K.C.'s teacher sent home his IEP with some changes made to it for when he starts first grade in August. I asked for more OT because it helps him so much. On his IEP she had his diagnosis as Autism with MR (Mental Retardation). I just wonder how they determine that since he can't take an IQ test? How can one really tell? I mean I know K.C. is a very smart little boy it's just locked up inside him and we are trying to help him as much as we can so he can get it out. The picture below is of our daily routine as we walk to the bus stop. K.C. makes a beeline for the mailbox and knows exactly which box is ours. He can't quite get the key in but tries and always shuts the box and then I lock it. He loves checking the mail and smiles the whole time. I am thinking of laminating this picture of him "checking mail" as a little chore type thingy for him to do. I am always with him and I think it should be o.k. I have all the locks on every window and both doors. I double and triple check the alarm all the time. I am so paranoid he will escape again. The detective hasn't called and I talked to K.C.'s case manager and she said she didn't even think he would call. I pray she's right, but if he does I am fully prepared.
13 comments:
Charlie has a diagnosis of secondary mental retardation. There is a big distinction between that and mental retardation which occurs at birth. Secondary mental retardation means that because of his other autism issues he does not learn at the same pace as other kids.
If I was K.C.'s advocate, I would surely require a psychological eval before strapping a MR diagnosis on him especially coming from a teacher. What qualifies her to assess him as MR? She is not a medical professional. Don't let them railroad you. The team is supposed to write the IEP, not just the teacher amending it. We, as parents, sure aren't allowed to do that.
Stand up for your son and don't let them get away with this, it's a foot in the door. You know what I mean?
Are you able to meet with your Child Study Team before signing the IEP? What did you discuss at your meeting regarding OT---they should be able to tell you why they are giving him the MR diagnosis. That's great he is doig a "chore"----Charlie's taking out the garbage!
I have applied for medicaid waivers for my son. In my state (Virginia) autistic children whose IQ score is below 70 are steered to the Mental Retardation waiver and autistic children whose IQ score is above that are steered to the Developmental Disabilities waiver. My son's score was low verbally and borderline written. The tester made comments all over the results report to interpret the results with caution. My son made a big leap in his communication skills after taking the test, so I have appealed the decision to deny him the Dev. Disab. waiver and steer him to the mental retardation waiver. There is at least a 5 year waiting list so I want to make sure he is on the correct list! I wonder why an IQ test score is used as the criteria when autistic children, by definition, have trouble communicating what they know!
I would think you could dispute that diagnosis if they have no testing to prove MR. Don't sign the IEP until it's out of there.
Do you have an advocate or someone out there who you can talk to about it? Or a Yahoo Group or something? Because I would think that signing that would say you are agreeing that he is MR.
Outside of that, did you ever think about having an IEE done?
This bothers me. A teacher does not have the expertise to diagnose MR. Has this ever been written on any of the reports that you have from a doctor? I can't see that she can just assume MR if she has not gotten this from a doctors official diagnosis. I hate that she may have low expectations for K.C. Well, we know he'll prove her wrong.
Only one of K.C.'s Dr.'s reports states "possible MR" but he was too young to tell then. I do pick up these sort of hopeless vibes from the teacher sometimes.
I absolutely agree with all of the above comments, especially Mamaroo. I don't like the fact that they are trying to put a limit on KC's abilities by throwing a label on him that they aren't qualified to give in the first place. You're an awesome mom, Tina. I know you'll find a way to handle this with amazing grace.
I agree with the others that the teacher does not have the expertise to diagnose MR. K.C. is a brilliant young guy who will prove them wrong because I have faith in him and in you. Don't allow this to happen, even if you have already signed the IEP doesn't mean that it cannot be amended, you can ask/demand another IEP meeting with an advocate there to help you through the stuff that you may not agree with or understand. I adore those pics of K.C. he has grown so much and I think that it is a great idea to laminate a pic of him and use the mail as a chore. So glad that it makes him happy.....he deserves it! AND....you deserve to be happy too! We love you guys, hope Jayce is doing all better.
Hi! I am new to blogspot and looking for blogs to meet other moms of ASD kids (or homeschoolers or SAHMs).
I have 3 on the spectrum. My middle had moderate autism and was getting worse once school started. so we homeschool now. He now is 'just Asperger's Syndrome.'
At school they thought he couldn't learn. but he is very smart and with hmeschooling it shows now!
The slide show pictures reminded me of when Connor was younger.
That's good that they are working on this fall's IEP early! Good Luck!
--Kimberly
well, good they are working on the IEP, but not good they aren't getting it right. I hope you get it all worked out and they don't write him off with issues he doesn't have.
--Kimberly
*****TIME SENSITIVE****: INTERVIEW MAJOR AUTISM EXPERTS IN A PRIVATE CONFERENCE CALL/NEWS CONFERENCE*****
Please forgive me for posting here but there is no email visible for you here (unless I missed it and then I’m even more sorry) and I want to be certain you are part of this conversation.
I’m writing to invite to you to join a small group of bloggers who will interview, in a telephone conference call, leading experts and advocates in the field of autism. Since the autism community is particularly active and established in ways that facilitate the sharing of information, it is our hope that access to these researchers and clinicians will be of particular value.
Our guest will be: Professor and clinician Dr. Michael Weiss Michael J. Weiss, Ph.D., a developmental psychologist at Giant Steps Connecticut, a private school for children diagnosed with autism and other developmental disabilities, and an Adjunct Professor of Psychology at Fairfield University, also in Connecticut. Dr. Weiss has served on the faculty of the medical schools at both McGill and Harvard universities.
Best known for his integrated approach to raising children diagnosed with autism, Dr. Weiss has written extensively on both typical and atypical development. His most recent book (with Sheldon Wagner, Ph.D., and Susan Goldberg) is Drawing the Line: Ten Steps to Constructive Discipline and Achieving a Great Relationship With Your Kids (Warner Books, 2006).
This news conference is sponsored by Revolution Health , the new health resource website founded by Steve Case, partly because of the difficulties he and his family faced during his brother’s battle with brain cancer. He wants to make it a bit easier for those who follow by providing tools to support both patient and family. I’m working with them to support the work of bloggers who follow health issues. One way we’re doing that is by conducting these topical briefings, just for the blogger universe. Revolution wants to highlight its ability to aggregate and share critical information on health issues by providing new information and contact with health leaders in relevant disease communities.
One great asset of the site is its population of experts, including those on autism, drawn from major academic institutions across the country, including Columbia, Harvard, Cleveland Clinic, the University of California at San Francisco, the University of Southern California, Johns Hopkins, Memorial Sloan Kettering, MD Anderson, and more. We invited one of those experts in autism along with a leading advocate to participate in a conference call/news conference to answer blogger questions. We’d like you to join us. The call is informational; you are under no obligation to write about the conversation unless you find it useful.
Here are the details:
WHO: Six to ten Autism bloggers and a major medical figure in the field
WHAT: Conference call/news conference with Autism bloggers
WHEN Wednesday April 25th 7 PM EDT; 4 PM PDT
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We will provide audio after the conference if you would like to post a link to that as well.
Please RSVP, by email when you know if this is an opportunity that interests you.
With best wishes,
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hEY LOOK AT ME i AM LATE AGAIN!!!! SORRY
You have been tagged!!!
I'm glad KC has found a chore he enjoys.
Sorry to hear you still have that cloud hanging over your head :(
HUGS
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