What is your ASD child's class structure like in school?

TinyPinkBug · December 2012

Hi. Sorry I only pop in when I am struggling with something, but you ladies are always a big help when I don't know what to do or where to look for help.

I am curious what types of school experiences other ASD kids are having. Type of program, where it is offered, type of discipline.

I ask because my 5 year old son is in a class designated 8:1:1 that actually has 4 students (3 kindergarten, 1 first grader) 1 SE teacher and two aides. The class is in our home elementary school and he is integrated into a regular class at different parts of the day. Unfortunately, things are not going well. He is regularly getting sent home from school for what the principal calls "Safety Reasons" with 2 actual suspentions. Each time my son is sent home, he is given at least one discipline Referral. So many I lost track, at least 20. I have resorted to contacting his Dev.Pedi to put him on meds, we first tried Tenex now he is on Risperidone. He has a behavior plan, but it is useless IMO. It is a reward system, but it is the discipline system making him react so adding a completely separate system just complicates things more. I tried to tell them it wouldn't work, but the teacher, social worker and psychologist were so proud of what they came up with and assured me if it didn't work they would change it. Of course it isn't working.

I need something to change for him. And for myself and my family. I am tethered to my cell phone all day waiting for the call. My 3 year old has had to miss preschool multiple times because I needed to pick him up, she has also missed her speech sessions and we really can't go anywhere. I am concerned about going in and asking for a change only to have them send him out of the district to a BOCES program where he would be around more SN kids which would cause him to act out even more. His current Dx is PDD-NOS with many Aspergers traits (not written that simply) watching for, and most likely official dx our next appt, ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder.

Because people ask, here is an example of why/how he gets sent home. His class has 3 K and one 1st grader. The last day of class before break, the first grade classes all had pajama day. The kindergarteners did not. So during announcements, the first grader got to go change into his PJs. When he returned to the room, my son got angry because the 1st grader got to do something special he did not get to do. He ended up screaming and hitting the teacher, the principal came and two of them carried him to the office where he climbed on a shelf and kicked things. I was called to pick him up 25 minutes after school starts. He was sent home "for safety" with a nice new pink referral slip. He did NOT and never wants to be sent home, he gets so mad about getting sent home. That particular night, he cried a very sad cry at bedtime because he missed all the last day before break activities. He is well aware that he gets sent home due to his own actions, but still often blames others for doing unfair things that make him mad. In this case he went over all the things he could/should have done instead of yell/scream/kick but continued to blame the first grader for doing something special then blamed the first grade teacher. In this case, the 1st grader had also gotten chosen to do something special earlier in the week that my son first felt mad/jealous about but was able to control himself and get over it very quickly.

I just don't know what to do next. At home, he is pretty controlled right now. We aren't having these tantrums and outbursts, currently. He restrains a lot of impulsiveness at home and pays his time (time-out in his room) with little resistance. We did only get here fairly recently at home and it took a lot of work finding the right balance, but it frustrates me that at school it is so different for him. He will be so heart broken and have his spirits crushed if they move him out of mainstream school. They aren't telling me anything like that now, but I can't think of any other reason they keep giving him so many referrals (AKA paper trail) if they aren't trying to build a case to move him out.

rboisvert · December 2012

I'm a special ed teacher for preschoolers on the spectrum and working on my BCBA and reading this you're son's team doesn't seem to have a real good grasp on the theories of behavior. You're right that their bx plan is lacking and I would request a CSE meeting to address how the school is going to proactively help your child succeed in the school environment. I would pressure them for an FBA a real one by someone qualified (preferably a BCBA). I'm sorry your little guy isn't getting what he needs to be successful in his school placement. Good luck.

TinyPinkBug · December 2012

-auntie-:
Do you have access to a SEPTA or local autism support group?

The only one I am aware of meets once a month at a time I can't make, but also I have met several members of the group and feel like we do not fit so I also haven't made much effort. I did email a local ARC today asking for help finding an advocate or someone who can help me navagate things.

That's a pretty good ratio. What sort of dxs do the other children have? Are they operating a "mixed disabilities class" or is this an autism ABA-style classroom? What are the qualifications and background of the people working in this room?

I don't know what dxs the other students have, to my knowledge they consider the program to be designed for kids with behavior/emotionally disfunctional. I am pretty certain none of the other students have autism dx. The teacher is new, I think she did her internship and subbing in the building with this program but was not actually hired on until 5 days before school started. The psychologist, I think, has pretty much just worked in this school. Prior to this year, they did not have a kindergarten class in this program, only 1st grad and up. So working with kids in K is a little new to everyone.

How are they integrated into mainstream?

