IEP?

We had a meeting at the school this week to determine whether or not an Individualized Education Program or I.E.P was needed for Karston and whether or not he may have a "learning disability."

As a side note... Heath and I are very much against labeling children and doing unnecessary programs for children that may not need it. We will never medicate Karston due to any learning disability and we did not pursue this lightly. We noticed that our son was having a hard time with a few of his subjects and mainly wanted to find out the best way to help him learn better.

During this meeting we discussed conversations that the school Psychologist, schools Social Worker, and the Physical and Occupational Therapist have had with him, his teacher, and with us his parents. We were all basically saying the same thing. He is a great kid that excels in reading, but struggles with Math. He has trouble focusing on task and is frustrated easily. Heath and I both felt that there were struggles that he was having that we ourselves could relate to. I just kept thinking, 'I am so glad that he is not here and that not every one's abilities and disabilities are scrutinized so closely.'

This post could very easily become to long to read in one sitting so, instead of telling you everything that was said in this meeting, I will tell you the result that we all came to and then in several other post I will tell of some of the details.

It was determined that Karston could benefit from an I.E.P., but that he is not going to be taken out of class for this. There is a resource teacher in the class room that helps to assist with the kids that are in need of a little extra help (Karston is not the only one.) She will now be helping Karston out a little more with staying on task and one on one help with Math. The Social Worker will also be coming into the classroom to help out and assist Karston in any way necessary. The Physical Therapist will be observing him in Gym class, and in the hallways. Karston will not notice much a difference in his routine at school, but will be getting enough help that he will hopefully notice a difference in his own performance. We are pleased that the school does not put labels such as Special Education on the children. They work with them within the classroom that these children are already a part of and do not disrupt their already learning process.

Lastly, they did have a solution for helping him to focus in class more. It was determined that he does not sit still very well and has a need for moving. They have now given him a "sit and wiggle." The sit and wiggle is seat, on top of his seat that allows him to wiggle around when needed. The only rule is to try and not disrupt the other children sitting nearby. The theory is that if he is allowed to wiggle in small intervals through out the day, then he will be able to focus on the work that is being presented during class time a bit better. He LOVES this new seat of his. I will try and have him tell you all about it soon.

Stay tuned for more details about how he is doing in school....