Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers?

[Guest guest]

Dear Tonya,

It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it any way you like. One way I did it was to list the "top ten adaptations" my son would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used to deal with them.

An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students. We did this with my son's teachers, and although not all of them "got" him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were "on his side" and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed. This included teachers who had not gotten along with my gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier!

You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a place to "escape" to when classroom activities get too stressful.

He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing situation he will have in middle school.

As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called "adaptive P.E." which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the required years. (Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E. altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a "free and appropriate public education" in the "least restrictive environment" (in the words of the IDEA).

Good luck!

Jill

[Guest guest]

Great Great Advice...!!!! Two of our students get adaptive gym....my student had to get a doctors's note ...but no problem.....in our school gym is required all 4 years.

Jan

Janice Rushen

"I will try to be open to all avenues of wisdom and hope"

From: Jill Kern <JillBKern@...>Subject: ( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers? Date: Friday, May 1, 2009, 7:37 AM

Dear Tonya,

It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it any way you like. One way I did it was to list the "top ten adaptations" my son would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used to deal with them.

An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students. We did this with my son's teachers, and although not all of them "got" him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were "on his side" and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed. This included teachers who had

not gotten along with my gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier!

You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a place to "escape" to when classroom activities get too stressful.

He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing situation he will have in middle school.

As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called "adaptive P.E." which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the required years. (Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E.

altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a "free and appropriate public education" in the "least restrictive environment" (in the words of the IDEA).

Good luck!

Jill

[Guest guest]

Great Great Advice...!!!! Two of our students get adaptive gym....my student had to get a doctors's note ...but no problem.....in our school gym is required all 4 years.

Jan

Janice Rushen

"I will try to be open to all avenues of wisdom and hope"

From: Jill Kern <JillBKern@...>Subject: ( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers? Date: Friday, May 1, 2009, 7:37 AM

Dear Tonya,

It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it any way you like. One way I did it was to list the "top ten adaptations" my son would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used to deal with them.

An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students. We did this with my son's teachers, and although not all of them "got" him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were "on his side" and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed. This included teachers who had

not gotten along with my gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier!

You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a place to "escape" to when classroom activities get too stressful.

He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing situation he will have in middle school.

As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called "adaptive P.E." which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the required years. (Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E.

altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a "free and appropriate public education" in the "least restrictive environment" (in the words of the IDEA).

Good luck!

Jill

[Guest guest]

WOW!! What great advice. I hate to act like a dumbo but what exactly is

" adaptive P.E. " , so when I ask for it, I can act like I know what I'm talking

about? Thanks so much to everyone who has responded- I am writing all of this

down. One good thing is is that the Principal is the same one he had in elem.

school-she just moved up to the Middle School last year (so she doesn't really

know all of what his teacher has done THIS year to help, but she is familiar

with him).

>

> Dear Tonya,

>

> It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school

teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals

with Disabilities Education Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his

IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just

glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a

student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a

positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it

any way you like. One way I did it was to list the " top ten adaptations " my son

would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and

potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used

to deal with them.

>

> An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to

visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective

teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if

the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30

students. We did this with my son's teachers, and although not all of them

" got " him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to

visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field

trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot

of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a

great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the

staff were " on his side " and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to

help him succeed. This included teachers who had not gotten along with my

gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier!

>

> You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the

bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if

possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a

place to " escape " to when classroom activities get too stressful.

>

> He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary

school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing

situation he will have in middle school.

>

> As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called " adaptive

P.E. " which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always

told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for

only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual

teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the

best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told

them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want

him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near

the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the

required years. (Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior

and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E.

altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is

something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a " free and

appropriate public education " in the " least restrictive environment " (in the

words of the IDEA).

>

> Good luck!

>

> Jill

>

[Guest guest]

My daughter was allowed to have "Independent study" PE(specific amount of hours exercising or participating in sports in or out of school), she did a lot of hours at home walking with the treadmill and took fencing classes out of school. The school accepted it as PE credits to fulfill the HS graduation requirement. Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeedFrom: "tcstallard" Date: Sat, 02 May 2009 11:15:09 -0000< >Subject: ( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers? WOW!! What great advice. I hate to act like a dumbo but what exactly is " adaptive P.E. " , so when I ask for it, I can act like I know what I'm talking about? Thanks so much to everyone who has responded- I am writing all of this down. One good thing is is that the Principal is the same one he had in elem. school-she just moved up to the Middle School last year (so she doesn't really know all of what his teacher has done THIS year to help, but she is familiar with him). > > Dear Tonya, > > It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it any way you like. One way I did it was to list the " top ten adaptations " my son would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used to deal with them. > > An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students. We did this with my son's teachers, and although not all of them " got " him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were " on his side " and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed. This included teachers who had not gotten along with my gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier! > > You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a place to " escape " to when classroom activities get too stressful. > > He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing situation he will have in middle school. > > As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called " adaptive P.E. " which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the required years. (Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E. altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a " free and appropriate public education " in the " least restrictive environment " (in the words of the IDEA). > > Good luck! > > Jill >

[Guest guest]

>

> My daughter was allowed to have " Independent study " PE(specific amount of

hours exercising or participating in sports in or out of school), she did a lot

of hours at home walking with the treadmill and took fencing classes out of

school. The school accepted it as PE credits to fulfill the HS graduation

requirement.

