Good or bad? I can't decide.

malcivar

Chris is in Kindy and his teacher says he's doing well.  It's only been 2 weeks so I'll go with it.  He brings home some homework - it's hell getting him to do it but we get through.  He was placed in a District 75 school here in NY with indications that he should be in a 6:1:1 program.  The school had a 'meet and greet' last week and DH went and said there are only 3 students in Chris's class.  That's what I saw the 1st day but I remember there being a bussing issue that day so I assumed the other kids were stuck on a bus somewhere. 

Nope, just 3 kids.

I'm not sure how I feel about that.  On the one hand - 3 kids, 1 teacher, 1 para.  Basically he's in a one-on-one program.  The school shares a building with a non special ed school but the D75 kids have their own floor.  My concern is that while I guess it's good he can get one-on-one attention, isn't part of the process to teach him to interact and socialize with other children?  Doesn't only 3 kids in his class kinda kill that?  One student is about the same level as him, maybe a bit more verbal (funnily enough, he came from the same program as Chris did, only a different site) and the other student is a non-verbal little girl.  

I'm not sure how to feel about this?  Is this good?  Or not so much?

Welcoming your thoughts and feedback.

Thanks

bumpuser511563

The ratio sounds good for the classroom in your DS getting attention. Not so much if the other two display bad behaviors to your DS and he could then copy the bad behaviors to get attention and vice versa.

Socialization would be a concern because what peer would be an example for your DS to progress?

We have had the experience of DS being in the ASD class with him being the only verbal student the other 5 were nonverbal. Bad behaviors were shown and DS would follow along to get attention.

We then requested he be mainstreamed mid year to a developmentally delayed preschool class and bad behaviors decreased to rarely.

We have arranged in his IEP that he visit a mainstream kindergarten class to have the experience to socialize for part of the day.

ToastieSimons

DS1's class last year was very small, 4 kids.  And with all the pull outs of all the kids it was more like 1-2 kids for most of the day.

But they do lots of activities with other classes and during therapy times.  So they made an effort to socialize the class, but during learning times etc it was a small group which was nice because DS1 got a great focused effort?

Is it possible they're doing something like this? That during learning times there are only 3 kids but during gym, recess, lunch, art, music etc they're grouped with other students?

hopecounts

DD is in a CSS class which is a group of 8 kids (5 boys/3 girls) and each kid has a 1-1 (who is an SLP grad student). 

She is also in a ABA based all day Preschool where she has an ABA aide who goes  with her into the classroom for Peer/Classroom skills (school is 50/50 nt/ASD) and then pulls her out for ABA work periodically during the day for 30 minute sessions. 

What is the daily schedule? What activities do they do and what social skills opportunities do they get?

I will say DD's social skills have really made progress now that she has more regular access to NT peers. 

Even in her CSS last year which was 10ish kids it was hard to do social skills work because both sides were having to work hard to make it happen which adds another challenge to teaching it.