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Old 04-04-2022, 09:20 AM
 
Location: Needham, MA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by heartofalion66 View Post
Any recommendation on what towns should I be looking at? Newton? Natick? Some other towns? Thanks a lot
At the end of the day, deciding what school to send your child to has a lot to do not only with the school but also the child and you can say this about a neurotypical kid as well.

When you say your child has mild to moderate autism . . . what does that mean? ASD kids are like snowflakes. They're all different and have different issues. What kind of issues is your child facing? Are they verbal? Do they mostly have social issues? Any learning challenges? Would they need to be a in a substantially separate classroom, an inclusion classroom, or would they do well in a typical classroom with some support?
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Old 04-04-2022, 06:56 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MikePRU View Post
At the end of the day, deciding what school to send your child to has a lot to do not only with the school but also the child and you can say this about a neurotypical kid as well.

When you say your child has mild to moderate autism . . . what does that mean? ASD kids are like snowflakes. They're all different and have different issues. What kind of issues is your child facing? Are they verbal? Do they mostly have social issues? Any learning challenges? Would they need to be a in a substantially separate classroom, an inclusion classroom, or would they do well in a typical classroom with some support?
Thank you for the response.

DS has some delay on expressive language skills but that part is improving a lot since he attends preschool last Fall (we attended preschool one year late due to the pandemic). At this point he is pretty verbal at home. Meanwhile, his social & communication skills are not improving as fast as his speech-language skills, meaning that he doesn't engage in "conversations" much (i.e., still little reciprocity at this point) and he talks less at school than at home. Another piece is the ADHD part (attention, activity level, and self-regulation): he has attention issues (losing focus from time to time), hyperactivity to a certain degree (fidgeting and relatively high body movement and activity level), but there is no impulsive behavior.

We think DS will do best in an inclusion classroom but with support (an SN teacher in the classroom will be the best). In the past year DS is pretty happy in a mainstream private Pre-K class without special support. His speech and language improves a lot, but the social & communication skills and attention & self-regulation skills still have a long way to go.

Let us know if you could offer any input. Thanks a million!
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Old 04-04-2022, 07:57 PM
 
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From what you’re describing your preschooler sounds quite ‘typical’ for a preschooler. At this age kids are all over the place developmentally. I don’t want to sound ignorant but I do sometimes wonder how drs throw these labels on 4 and 5 year olds. It just seems too early for a diagnoses unless there is extreme behavior like not talking at all, frequent temper tantrums, severe hyperactivity.

I think it’s good to pay attention to the behavior of course but again preschool and kindergarten just seems so young.
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Old 04-04-2022, 08:40 PM
 
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Originally Posted by msRB311 View Post
From what you’re describing your preschooler sounds quite ‘typical’ for a preschooler. At this age kids are all over the place developmentally. I don’t want to sound ignorant but I do sometimes wonder how drs throw these labels on 4 and 5 year olds. It just seems too early for a diagnoses unless there is extreme behavior like not talking at all, frequent temper tantrums, severe hyperactivity.

I think it’s good to pay attention to the behavior of course but again preschool and kindergarten just seems so young.
Part of us want to agree with that (parents always think their kid is great ;P), but in the meantime we think DS's ADHD signs (attention, hyperactivity) are pretty clear and it is somewhat an issue in the classroom (e.g., when everyone is sitting still for an group activity), and although Autism diagnosis caught us off guard a little, we can't deny the fact that he doesn't talk much at school (would answer questions or ask for things, but no "conversations") and there is not much reciprocity even when he talks at home. In other words, we think ASD + ADHD diagnosis is probably accurate. Our developmental pediatrician even suggested to bring a 1:1 aide into the pre-K classroom to help with social skills and self-regulation skills since there is no SN teacher or SN support in the classroom.

As a result, we want to careful on choosing the Kindergarten school for DS. We do think a small inclusion classroom is good since DS heavily learns from his peers. But the presence of some SN professional in the classroom is critical too. We don't know which school district in Boston burbs would is experienced in supporting ASD + ADHD kids and offers small inclusion classrooms with SN teacher.
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Old 04-04-2022, 09:12 PM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,525 posts, read 13,902,353 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by heartofalion66 View Post
Part of us want to agree with that (parents always think their kid is great ;P), but in the meantime we think DS's ADHD signs (attention, hyperactivity) are pretty clear and it is somewhat an issue in the classroom (e.g., when everyone is sitting still for an group activity), and although Autism diagnosis caught us off guard a little, we can't deny the fact that he doesn't talk much at school (would answer questions or ask for things, but no "conversations") and there is not much reciprocity even when he talks at home. In other words, we think ASD + ADHD diagnosis is probably accurate. Our developmental pediatrician even suggested to bring a 1:1 aide into the pre-K classroom to help with social skills and self-regulation skills since there is no SN teacher or SN support in the classroom.

