Tuesday, April 17, 2007

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:

Mom said...

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?

kristina said...

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!

LAA and Family said...

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!

Anonymous said...

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?

Mamaroo said...

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.

KC's Blog said...

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.

GClef1970 said...

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.

Lora said...

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.

Unknown said...

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

Unknown said...

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

Anonymous said...

*****TIME SENSITIVE****: INTERVIEW MAJOR AUTISM EXPERTS IN A PRIVATE CONFERENCE CALL/NEWS CONFERENCE*****

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JUST A MOM said...

hEY LOOK AT ME i AM LATE AGAIN!!!! SORRY

Julie Julie Bo Boolie said...

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