Were from Massachusetts

Good for you for getting an outside opinion of your grand child's reading level. The next step is to work with the district to insure that he gets the instruction he needs to progress. You are right in thinking that if the school cannot teach your son, they should place him in a school that can. Unfortunately, this often hard to get them to do this.

In addition to the Lidonmood Bell testing, has he ever had a neuropsychological evaluation by an independent evaluator (not someone within the school?) Does he have difficulties beyond reading and writing - oral language difficulties, listening comprehension trouble, handwriting? If so, you should consider independent evaluations in all these areas. This independent data will help you understand the severity of your grandson's needs, the services that are required, and provide data to prove your case.

www.concordspedpac.org has a list of qualified evaluators in the Eastern Massachusetts area.

In addition to getting this outside data, it may be helpful if you enlist the help of a parent advocate that can help lead you through the special ed process, assist you during meetings and help you build a strategy.

While Lindonmood Bell offers excellent instruction, you have other options. And, depending upon your child's needs, some of the other options might be a better fit. The best way to find out is to work with experts in the field, listen to what they have to say, and weigh your options. The advocate can help you sort throught the options AND help you build a good IEP to step up services immediatly.

Try contacting www.FCSN.org The Federation for Children with Special Needs. They are the parent training center in Massachusetts. They answer hotline questions, have a list of parent advocates and offer parent training throughout the state. They have your best interests in mind and can help you to navigate the system. Best of luck!

Dear michellea
Thank you for your help. and to others here. We had our grandson neuropsychologially tested at our own expense.The Dr. recommendd small langauage base classroom to adress his severe langauge issues.He will require on on one reading instruction every school day. The dr. this is the most crucial time that the most intesive services be provided so my boy has his best chace to be main streamed in later elementary school. With his currently IEP he tests 2 grade levels below whee he should be. My boy need a chance.
thank You
JIM

Glad to hear that you have had outside testing - it is critical. NOw the challenge is to get the district to implement the recommendations. I noticed that you posted in the Medford section.

I'm not sure what resources Medford has, but I think that I recall reading somewhere that they have a joint program with Tufts University. I would do some investigating. Mary Anne Wolf at Tufts is a leading researcher in the area of reading and dyslexia. It would be great if your grandson could benefit from some of her ground breaking work and well trained teachers. Her center also offers intensive tutoring.

If you your district cannot provide an appropriate language based classroom within their school system, you can try to secure a district paid placement at a specialized LD school like The Carroll School in Lincoln (www.carrollschool.org) or The Landmark School in Beverly (www.landmarkschool.org). It is often difficult to get these kinds of placements, and legal representation is usually necessary. The Federation has a list of special ed attorney's is you decide to go that route.

Good luck - I know how difficult it is to see your loved one struggle. My son began struggling as early as Kindergarten. When we had him tested in 2nd grade, we knew that the regular school setting wouldn't be enough. Luckily, we were able to secure a spot for him in a top notch LD school. Reading is still difficult, but he is making progress and has maintained his self esteem.