As a result, we want to careful on choosing the Kindergarten school for DS. We do think a small inclusion classroom is good since DS heavily learns from his peers. But the presence of some SN professional in the classroom is critical too. We don't know which school district in Boston burbs would is experienced in supporting ASD + ADHD kids and offers small inclusion classrooms with SN teacher.
There are developmental markers that can be used to give a diagnosis even at very young ages. My son was diagnosed at 2 1/2 and at that time there wasn't a ton of noticeable difference (at least to me) between him and a neurotypical kid.

Anyway, ADHD and ASD are good buddies and often go hand-in-hand. An ASD/ADHD diagnosis is pretty common from what I've seen. So, school districts likely have a lot of experience dealing with this combo.
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Old 04-04-2022, 09:23 PM
 
23 posts, read 27,948 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MikePRU View Post
There are developmental markers that can be used to give a diagnosis even at very young ages. My son was diagnosed at 2 1/2 and at that time there wasn't a ton of noticeable difference (at least to me) between him and a neurotypical kid.

Anyway, ADHD and ASD are good buddies and often go hand-in-hand. An ASD/ADHD diagnosis is pretty common from what I've seen. So, school districts likely have a lot of experience dealing with this combo.
Regarding school districts, we know the obvious ones such as Lexington and Newton, and thanks for suggesting Needham and Westwood. We'll look into them all. How about Natick or Brookline? Honestly this year's crazy real estate markets, we probably need to find at least 3-4 towns and then just see where we can find a home ...

On a separate note, is Lexington (and probably Newton too) is too top performing and too "pressure cooker" for an ASD + ADHD kid?

Last edited by heartofalion66; 04-04-2022 at 09:54 PM..
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Old 04-04-2022, 09:28 PM
 
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Originally Posted by MikePRU View Post
I've heard less than favorable things about LABB from the therapists that work with my son and also the SPED advocates and attorneys we've worked with in the past.
And could you elaborate on what are the issues? Thanks a lot.
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Old 04-05-2022, 07:40 AM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,525 posts, read 13,902,353 times
Reputation: 7908
Quote:
Originally Posted by heartofalion66 View Post
Regarding school districts, we know the obvious ones such as Lexington and Newton, and thanks for suggesting Needham and Westwood. We'll look into them all. How about Natick or Brookline? Honestly this year's crazy real estate markets, we probably need to find at least 3-4 towns and then just see where we can find a home ...

On a separate note, is Lexington (and probably Newton too) is too top performing and too "pressure cooker" for an ASD + ADHD kid?
I honestly don't know anyone with any experience in the Natick SPED program. When I was struggling to get my son an outplacement, I asked around in the ASD community (parents and professionals) to see if moving to another town might be beneficial.

I got a lot of positive reviews of Brookline from parents but the RE prices are so high there that I didn't want to shoehorn my family into the kind of home we could afford in Brookline.

Newton I get more mixed reviews and my feeling is a lot of what you hear about their SPED program is based on an old reputation which might not be accurate any longer. I know of one Newton family that had their outplacement pulled for no apparent reason. They had to go through the entire appeals process again to get it put back in place. Meanwhile, they had to pay out of pocket to keep their kid in their current placement and that's not cheap. My feeling is a lot of SPED families flocked to Newton based on the town's reputation and now the town's resources are a bit stretched thin and they're not as generous as they once were. In some ways, the town is still digging out of the hole it dig itself into with the debacle that was the building of Newton North (a/k/a the Taj Majal of High Schools).

Needham I have personal experience with and I know many people in the town. Families I know who's kids are higher functioning especially those in inclusion classrooms are very happy with the care they get here. Outplacements can be a different matter but my feeling is that's going to be the same pretty much no matter where you settle.

I also know some SPED families in Westwood and they're all very happy with the program in that town. Again, higher functioning kids. I don't know any Westwood families on an outplacement but with tuition around $100K for many of them I have to imagine they're not just handing them out to anyone who asks.

Quote:
Originally Posted by heartofalion66 View Post
And could you elaborate on what are the issues? Thanks a lot.
My son was recently outplaced and I did a lot of asking around/research beforehand to determine what would be the best school to place him in. The feedback I got about LABB from ASD professionals, advocates, and attorneys I spoke with is that the program there is not as rigorous and the quality of care is not as good there as it would be at say Nashoba Learning Group (NLG) which is literally just down the street from LABBB.