Our school district does this for jr/sr high on a regular basis. Any student

can do this, although the NT kids have to be enrolled in a serious competitive

sport to be allowed to do this. I just mention it, because I think this would

be a lot easier to get than adaptive PE, at least in our school district.

Another idea is the general fitness classes they have at the Y. They run, lift

weights, etc. You may also be able to get your child out of school an hour

early to go to the activity instead of PE class.

Ruth

[Guest guest]

Adaptive PE is basically gym that is adapted to the student's ability. The two students in our school who get it are by themselves...the one girl walks and my student uses the weight room to strengthen his legs....

You child may be with other students or not ...but the gym teacher adapts the class to their needs or abilities.

Jan

Janice Rushen

"I will try to be open to all avenues of wisdom and hope"

From: ACuitino@... <ACuitino@...>Subject: Re: ( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers? Date: Saturday, May 2, 2009, 7:57 AM

My daughter was allowed to have "Independent study" PE(specific amount of hours exercising or participating in sports in or out of school), she did a lot of hours at home walking with the treadmill and took fencing classes out of school. The school accepted it as PE credits to fulfill the HS graduation requirement. Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

From: "tcstallard" Date: Sat, 02 May 2009 11:15:09 -0000< >Subject: ( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers?

WOW!! What great advice. I hate to act like a dumbo but what exactly is "adaptive P.E.", so when I ask for it, I can act like I know what I'm talking about? Thanks so much to everyone who has responded- I am writing all of this down. One good thing is is that the Principal is the same one he had in elem. school-she just moved up to the Middle School last year (so she doesn't really know all of what his teacher has done THIS year to help, but she is familiar with him).>> Dear Tonya,> > It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education

Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it any way you like. One way I did it was to list the "top ten adaptations" my son would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used to deal with them.> > An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students. We did this with

my son's teachers, and although not all of them "got" him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were "on his side" and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed. This included teachers who had not gotten along with my gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier!> > You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a place to "escape" to when classroom activities get too

stressful.> > He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing situation he will have in middle school.> > As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called "adaptive P.E." which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the required years.

(Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E. altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a "free and appropriate public education" in the "least restrictive environment" (in the words of the IDEA).> > Good luck!> > Jill>

[Guest guest]

Adaptive PE is basically gym that is adapted to the student's ability. The two students in our school who get it are by themselves...the one girl walks and my student uses the weight room to strengthen his legs....

You child may be with other students or not ...but the gym teacher adapts the class to their needs or abilities.

Jan

Janice Rushen

"I will try to be open to all avenues of wisdom and hope"

From: ACuitino@... <ACuitino@...>Subject: Re: ( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers? Date: Saturday, May 2, 2009, 7:57 AM

My daughter was allowed to have "Independent study" PE(specific amount of hours exercising or participating in sports in or out of school), she did a lot of hours at home walking with the treadmill and took fencing classes out of school. The school accepted it as PE credits to fulfill the HS graduation requirement. Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

From: "tcstallard" Date: Sat, 02 May 2009 11:15:09 -0000< >Subject: ( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers?

WOW!! What great advice. I hate to act like a dumbo but what exactly is "adaptive P.E.", so when I ask for it, I can act like I know what I'm talking about? Thanks so much to everyone who has responded- I am writing all of this down. One good thing is is that the Principal is the same one he had in elem. school-she just moved up to the Middle School last year (so she doesn't really know all of what his teacher has done THIS year to help, but she is familiar with him).>> Dear Tonya,> > It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education

Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it any way you like. One way I did it was to list the "top ten adaptations" my son would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used to deal with them.> > An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students. We did this with

my son's teachers, and although not all of them "got" him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were "on his side" and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed. This included teachers who had not gotten along with my gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier!> > You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a place to "escape" to when classroom activities get too

stressful.> > He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing situation he will have in middle school.> > As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called "adaptive P.E." which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the required years.

(Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E. altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a "free and appropriate public education" in the "least restrictive environment" (in the words of the IDEA).> > Good luck!> > Jill>

[Guest guest]

APE: When in high school, my ds barely passed regular PE one semester. Oh my, the teacher was just awful. Anyway, he used to love to ride his bike to school each and every day - all through the winter too. So we used that as his PE credit and he didn't have to take another PE class. whew. thank goodness.

( ) Re:Have you written a letter to middle school teachers?

WOW!! What great advice. I hate to act like a dumbo but what exactly is "adaptive P.E.", so when I ask for it, I can act like I know what I'm talking about? Thanks so much to everyone who has responded- I am writing all of this down. One good thing is is that the Principal is the same one he had in elem. school-she just moved up to the Middle School last year (so she doesn't really know all of what his teacher has done THIS year to help, but she is familiar with him).

