Autism help. (homes, public school, voucher)

[autismistreatable12]

Hi

I am a deaf mom. I have a son that had autism. Age 4. I am from cocoa , fl. I am looking for a daycare center and pre-k schoool that are specialize in autism. Question is how can i get my son to get ABA service. Do medicad cover it.

I can be reach at [email]autismistreatable13@gmail.com[/email]

[sak9210]

Originally Posted by Linzy383

I know that this isn't school related (per say), but has anyone looked at the Autism Society of Greater Orlando? The company I work at has participated in the Autism Walk the past few years, and a friend of mine whose child is autistic participates in some of their events.

Link: ASGO - Supporting Children & Adults with Autism

I emailed the ASGO and the person there told me if I care about my kid, stay in PA! I think that was all I needed to hear to know a move down south wouldn't be in the best interest of my son. But it's really disappointing.

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by crikey

6 hours of after school in home ABA therapy?! That is unheard of, here in Orlando! You'll be lucky to get 30 minutes! I'm serious. You are lucky. I would not leave your current residence. Your son would have a better chance where he's at, than moving down here. Where you are, the weather is not that great from your perspective but you have 4 seasons and some folks like that. Some folks here think it gets too hot in the summer. It really does get humid and sticky. I guess it's how one looks at things.

My son has Asperger's Syndrome and he's quite capable in mainstream classes. He's not disruptive but he goes off task often to do what he likes to do. And that's where an aide comes in, to put him on task. When he was younger, he was given 3 hours of ABA/week by the county. Seeing that 3 hours/week is not enough, we paid for extra hours that we felt he would need. Luckily, my employer's insurance covered the ABA sessions since my employer is self-insured and can approve certain benefits on a case-by-case basis. We gave our son what he needed and did not abuse the privilege. He got Speech and Occupational therapy as well. He no longer requires one-on-one ABA and Speech sessions. He does require pragmatic speech, which is using language in the appropriate situation and that cannot be taught in a one-on-one session as far as I know. It has to be taught in specific situations, most of which are present in a classroom environment. That's where ABA and speech therapy is applied. Hence, mainstream inclusion is the way to go. He still needs OT to improve his fine motor skills. But, looking back to where he was and what he is now, he's a different boy altogether. He seeks attention and interaction now. He couldn't care less before. For lack of a better explanation, it seems that our real son has finally arrived.

Please stay where you are, for your son. I do not think you can get better services elsewhere. If you do not mind, please PM me with where you currently reside as I may want to present it to my wife as a possible candidate for relocation. Thanks.

What is ABA Therapy?

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by valerie123

Gosh Crikey, I have to tell you I feel so scared. I live in NOrth New Jersey and was thinking about moving to Oralndo since the weather here just stinks and I feel like there is nothing to do here. But my son is doing so well in preschool, he has his own aide and I wrote a letter to the district and they approved me for 6 hours of after school in home ABA thereapy. They are so loving and wonderful with my son and I would like to give my son the best chance I can give him. I believe that children model children that is why I wanted him in a classroom with "typical" children. This is the only issue that holds me back. Thanks again for all your help.

My son has Asperger's Syndrome, what is ABA Therapy, I am from South Jersey and have never heard of it.

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by crumbcake13

Hello,
I live in Winter Garden. Both of my boys go to Thornebrooke. My oldest son is 9 with Asperger's. Thornebrooke is fabulous! An "A" rated school! I actually live in the Lake Whitney School District, but the state approved my son to go to Thornebrooke, which is approx. 3 miles from my house. My other son can go to Thornebrooke based on a sibling transfer. So they can both attend the same school.

My AS son is mainstreamed into a regular classroom & does just fine. Their IEP program is just wonderful, along with their incredible staff of loving teachers. I personally can't say enough. I know my son is in the best hands at this school. They truly love your child.

Here is a link for their Inclusion & Autistic services:
http://www.thornebrooke.ocps.net/inclusion.pdf (broken link)

& here is the schools website:
Thornebrooke Elementary School

Also here is a link for UCF CARD: This is the University of Central Florida's Center for Autism & other Related Disabilities.
UCF Center for Autism and Related Disabilities

It's a state funded program, which will give you resources for help, education, etc. It's free to join.

I just signed up, so I could answer your email. I know it's hard, I did all the research on my own, without any help from my ex. Notice that's why he is the ex! LOL. If I can help in any way, please just email me. I am not a know it all, believe me, but I can share with you what I know & hopefully that can help you.

Kimberly

What middle school or high school would your children attend from there, my son has Asperger's Syndrome and we will be moving to Fl this summer.

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by CHICAREBELDE1117

New Jersey has an awsome school system for autism. my son was in preschool andhe was non verbal wen he started and now he talks alot and understands and responds pretty well. makes me kinda regret moving to florida.

It depends on which part of NJ you are from, in South Jersey there are some school districts that accommodate and some that hit or miss.

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by LauraB

Oh my gosh let me tell you the b/s we went through I have 2 autistic children, i'l also send you a pm if you'd like. We had to move twice we thought Osceola was ok, turns out they put special ed children "autistic" and like with felons and sex offenders. No joke! It's called New Horizons. Somehow I don't feel special education children and violent offenders and sex offenders should be placed in the same building.. but that's just me. So we moved to Orange County, after hours and hours of phone calls they don't even have funding for anything and they pair up a teacher volunteer when they have one available. We were in the Dr.Phillips area. We moved to Seminole County and now we have better schooling. We moved from a state that provides a therapist, psychiatrist and highly trained professionals.. to find out the bad news. But i'd give Seminole County a looksie. Hope this helps.