This isn't a condemnation of LABBB and I'm not saying they're abusing/neglecting kids or that it's a terrible place. I'm only saying that their are alternative choices available where the other schools have more resources, staffing, etc. so that they can do a better job. My guess is at the end of the day this is about budgets. LABBB is a collaborative run by 5 area school systems. Being a parent in the ASD world, I've seen the huge disparity between public services and private services. It's night and day and it's mostly about budgets as I mentioned. If you're going to go through the incredible expense, extreme stress, and huge time commitment of seeking an outplacement for your child . . . why would you settle for anything less than the best possible placement? Plus, it's your kid and I would never settle when it comes to my children.
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Old 04-05-2022, 11:45 AM
 
23 posts, read 27,948 times
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Originally Posted by MikePRU View Post
I honestly don't know anyone with any experience in the Natick SPED program. When I was struggling to get my son an outplacement, I asked around in the ASD community (parents and professionals) to see if moving to another town might be beneficial.

I got a lot of positive reviews of Brookline from parents but the RE prices are so high there that I didn't want to shoehorn my family into the kind of home we could afford in Brookline.

Newton I get more mixed reviews and my feeling is a lot of what you hear about their SPED program is based on an old reputation which might not be accurate any longer. I know of one Newton family that had their outplacement pulled for no apparent reason. They had to go through the entire appeals process again to get it put back in place. Meanwhile, they had to pay out of pocket to keep their kid in their current placement and that's not cheap. My feeling is a lot of SPED families flocked to Newton based on the town's reputation and now the town's resources are a bit stretched thin and they're not as generous as they once were. In some ways, the town is still digging out of the hole it dig itself into with the debacle that was the building of Newton North (a/k/a the Taj Majal of High Schools).

Needham I have personal experience with and I know many people in the town. Families I know who's kids are higher functioning especially those in inclusion classrooms are very happy with the care they get here. Outplacements can be a different matter but my feeling is that's going to be the same pretty much no matter where you settle.

I also know some SPED families in Westwood and they're all very happy with the program in that town. Again, higher functioning kids. I don't know any Westwood families on an outplacement but with tuition around $100K for many of them I have to imagine they're not just handing them out to anyone who asks.



My son was recently outplaced and I did a lot of asking around/research beforehand to determine what would be the best school to place him in. The feedback I got about LABB from ASD professionals, advocates, and attorneys I spoke with is that the program there is not as rigorous and the quality of care is not as good there as it would be at say Nashoba Learning Group (NLG) which is literally just down the street from LABBB.

This isn't a condemnation of LABBB and I'm not saying they're abusing/neglecting kids or that it's a terrible place. I'm only saying that their are alternative choices available where the other schools have more resources, staffing, etc. so that they can do a better job. My guess is at the end of the day this is about budgets. LABBB is a collaborative run by 5 area school systems. Being a parent in the ASD world, I've seen the huge disparity between public services and private services. It's night and day and it's mostly about budgets as I mentioned. If you're going to go through the incredible expense, extreme stress, and huge time commitment of seeking an outplacement for your child . . . why would you settle for anything less than the best possible placement? Plus, it's your kid and I would never settle when it comes to my children.
Thank you so much. We'll definitely check out Needhamd and Westwood. Also it definitely makes sense that LABBB towns are not as good as some of the private institutions as an outplacement choice.

Just in case you have any opinions on this: how would LABBB towns (Lexington and Belmont in particular) compare to other school districts (Newton, Brookline, Needham, Westwood) as a public school choice? Is Lexington also kind of like Newton (i.e., old reputation, but resources getting thin as a result of that)?
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Old 04-05-2022, 01:47 PM
 
Location: Needham, MA
8,525 posts, read 13,902,353 times
Reputation: 7908
Quote:
Originally Posted by heartofalion66 View Post
Thank you so much. We'll definitely check out Needhamd and Westwood. Also it definitely makes sense that LABBB towns are not as good as some of the private institutions as an outplacement choice.

Just in case you have any opinions on this: how would LABBB towns (Lexington and Belmont in particular) compare to other school districts (Newton, Brookline, Needham, Westwood) as a public school choice? Is Lexington also kind of like Newton (i.e., old reputation, but resources getting thin as a result of that)?
Can't say I know anyone with a SPED kid in Lexington. For neurotypical (NT) kids, Lexington is one of the most highly regarded school systems in the state. It does have a reputation as being incredibly "pressure cooker" but that's the biggest complaint most people I talk with seem to have. I would be surprised if they didn't have a comparable SPED program to Newton, Needham, Westwood, etc. Belmont also has a highly regarded school system but it lacks the pressure cooker reputation that Lexington has. If their SPED program in school is being coordinated through LABBB then I have to imagine SPED services are fairly similar amongst the 5 LABBB towns. Also, any top performing school district is going to have somewhat of a pressure packed atmosphere. Some are just higher pressure than others.
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