LD Classroom

[Maria223]

Hello, I am new to this forum and hope this is the correct place to post. My son is in 4th grade and just started in my district’s LD classroom this year. He has dyslexia, executive functioning issues, anxiety and adhd. We fought putting him in this class because socially he does better with his gen ed peers. At first we wanted out of district but ultimately decided we want him close to home and with his Gen we peers. Finally we were convinced that this was the right placement for him. We were told that the class would consist of students grade 3-5. He is in the LD room for language arts and math. Is in gen Ed science and social studies with push in. Also with gen students for lunch, recess and specials. To our dismay, the classroom actually consists of mostly 2nd graders with my son and one 5th grader. I am aware that nj law allows for 4 grade levels to be together. However, for parties and special events, this class combines with the other class consisting of k-2. My son is extremely embarrassed to be with younger children. He complains that the younger children have some behaviors that distract him. On another note, his Science tests are supposed to be modified and the most recent was not. He took the same test as his gen Ed peers and received an A. I am getting mixed signals as far as what the school thinks he is capable of. It does not seem consistent. I would like him to go back to the resource room setting. What are my options? What would I need to support my concerns? A psychiatrist? Psychologist? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Christy McGuire]

Hi! Frankly, it is unusual for a Dyslexic to be in this type of situation. Typically, they are in the general education classroom for most of the day, and pulled out just for language arts instruction and math. The pullout is typically 1-1 or small group, not an alternative classroom.  I would start with an email to his case manager. Request a meeting to discuss change of placement. Your reasesons are 1) The current placement is causing emotional distress 2) The current placement is not providing appropriate academics 3) The current placement is causing difficulty in studying.  Make a statement like, " I do not believe that the current situation is the least restrictive environment of rmy child"   You have all the evidence you need. If you feel you need further support, look at getting an Advocate. I am not sure if Lisa works in NJ, but I am sure there is an advocate who could help you with this.

[JSD24]

An LD classroom will not remediate dyslexia.  What works for dyslexia is small group (or 1:1) instruction that is based on an Orton-Gillingham framework along with lots of repetition and multimodal teaching techniques.  I don't feel the this is the correct placement for your child.  As far as him being in the LD classroom for parties and special events, IMO, he could be back with his gen ed peers...if that's what his IEP said.  My feeling is you need to request an IEP meeting to get things changed for parties and special events.  When do you get his progress monitoring report to see how well this placement is helping his dyslexia, this would show if the remediation he gets for ELA in this placement is helping or not.  The right program will allow the student to catch up so you want to see more than a year's progress every year (and more that a quarter of a year's progress during the 1st quarter).  When you see how well this is helping his dyslexia, that's when to ask for something different if you're not seeing progress.

[JSD24]

(Things posted before I was ready.)  You need to get the school to say that this placement isn't working.  Any outside evaluation you'd get would be considered by the school but they need to follow any evaluation they do.  (Special ed is stacked against the parents.)  https://adayinourshoes.com/ways-the-special-education-system-really-is-stacked-against-parents/