>

> Dear Tonya,

>

> It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it any way yo

u like. One way I did it was to list the "top ten adaptations" my son would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used to deal with them.

>

> An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students. We did this with my son's teachers, and although not all of them "got" him right away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were "on his side" and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed. This included teachers who had not gotten along with my gifted (but very argumentative) daughter a few years earlier!

>

> You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if possible, arrange with his hom

eroom teacher or the principal for him to have a place to "escape" to when classroom activities get too stressful.

>

> He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing situation he will have in middle school.

>

> As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called "adaptive P.E." which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA, but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue -- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E. for both of the required years. (Students were not required to take P.E. during their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse him from P.E. altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but adaptive P.E. is something you could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a "free and appropriate public education" in the "least restrictive environment" (in the words of the IDEA).

>

> Good luck!

>

> Jill

>

Can't afford a new spring wardrobe? Go shopping in your closet instead!

[Guest guest]

[Guest guest]

Dear Tonya,

In my son's case, "Adaptive P.E." meant a physical education class designed specifically for him and a few other students to be less demanding than the usual P.E. program. For instance, since he didn't do well at team sports (couldn't pay attention to the physical requirements and social skill requirements at the same time), he was given a chance to play a less demanding version (for instance, playing soccer with only a few students, who took turns playing with him, instead of a regular-size team), or an alternate sport altogether (individual sports such as swimming (which he also never learned, but that was OK in a very small class) or running (which was fine for him). He actually enjoyed P.E. when some thought went into planning his program. In middle school, one teacher who never really did a lot of planning sent him and a few other students into the hall outside the gym, gave them a couple of balls, and told them to play. This is not what I considered a real adaptive P.E. program. If someone offers you this, tell them your child needs more.

Good luck!

Jill

[Guest guest]

My son has adaptive PE. Once per week he has a small group PE (just him and one

or two others). Usually they swim but when the pool is closed for maintenance

they do other motor skill activities. It has been very good for him. He does

still participate in one regular PE per week but he is often removed partway

through the class. It tends to be a sensory problem for him (to much noise

etc.)

Vickie

> >

> > Dear Tonya,

> >

> > It is definitely a good idea to write a letter to your son's middle school

teachers. Roxanna, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the IDEA (Individuals

with Disabilities Education Act) requires that they all be sent a copy of his

IEP. In real life, many teachers never get a copy, or if they get it, they just

glance at it and never really digest the contents. A personal letter from a

student's mom, in my experience, has more impact, especially if you write in a

positive tone, inviting their cooperation and offering yours. You can phrase it

any way you like. One way I did it was to list the " top ten adaptations " my son

would need. I also tried to explain in advance some of his most confusing and

potentially disruptive behaviors, and described the strategies that we had used

to deal with them.

> >

> > An even better way to lay the groundwork for a successful year would be to

visit the middle school with your son and introduce him to his prospective

teachers, one by one. They will get a better idea of what he is like than if the

first time they see him, he's just one face in a classroom of 20 or 30 students.

We did this with my son's teachers, and although not all of them " got " him right

away, some of them did -- and that was a help. I continued to visit them

frequently during the year, both as a volunteer chaperone on field trips and for

after-school visits whenever there was a problem. It took a lot of time, but

paid off. I think if I had not done this, he would have been in a great deal of

trouble most of the year. He still had problems, but most of the staff were " on

his side " and mine, and were willing to do whatever it took to help him succeed.

This included teachers who had not gotten along with my gifted (but very

argumentative) daughter a

> few years earlier!

> >

> > You should also give your son a tour of the school -- show him where the

bathrooms and the cafeteria are, let him see the gym and the library, and if

possible, arrange with his homeroom teacher or the principal for him to have a

place to " escape " to when classroom activities get too stressful.

> >

> > He should also have a personal assistant -- if he had one in elementary

school, he should definitely have one in the more complicated and confusing

situation he will have in middle school.

> >

> > As far as physical education is concerned, there's something called

" adaptive P.E. " which you can request for him. At my son's middle school, we

were always told that this would make sense for him, but that they couldn't

justify it for only a few students. This was probably a violation of the IDEA,

but individual teachers did modify P.E. for him -- the teacher he had in his

final year did the best job of this. When he went to high school, I met with the

teachers and told them that I thought adaptive P.E. for him was a safety issue

-- I didn't want him to get hurt when they practiced football, for example. They

caught on near the beginning of the first school year, and he had adaptive P.E.

for both of the required years. (Students were not required to take P.E. during

their junior and senior years.) They said that state law forbid them to excuse

him from P.E. altogether. I don't know what your school staff will say, but

adaptive P.E. is something you

> could argue that he has a legal right to, as part of a " free and appropriate

public education " in the " least restrictive environment " (in the words of the

IDEA).

> >

> > Good luck!

> >

> > Jill

> >

>