In my district, K is only half day while my son's program is full day. So in the moring they join a K class for as much as that 2.5 hours as each child can manage. Right now my son is in there for only about an hour, the goal is to increase this for him but he just can't handle it. He then joins a 1st grade class for specials where he does OK, he loves specials actually. There has been some talk of integrating him into the first grade class for science as a reward but I don't think that got very far.

You've got to stop making yourself so available for pickup. You're making it too easy for them to be rid of him instead of figuring out what he needs to improve behaviorally. Perhaps they need retraining. Don't drop what you're doing and run. Tell them you're a distance from the school and will be there within the hour. Then see what happens. Chances are, the principal or another administrator will be stuck "baby sitting" which will reflect badly on the teachers and should reduce calling you as a knee jerk reaction.

I know he hasn't had the 10 days of suspensions that would automatically trigger a manifest determination, but I think it would be prudent if he's been sent home 20+ time by the middle of the second marking period. That is BSC when talking about a five year old.[quote]
This is my DH's response to this, stop picking him up when they call. It is actually the principal who sends him home, not the teachers. The teachers have been trying to come up with ways to keep the principal from getting involved because he sends him home. Unfortunately my son screams, which is heard in other rooms which prompts a call to the office then the principal shows up. This infuriates my son because he knows the principal is going to force him to his office and send him home so the behavior escalates when he shows up. The longer he is in the principal's office, the more referrals my son gets.
While I know the teacher hasn't actually gone head to head over the principal's sending him home since she seems to kind of fear him, probably because she isn't tenured. I know the social worker confronted him about it. He basically told her it wasn't her place, that this is administrative. I don't know what happened beyond that, I know she isn't afraid of him.

Who did his FBA?

The school psychologist, with the help of the school social worker.

It sounds like he's one of those kids who has an unusually strong sense of "justice" and reacts accordingly. What plan do they have in place to help him become OK with things when they don't fit his expectations? While it's important that he learns to self regulate more appropriately when things don't go as he'd like the bigger piece is that he learns to reframe his thinking to be less reactive. In other words, it's perhaps more important to learn not to let this sort of thing bother him so much rather than training him to "use his words".

Nothing. All anyone has ever done to my knowledge is try to teach him to self regulate the emotion by punishing him for reacting. Then working on using his words.

Who worked with you to help devise the discipline plan at home? Are they avialable to you to do an observation in his classroom?

The social worker in his current school came to our house once a week for over a year prior to him attending school. While she was here to help, a lot of the things she would try to put in place did NOT work. I don't mean that negatively toward her, just that it was a long road. But now that he is in school, they seem to be reverting back to all the things we tried at home that failed. As if they have to try them first hand themselves before they believe it. What he needs is a time-out room to cool down. They don't have one that is readily accessable to his classroom, even the one they have is nothing more than an empty classroom but it is on the opposite side of the building that requires passing the main office.

I suspect the broken heart at leaving the neighborhood school won't be his. It'll be yours. It's hard on a mom's heart to leave what represents the version of school all the other kids are experiencing. For a lot of kids, the intensive support and instruction obtained in a self contained classroom make a transition to true mainstream possible.

He may resist the change, because that's what people on spectrum do, but crushed?, I doubt it.

I have to disagree with you on this one. He actually will be. He is very attached to the school, mostly because the neighborhood kids go there. He does view them as his friends, and they do play with him. Especially the girl next door, she has really helped shape some of his better social skills and more importantly his confidence in having friends. He really would be upset to leave them.

krose0713 · January 2013

I think talking to an advocate is a very good idea. It sounds like this school, as it is now, is not providing your son with an appropriate education. As PP have said, an FBA should really be conducted by a BCBA (board certified behavior analyst). Does your son's classroom take any data? This is extremely important when it comes to determining if a behavior program is effective or not. Anectdotal "evidence" should not be accepted. This would give you leverage as well, to say, look this isn't working, you need to change it. As a behavior analyst, I don't ever agree with sending a special needs child home due to challenging behavior. Part of educating a child with autism is teaching them appropriate behaviors.

Though it sounds like your son's current plan isn't working, consequences probably are necessary in order to help decrease challenging behaviors. But there must be an appropriate rewards system as well. In order to decrease a "challenging" behavior, you must increase an appropriate replacement behavior (therefor a behavior program containing both reinforcement and consequences is usually necessary).

Sadly, it may be necessary to send your son to a more appropriate school, though that would more than likely be the districts last resort due to the expense. It sounds like training is what is hugely lacking here. If your school doesn't have a behaviorist, it should! If it came down to it, changing schools may be the last thing you or your son wants, but often, it the right choice in the long run if your school can't provide your son with what he needs to be successful.

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