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windylou

How to help my son to be organised at school?

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My son has forgotten to bring home his reading book and homework etc from school for a whole week, how can I help him to be organized without actually being there?

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He needs a visual things to do list, rather like a visual timetable. He may also need prompting by someone to look at this every day. He should be taught how to put it together and how to use it. And these types of visual things to do will be used for many areas of life eg. bedtime routine, morning routine etc.

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Special Talent that sounds like a good idea....I'm going to have a look into that. Thank you

 

Sally he did have a newly started diary with everything in what he needed to remember and the TA was going to 'train' him to use it every morning and at the end of school but the headteacher has stopped it. It was stopped Tuesday last week (we found out on Wednesday just gone) and low and behold he has forgot everything he needed ever since. It's a shame it really is the TA is the first person to actually noticed that he struggles even more so than other children in her group with his organization and she was going to try and tackle that to make everything a little less stressful for him.

 

I could do a list myself that's not a problem, but getting him to remember to check his list without me prompting him will be difficult.

Edited by windylou

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Then I would send a polite letter to the teacher stating that using the system the TA had set up, your son used to remember the things he needed to bring home. Now that this support has been removed he is forgetting things again. This is all part of his diagnosis. Can you please reinstate the TAs support for this need. [can't remember if he has a Statement and this need is detailed in the Statement. If it is detailed then this support must remain as per the Statement. If it isn't in the Statement then this need should be in part 2, and the support that the TA used that worked should be detailed in part 3. School cannot just start and stop things whenever they feel like it. A Statement is a legally binding document. It should detail each and every need with support for each of those needs and if the Statement does contain this information in parts 2 and 3, then it cannot be amended outside of an Annual Review, and for any amendment to take place it should be something recommended by the relevant professional.

 

Do not volunteer to do it yourself. As you've stated, he needs an adult in school to prompt him. My son is the same. So let the school provide the support they are supposed to be doing.

 

Yes my son also used to have a key fob thing attached to himself on one of the loops of his trousers, but that was for something slightly different.

Edited by Sally44

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I am suggesting the method that worked with me. Flash cards on a keyring attached to bang with picture and word saying what needs to go into the bag for when he looks and someone to prompting him at school to look at them before going home.

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Hi Sally, No statement SA has just been turned down because the school are providing everything they need to from their resources. The only problem is my son is forgetting everything which in theory would be classed as my 'duty of care' to make sure he remembers e.g his homework being brought home-completed and handed back in, his reading book to bring home, hand in every morning and bring home every evening..this was one of my arguments in YR 2 he wasn't handing his reading book in in the morning so ended up with the same reading book for weeks even though he had read it within the first 2 days of having it...when I mentioned this of course it was MY duty of care! So I spoke to the TA at the time...he still forgot, I reminded him in a morning..he still forgot, so I started sending him in to change it at the end of the day and he was told it was to stop he has to remember to hand it in in a morning! so how on earth? from outside the school am I supposed to help?...unless that is the idea...to make me look like I am not??

 

I have got a hold of a keyring for him so will see how he goes on with that.

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No you're getting it wrong. It is about 'needs' being identified and then being 'provided' in school. So whether school suggested it, or you did, the fact is that what they were doing was working. Now he's taken a step backwards. So put in writing what they were doing before and ask that it is reinstated because it was working.

 

Are you going to appeal the decision not to issue a Statement [or was it a decision not to assess?]. Either way I would appeal, because parents often win the appeal, and then you get up to date assessments on your child.

 

Is he seeing a speech therapist? Does he have a SALT programme in school. Does he have a social use of language group in school? Does he have support for unstructured times such as breaktimes and dinner times. Does he have any sensory issues. Does he have any fine motor or gross motor skills difficulties. Does he have a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia or short term/working memory/organisation problems [yes]. If he has an ASD he most likely has all these things as well as poor social skills, poor emotional literacy etc.

 

If school say they are meeting all his needs from their resources ask them what their resources are, and how they are using them for your son. Ask them to detail it on his daily timetable. It is usually around 15 hours of support a week. They need to show how that is being used and is it producing progress.

 

And if he is getting any therapy that needs to be in the Statement. And if he needs therapy, but isn't currently getting it, then you need a Statement to get that provided.

 

If you don't appeal you will have to wait a further 6 months before you ask for him to be assessed again. And most likely the LA will refuse again - simply because it saves them money to delay things.

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Sally, it was the decision not to assess because it is very rare to have a child with extreme complex difficulties which warrant further assessments and I am to contact the SENCO to discuss what support they have in place. We have 2 months to appeal and an OT app right bang in the middle. We will be appealing.

 

No Speech and language. NHS SALT did an assessment and discharged as all ok and anything which was noted was just noted as 'typical of asperger's'....pretty much suggested everything in place any ways. SULP is used in the classroom he had 12 wks on a SULP program last year and his old TA was trained up to supply SULP but she is no longer in his class. When CAMHS became involved and he was given a diagnosis the outreach team disappeared.

 

Not tested for dyslexia although I see symptoms on a regular basis....school however do not he is a 3a for reading but 1b for writing, can spell orally but can't put it on paper correctly. Working memory was his lowest score from the 4 categories when tested by the EP although it was still in the average bracket.

 

Sensory issues; yes I included all of these in the request letter for SA

 

Again I see fine/gross motor difficulties but the school don't.

 

It's so hard not to try and help him when I know he is struggling with something for the sake of others wanting to be awkward. In all honesty I am waiting to see if the key ring is stopped too.

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I am confused because you say:

 

"it is very rare to have a child with extreme complex difficulties which warrant further assessments"

 

Surely they are the very children who do need further assessments and should have Statements.

 

Unfortunately you do have to stop what you are doing [as otherwise you will increase what you are doing to cover what school are not doing, will run yourself ragged and still not get what he needs]. Without your support he will not make progress and it is that lack of progress that triggers intervention, and will make you win the appeal.

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My son also completed a SULP group. Knew the answers, but didn't apply them because the skills were not taught explicitly [which is a specific teaching method], and were not generalised out of the 1:1 speech therapy and SULP group into the classroom and playground. In his new school skills are taught 1:1, then small group, then in the class, then in unstructured activities and life skills. That is how skills are acquired and remain, rather than being learnt, not applied and forgotten.

 

If you appeal and win the LA will need to ask the EP and SALT to re-assess. You have some baseline scores now from the standardised assessments she carried out. You will see if he has made progress or fallen further behind. If he is further behind, or even the same, he has not made progress.

 

He already has a big difference from 3a for reading and 1b for writing. School are boarding on ridiculous if they don't see the difference. And as part of your appeal highlight those differences and the fact that they will widen without appropriate therapy and intervention and your son needs thorough assessing to determine the cause. Those writing problems maybe dyslexia, difficulties with executive functions [planning, organisation] , dyspraxia [dyspraxia can affect motor planning and also thinking things through in a sequential order] or sensory based or a combination of all of them.

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The difference in his reading and writing are put down to the fact that he doesn't want to! He has been repeatedly punished at school now for 3 YEARS for the same reason...his writing, now he can be stubborn but 3 years!!. I see absolutely NO evidence what so ever of it ever being over a 1b anywhere so for the reason to be he is capable but doesn't want to is rubbish in my eyes there is nothing to back this up...and I know him a dam sight better than they do, if that doesn't send alarm bells ringing I don't know what will.

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