reguarding asd unit

[KarenM]

Is it comforting for our children being with other children with asd . Or do they not care dd having a really hard time with high school they have said they will stop her from having to mix with other kids who have been bullying her, but i am going to try and get her statemented so she can go to a high school with a asd unit . I have been finding things really hard lately to knackerd to post but been reading your helpful posts often . I have got dla though which is brilliant. Karen

Edited November 17, 2005 by KarenM

[something vague]

I work in a ASD unit attatched to a school whose pupils have Mild learning difficulties. In the unit we have classes for ASD kids with mild learning difficulties and severe learning difficulties. I have observed that the pupils with MLD all appear to be very happy and relaxed. I'm sure that is because they are comfortable with each other but also the staff are fully aware and trained in ASD and thus create an ASD friendly environment.

 

It was one of the ASD classes assemblies recently and it was very evident that their teacher was aware of just how much each pupil was comfortable with and she used their strengths to ensure their success (reading/dancing)

 

A downside to such classes can be that there may be a mix of sound sensitive children and loud children but usually in such an environment their are less tantrums, less stress and therefore less noisey outbursts.

 

I don't know how this works with more academicaly sp? able children though. Do they feel excluded from the mainstream? not sure.

[Zemanski]

I think perhaps a different emphasis needs to be placed on how a unit might work for a high achieving ASD kid

 

Com uses the SEN room a lot, he feels relaxed there, there is less pressure. His ASD focused lessons are based there, it's where he meets his LSA and registers (although he is officially still part of a form group).

But more than anything it is his escape route, his bolt hole, the place he goes when he can't cope and this is precisely what he needs.

 

Zemanski

[mossgrove]

The value of specialist provision is not, first and foremost, about who the other pupils are. It is a big factor, but how the unit is organised/run is even more important. It is about creating an environemnt where the child feels safe and happy, and where his/her needs are understood and met.

 

Being amongst childen with similar issues helps in a great many ways, but it is naive to assume that a mutually supportive, nurturing environemnt will happen simply because many of the puils have similar issues. For example, when one childs aversion/phobia is another childs soecial interest it can require very careful managment!

 

I'm going to digress a little now, but there are two schools in our catchment area, I will call the schools A and B

 

A has a specialist unit for children with ASD's, it is separate from the school and the school likes the prestige of having it, but they seem to have become complacent and have not given enough thought to how the kids in the ASD unit integrate with the rest of the school.

 

B had a poor reputation locally, has no specialist ASD unit, and about 5 years ago 6 pupils with ASD's were moved by their parents within weeks of joining the school.

However, the school did the right thing. They took a long hard look at how they dealt with childen with ASD's got all the right advice, got funding in place and acted on it. They now have buddy systems, any child with an ASD is 'adopted' by a teacher who comes and collects then at the end of each lesson and makes sure they get safely to the next one for as long as they need asistance and a number of other measures too.

 

Last year 13 children with ASD's moved from primary school to high school in the catchment area. All 13 of them chose school B because thay had done the hard work, so the ASD unit had no intake last year.

 

You need to make an appointment to go and visit the unit(s) you are considering before you go down this route, and trust your instincts as a mother about what is best for her. Despite everything I have said above there are some wonderful specialist units out there that may well be ideal for your daugter, but they will be wonderful because of who runs them and how they are run not simply because they are specialist units. You could organise this visit now by ringing the school(s) and explaining your position.

 

 

 

Simon

Edited November 18, 2005 by mossgrove

[KarenM]

I have visted the school. It is a mainstream school with a communication resource base. I have seen the base and it looks very good. The only problem is the school peforms poorly in exam ratings though children in the resource base do very well. The school she is at now is beautiful with medium exam results.

Karen

[Zemanski]

exam results are not everything - the pressure in high achieving schools can be too much for our children, although some feel most comfortable in a more academic setting.

 

My personal feeling is, like Mossgrove, to go with your instincts and look for what your daughter can cope with, what will help her be most relaxed in school.

All children achieve more when they feel relaxed and comfortable learning, this is doubly so for ASD children.

 

Zemanski

[kirstie]

This is exactly what we did with our son. We visited all 3 of the Language units within mainstream primary schools and the one special school for children with ASD's. It was emotionally quite draining but my instinct was the unit at the other side of town. It has been the best decision i could've made for him and they have 5 children in the class and they all move along at their own pace but are pushed more academically than they would be if they were in the special school. Lewis loves it and what a massive difference to when he was in the mainstream nursery setting. He is integrated into the mainstram class four days a week (half an hour each time with support) for phonics and 3 times a week for maths. He is like a sponge and really needs to learn!

Go with youir gut instinct!

Take care,

Kirstie.

[KarenM]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I am going to try to change her schools. Karen

Edited November 20, 2005 by KarenM