Which part of Seminole Cnty, I am looking at Lake Mary and my son has Asperger's Syndrome. And does the school in Seminole Cnty provide the therapist, psychiatrist and highly trained professionals?

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by Squeaky Wheel

ItsAboutTime: I AM a "squeaky wheel" who lives in Brevard County, FL and it has gotten us NO WHERE. Let me amend that. After 3 years of fighting the school system who forced us to place our high functioning autistic son in a self-contained unit where he was abused by an aide and mistreated by a teacher, we FINALLY were allowed to have him mainstreamed with an aide. We were very happy at that school, and he DID have an aide, but very limited services. Children here routinely receive only HALF of their scheduled speech therapy sessions required by their IEP due to "in service" training, FCAT testing, and other therapist abscences. No ABA is paid for by the school. Our son just graduated from that elementary school and when we filed an intent to have him placed in a private school, they tried to lower his funding without telling us, AFTER we were told it must remained locked. Looooooong story as you can tell, but I would NEVER EVER recommend anyone moving to FL for school options for their autistic child. There may be a good school here and there, but they are few and far between. In fact, after reading these postings, I'm considering a move to New Jersey! And our whole family was born and raised here in Florida!!

Before you move here (NJ), do your due diligence, the good programs for Spectrum children are few and far between as well, at least in the South. I thought it would be better for my son in Fl, but it looks as if it is just as bad if not worst.

I do have a paraprofessional (he gets distracted, she puts him back on track), speech therapist and social skills clubs. Are there any schools in Seminole Cnty (preferably Lake Mary) that can accommodate my son. I am running from the cold but if I HAVE to wait 5 more years then I will.

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by Eggsactsign

Don't forget........we're in FLORIDA. We have the McKay Scholarship program in this state for the last several years now! Private school is FREE if your child has an IEP (where you go to the meeting and sign papers, and he has a matrix code, for those of you who may not know what the meeting is called).

There are TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FLORIDA KIDS taking advantage of this right now. If you're in the school system anywhere in Florida, and you're not happy with the services, you sign up via the web for the McKay Scholarship option, and they money that would have went to the public school for your child is money you can give to a PARTICIPATING PRIVATE SCHOOL in your county, or a neighboring county if you desire (but you provide the transportation to it if your private school doesn't offer it). NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER tell ANYONE IN THE DISTRICT OR YOUR SCHOOL, INCLUDING YOUR FAVORITE TEACHERS WHO YOU THINK ARE DIFFERENT FROM EVERYBODY ELSE, that you are even KNOWLEDGABLE ABOUT THE MCKAY SCHOLARSHIPS! IF YOU DO, they will LOWER your matrix figure at your next IEP meeting (which they will call you for very quickly to trick you!). Understand, the MORE SERVICES your child receives (speech, OT, PT, tutor, etc.), the more the MATRIX FIGURE (its in a box on your IEP, look for it!!!) goes UP UP UP, and the higher it is, the more MONEY YOU GET for your child to give to the private school for tuition, therapies, etc. As a ballpark figure, a child with autism is a matrix 254 and gets around 15,000 per year. If you're a matrix 253 (hearing impaired, for instance), you get around 11,000 a year. If you're let's say in the SLD or LD category, you're going to get around 5,000 to 7,000 per year. Some private schools only charge around 2-3,000 per year tuition, so the rest of the money goes to your child to pay for "extras" that are necessary for the education (computer, books, therapists, etc.). If you want to know more about this, email my friend who is an expert on this for years (email is 'hear my hands' at gmail.com, google mail I believe). She'll help you with everything you need to get the scholarship in one day after your kid has been in a florida public school for 3/4 of the school year). You can look everything up on the web if you want, just google McKay Scholarships Florida. Regardless of what the district people would tell you (but don't talk to them until AFTER you're signed up with a high dollar amount), amost EVERY KID WITH AN IEP QUALIFIES FOR MCKAY SCHOLARSHIPS. They just don't want you to know about because it costs them millions of dollars for the vouchers every year and lost money to the county school system.

I am also told you have to find the private school that has these services for your child is that correct? You wouldn't happen to know of on in Seminole Cnty (moving to Lake Mary). I don't mind doing research, just asking. And thanks for the warning, my lips are sealed.

Sincerly

[dorrien12]

Originally Posted by LauraB

Oh my gosh let me tell you the b/s we went through I have 2 autistic children, i'l also send you a pm if you'd like. We had to move twice we thought Osceola was ok, turns out they put special ed children "autistic" and like with felons and sex offenders. No joke! It's called New Horizons. Somehow I don't feel special education children and violent offenders and sex offenders should be placed in the same building.. but that's just me. So we moved to Orange County, after hours and hours of phone calls they don't even have funding for anything and they pair up a teacher volunteer when they have one available. We were in the Dr.Phillips area. We moved to Seminole County and now we have better schooling. We moved from a state that provides a therapist, psychiatrist and highly trained professionals.. to find out the bad news. But i'd give Seminole County a looksie. Hope this helps.

Which school in Seminole county ended up working for you? Not all of them has proper services.