Posted by Margie on August 22, 1999 at 17:06:44:
In Reply to: 5yr old w/nld entering kindergarten posted by Cathy on August 21, 1999 at 18:49:47:
Hi. My daughter is starting 1st grade this year. Kindergarten was a tough year as she was diagnosed until mid-year. If you have not yet applied to the special education committe (or wahtever it is called there), do so quickly – it takes a while to get things in place. The class size is probably very important – small class -maybe 10 kids or less. The unstructured parts of the day were the hardest for my daughter. You’re right to be concerned about lunch and recess. She went to a private kindergarten last year so working with the school district this summer was all new to us. Her kindergarten teacher helped to articulate problem areas and what worked best – her input was important to the school district. This year we have our daughter in a special school for kids with emotional problems – kids who act out, etc (not necessarily the best place but the only choice we have right now given her behavior history). It has small classes, integrates social skills development as part of the cirriculum, is very structured, and has a behavior management program. I think she will do well and maintain her positive self esteem while gaining skills she needs to move into a more traditional class. She will have sensory integration OT which I think is key. She will have a 1-1 aide to help her through her day. She will also be on a small bus (a van) with an aide on the bus. I have found that the school is not very familiar with NLD (the psychologiust just dismisses it – he agreed she needs special services because of her ADHD). I am trying to get a committment that her teachers and aide will be educated about NLD and teaching methods. I bought a copy of Sue Thompson’s book for them. You probably have the best view of what your child needs. You need to share that with the school. You may not find an ideal situation, but you should be able to get some accomodations. If you have a psychologist or therapist working with your child and the family, enlist his/her help too. Bringing my daughter’s psychologist to the school meetings helped. I think you might actually have more choices in kindergarten due to the many pre-school and pre-K type programs. I wouldn’t worry about academics at all this year – social skills is key for kindergarten! I wish I oculd find a social skills class outside of school. I thought about what my daughter needs to be able to be in a regular class and then tried to get those things into her IEP this year – the sensory integration (so she can be around a larger group of kids), social skills, structure. Good luck !