 8 at the end of July. When they attended private school last year (instead of me homeschooling), technically they BOTH could have been in 2nd grade. But we held back my son - he's a summer baby, a boy, socially immature, and a really little guy. BEST THING WE'VE EVER DONE!
Our problem is with AWANA at church! He's done 3 years of Sparkies, like his sister, but technically (since we held him back last year when he went to private school) he's now considered a 2nd grader and not allowed to advanced to T&T with the 3rd graders. We're seriously considering going to another church/Awana program that will consider his AGE not his GRADE!
We "held back" our son for Sunday school, too. It actually worked out quite well, because the kids are more where he's at, maturity-wise.
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Have they tested your ds recently? I would think the basic skill test (it can be done in less than an hour) would answer the question as to what grade level he can be placed in. Many public schools do this for homeschoolers. When I taught, my school district had this policy in place for homeschoolers being admitted into ps.
They didn't mention testing for placement. I did let them know that he was given the 2nd grade ITBS last year and this year (same level) and how much he improved and I let them know his reading level based on that.
The response was that they have 4th graders reading at a 1st grade level and they get "supports". It seems that they do not like retaining students.
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I kept mine on grade level while homeschooling and the when we put him into school we decided to put him in the year he just (sorta :tongue_smilie:) completed. The public school was perfectly fine with the decision.
It has since been a great choice for him -- he took a year off after high school and as a 20 year old freshman will be attending The Pittsburgh Institute of Art this year. :party:
Congrats to your son (and you!)!
I really think the middle school would have been fine with the registration, but the elementary was a stickler for this, among other things (ie, not accepting the physical form our ped generated and instead needing their ow form filled out).
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It's one of the reasons we haven't considered school more seriously for Geezle. We held him back a year and are pleased with that placement, but our ps won't allow you to hold back a kid with an IEP. I find that so frustrating since he'll be eligible for ps until his 22nd birthday so they aren't going to have to pay more for his education and it would make his life so much easier to have an extra year before moving to middle school. If GW attended ps, he'd have been the youngest kid in his class on top of his asd. Luckily we've never had to enroll them.I guess it depends on your district. I held all of mine back (late summer b-days w/ Sept. 1st being the cutoff date). Oldest is in ps and one of my twins is going to ps this fall. No trouble at all. On the flip side, one of dd's friends has a late Sept b-day and shouldn't be eligible for 9th grade, but her mom advanced her a grade, and it wasn't a problem either.
He was tested by the school district last year, even though we were homeschooling, but he was not given an IEP. DH and I disagreed with their findings and signed it as such. At that point, we decided to hold him back and repeat 2nd grade. He is most likely dyslexic, and also presents as a younger kid (which the principal noticed upon meeting him).
The principal expressed his concern that this would set a precedent, as well as opening the door to homeschoolers wanting to advance their child a grade. He is discussing it with the spec ed team.
On the positive side, the principal was eager to address DS's reading disability, even mentioning the possibility of testing for dyslexia.
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as a homeschooler, did you have trouble when you registered the child in ps? We have met with some resistance at our local school over this issue.
I want to be ready when the principal calls me back.
I tried to Google this issue, but came up empty-handed, so I'm hoping someone here has some insight or even some links with info.
Thanks!
(I posted this on the Afterschooling board, but thought some folks here may have some advice, as well)
My ds in an uncomfortable Sunday School class...WWYD?
in General Education Discussion Board
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This is why I can't stand rewards at Sunday school. It becomes all about the reward and not the content of what they are learning. It's stressful for me as a parent because when you have a kid who can't read well or write well, it's just not fair to the kid. And it just sort of exacerbates the problem the kid has, kwim?
If you've talked to the teacher and things aren't changing, that's a problem. Especially since your child has a disability that is being disregarded. I'm not sure what I'd do exactly, but I certainly feel for you and your son. :grouphug: