Vent and question

kcisthebombdotcom

Vent: so I had to go to DDs future preschool to meet with the social worker to give her some info. Towards the end of our meeting the school psych came in. I didn't get to meet her at the first meeting so she came in to set up an appointment to do her evals and she watched dd for maybe ten minutes if that (and most of the time was talking to me). Towards the end of the meeting she said "so, are you the one concerned about autism?" While looking at me like I had ten heads. I said yes, I said she's a patient of dr so and so (who is the head of neurodevelopmental pediatrics at the children's hospital, mind you) and she had her ADOS this week. She proceeded to tell me how she felt she was developmentally delayed, kids with developmental delays often times have autistic traits, and how her behavior was not consistent with autism. I'm glad to know you can make this determination in less than TEN MINUTES just because you saw her play with an adult and take care of a baby doll. Idiot.

Question: so there's three classrooms in the preschool and I'm not sure which one i should advocate dd getting placement in. Classroom 1 has 8 nt kids, 7 kids with Ieps. Classroom 2 has 4 nt kids, 6 kids with Ieps. Classroom 3 is geared towards asd kids but does contain 2 nt kids. They use the teacch model (no idea what that is or if I even got the acronym right, lol). DDs strengths are pre academic skills like number and letter recognition/counting, she does well with transitions, she's very social and engaging with preferred adults and does well with using verbal/nonverbal commmunication to get needs met, she has good pretend play skills and plays appropriately with toys. Dd needs to work on receptive language (expressive scores are significantly better which I hear is unusual), following directions, being less self directed, and playing with peers. Any thoughts?

mommy0411

Ugh that's frustrating! Good luck with the ADOS this week! My DS has an evaluation at the local children's hospital tomorrow and I am really nervous as well. As for the classroom placement, how many teachers/ aids/ SLP's are in each classroom? I would personally want the lowest teacher/ student ratio, especially since every classroom has NT peers. It sounds like a great program! Also, my DS's receptive is also behind his expressive now. They tell me it's common in kids on the spectrum. It's partly because a good portion of his speech is echolalia right now. Good luck!

kcisthebombdotcom

Thanks everyone! Classroom 2 seems to be for the kids who need more attention and has higher teacher ratios. Classroom 1 and 2 have the same services and follow the same curriculum. She will engage/be engaged but it definitely has to be on her terms and with something incredibly motivating. She's a happy, giggly kid so kids tend to be drawn to her. On one hand, I'd like her in a smaller class because I think she needs more attention. On the other hand, I'd like her around more typical peers because I feel like if she's with more atypical kids she might pick up more atypical behaviors. Is that a rational fear? Also am I allowed to ask the needs of the kids in the classroom before I agree to a placement or are they not allowed to say due to confidentiality?

kcisthebombdotcom

Thanks, I will definitely try to get a tour and look in on the classrooms. That's a really awesome point that nt kids have unwanted behaviors too. Services are always done by professionals--there's a slp and ot in each classroom. Services are mixed depending on the kids needs. Sometimes the ot will pull a kiddo out of the classroom for some sensory input. Sometimes he'll bring a weighted pad or trampoline in and pull a child or two to the side. The slp helps incorporate speech into the curriculum. They do some small groups of 2-3 kids with similar needs during class but also pull out for private 1 on 1 speech as well.

It will be interesting to see how she does in preschool. I wouldn't really consider ds a good peer model because they have a very peculiar relationship. Ds treats her more like an overindulging adult than a sibling so naturally she adores him. Often times if she gets angry and hits him, he will lecture her about how hitting isn't nice vs tattling or hitting her back. Lol. She can do no wrong in his eyes and he often talks for her--a habit we've had a tough time breaking. She's only been around other kids in three different environments--gym daycare at the y which is 2,000 sq ft of sensory overload, swim group which she does play simple games back and forth nicely but the pool is a highly preferred activity, and social skills group which are kids on the spectrum who are pretty unavailable to her.