Where Are The Best Services/Schools In The State?

[Guest guest]

We currently live in Lubbock and were planning on moving to OKC in May but after joining a Oklahoma autism group I unfortunatly have heard nothing but bad about services in that state so we are thinking about just staying here but not in Lubbock. We know Texas does have good services but we are wondering where the BEST services and schools are in the state?

We are thinking about the Dallas area but I have heard alot on the boards about Houston also. We would prefer to live in a smaller town outside a big city but really want to be in the best area possible for our son.

Thanks for the info,

Within each of us there is an Owl, a Rabbit, an Eeyore, & a Pooh. For to long, we have chosen the way of Owl & Rabbit. Now, like Eeyore, we complain about the results. But that accomplishes nothing. If we are smart, we will choose the way of Pooh. As if from far away, it calls to us with the voice of a child's mind. It may be hard to hear at times, but it is important just the same, because without it, we will never find our way through the Forest. ~ The Tao of Pooh

[Guest guest]

Hi

—

Actually,

social skills ARE the academics of kindergarten! Though the majority of

parents and teachers seem to have forgotten this with all of this insane focus

on teaching children to read before the age of 5 these days.

What

you have is a dual enrollment issue, because if you do this with your child, he

will technically be “dually enrolled” in both the ABA program and the public

school. Five is the cutoff age, and so, you should IMMEDIATELY convene an

ARD to officially request dual enrollment for your child for the rest of the

school year—

NOTE:

do NOT attempt this without taking a hired advocate or attorney to the ARD

meeting with you! The school will definitely fight you on this if

you want to keep him in their kindergarten program.

Here

are the Commissioner’s rules. From the way the rule is written, it sounds

like only 3 & 4 years old can ENTER a dual enrollment program. . . .

.. Sounds like the people at the ISD aren’t aware that the dual

enrollment is allowed up until the end of the school year.

http://www.tea.state.tx.us/rules/tac/chapter089/ch089aa.html

© Parents of an eligible student ages 3 or 4

shall have the right to " dual enroll " their student in both the public

school and the private school beginning on the student's third birthday and

continuing until the end of the school year in which the student turns five or

until the student is eligible to attend a district's public school kindergarten

program, whichever comes first, subject to paragraphs (1)-(3) of this

subsection. The public school district where a student resides is responsible

for providing special education and related services to a student whose parents

choose dual enrollment.

(1) The student's ARD committee shall develop an

individualized education program (IEP) designed to provide the student with a

FAPE in the least restrictive environment appropriate for the student.

(2) From the IEP, the parent and the district

shall determine which special education and/or related services will be

provided to the student and the location where those services will be provided,

based on the requirements concerning placement in the least restrictive

environment set forth in 34 CFR, §§300.114-300.120, and the policies and

procedures of the district.

(3) For students served under the provisions of

this subsection, the school district shall be responsible for the employment

and supervision of the personnel providing the service, providing the needed

instructional materials, and maintaining pupil accounting records. Materials

and services provided shall be consistent with those provided for students

enrolled only in the public school and shall remain the property of the school

district.

S.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Hello

Everyone,

Thanks in advance for your help. My son is diagnosed as PDD-NOS.

He is very high functioning. He is five and in all day kindergarten

in a really great program that integrates him into a regular

classroom with a special ed. teacher for suppoort, whom he shares

with the five other autistic kids in the program. He is very smart.

He is reading on a third grade level. His problems are mostly with

social skills. His eye contact is not very good and he does not

acknowledge people often. He does still have some language problems

even though we have been working very hard on those. He can't tell

you what happened, even if he just saw it happen. He can be very

hyper and he has a hard time being still. So, his weaknesses are

social skills and communication, not academics.

He recently was given a spot in the ABA therapy program at the

CSC. The program is from 9-3:45 and they are recommending two days

per week. This means that he will miss two days of school per week. I

feel like it is more important for him to get treatment for his

disabality than to learn academics that he has already mastered.

This is the only chance that I will have to give him intensive

therapy before he ages out of the early intervention stage. The

school says that we would be in violation of state attendance laws if

he goes to the CSC. Is it really true, as they keep telling me, that

there is no way to exempt him in order for him to get treatment. I do

know that I could pull him out of school and homeschool him, but I

don't want to do that.

" You're

a shining star, no matter who you are.

Shining

bright to see, what you can truly be. "

Earth

Wind & Fire

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