special needs and schools (Houston, Sugar Land: school districts, place to live, price)

[mom48]

hello, my name is petra and iam looking for a special needs school for my 6year old.he got adhs,plus developing and speech problems.we are moving from germany to houston on aug.31.is there anybody who can tell me which of all the schools are good ones. we will move to westheimer rd.thanks in advance.petra

[LizzySWW]

Briarwood, it's a special needs school that caters to kids with mild learning disabilities up to severly disabled children. The school is divided into the severity of disabilities. So children are on similar levels within the classroom.

[jplopez]

I am the father of a six year old with high functioning Autism. We are thinking about moving to Houston. Maybe Spring or Humble (Atascocita), I have read the Spring schools are good with Autism, does anybody knows something about Humble ISD

[nana053]

It sounds like the special needs community here needs some resources.

For autism, you can join our meetup group and ask questions there.
The Houston Autism Meetup Group (Houston, TX) - Meetup.com

I have several yahoo groups and could easily start another if anyone is interested. I am in Pearland. We have been fortunate in that we just had an ARD that went very well for my 6 year old autistic grandson who will be in kindergarten next year. Pearland ISD does NOT have a great reputation for special needs services, but so far, we have been pleased with his PPCD and the services he is scheduled for in the coming school year. PM me or email (not sure if you can do that through this website or not) or join the Houston Autism Meetup group and email me through that website.

Dorothy

[plenom01]

[quote=FireElement28;2618314]Katy is excellent, my daughter has "special needs" leaning disability I have found the most excellent & caring teachers on the planet right here in Katy! I have been a resident for just little over a year! Quiet area, but close to city just a 20 min jaunt in the HOV lane or during rush hour wth major traffic/road construction delays could take 2 hours. This is familyville here, a great place to raise a kidlet....Most importantly it's about your child so Katy comes highly recommended from a parent that cares!
I am in an older neighborhood that is established and quite happy with it.[/quote

hi! i have an autistic daughter. i am also planning to move to katy ISD, can you tell me about your place? what is the name? thank you..

[nana053]

Originally Posted by mom48

hello, my name is petra and iam looking for a special needs school for my 6year old.he got adhs,plus developing and speech problems.we are moving from germany to houston on aug.31.is there anybody who can tell me which of all the schools are good ones. we will move to westheimer rd.thanks in advance.petra

You would be close to Crossroads School
Crossroads School

and The Westview School
The Westview School, Houston, Texas | Westview School

and the Briarwood School
Home Page

and the Arbor School
Welcome to the Arbor School

If you are in Spring Branch ISD, you can look at the public schools and see if any of their programs meet your needs
Spring Branch ISD Homepage

so you are in an area with a lot of options. What is right for your child in particular may take some research.

Dorothy

[crbcrbrgv]

I don't like to divulge too much information on what I do for a living, but I will tell you that I have been involved in education on and off within the Houston area for about 15 years, mostly in Special Education. When it comes to Special Education in this area, it is a school to school issue. The best school I have dealt with hands down is Gallegos Elementary in HISD. It is a predominately Hispanic school in the lower-middle class neighborhood of Magnolia Park. Why is this school so great in Special Education? It's hard to say. Some could argue luck. Point being, you are best off ignoring the tags and perceptions of ISD's and looking at schools at a case to case basis.

[plenom01]

hello everyone!! i need your feedback pls.. does anybody know The Shape of Behavior? is this private school good for special need child?? ppls reply...

[crmiles]

In the past, I enrolled my children in Stafford MSD for my two autistic sons and they could not provide the resources necessary for my children. I was really disappointed and will give Clements High School in Fort Bend ISD a try. Good luck in the upcoming year to all parents and especially if your children are challenged like mine.

[booboo710]

Hello all,

My husband has a potential job opportunity in Houston, and I am wondering if it would be a good move. I have a 2nd grade child with an autism diagnosis, but he's not a behavior/autism kid... it's more like he processes information really slowly. I am wondering a couple things... one, is the Houston community in general accepting of people with disabilities and differences? Where we live now in California, the schools are very cliquish, and if your child isn't an athlete or part of the "cool" crowd (unbelievably already in 2nd grade there is a cool crowd) then he is very lonely. This is why I'd consider moving, but I know no one in Houston, and I need to figure out the kindness and inclusiveness of the community. Which is sort of impossible to know, I guess, but I'm joining listservs and asking around and trying my hardest.

The other question is about autism services. Where we live now, it's very ABA/behavior oriented, and since my son has few interfering behaviors, they don't quite know what to do with him. A co-teach style classroom would be ideal for him, with kids who are taught to be patient and kind. Behavior charts and the like are not helpful... understanding kids who learn differently would be.

I understand/hear that Texans are overall very kind and warm, much less cliquish and snobby than where we live in CA. Does that extend to children with special needs, in your experience? The people in my current community talk about how friendly and wonderful they are... until you try to arrange a playdate with any of their children for your special needs child. Then all of the sudden their smiles fade and the friendliness ceases.

Any help or direction anyone can give would be deeply, deeply appreciated. My best wishes to all of you.