Sekeing Self Contained Classroom Info.

S.,

Hi my name is K.. My son was SLAMMED into a self contained classroom in first grade. He is in third grade now. He has a learning disability. My advice to you is DONT DO IT! What they dont tell you about these rooms is that there are MANY problems from behavior to physical medical problems with the children in these classrooms. My son has NOT really any progress since they stuck him in this classroom and his behavior sucks. Children mimic eachother. They are like little monkeys. If you need more information let me know. I DO NOT recommend it though.
____@____.com

K.

I am not sure what a self contained classroom is but I do know a little about ADHD and ODD. Both of these disorders have been directly related to food. Simple carbohydrates like boxed macaroni and cheese, white bread, even breads that say they are whole wheat most of these have enriched or bleached in the ingredients which makes them bad too, these foods have been directly responsible for ADHD and ODD behaviors. Many children who have been diagnoses and placed on medication just need to have their diets adjusted. There are some true cases, but diet still needs to be addressed to obtain optimal behavior. If I were you I would start him on a whole food diet, basically only shop the outer parameter of the grocery store, fruits, veggies, fresh meats (organic and grass-fed are the best)and nothing processed, or made with preservatives. This may be just the thing that would help him, it may even "cure" him, but if he is in the small group that truly has this problem then it would greatly help and would allow him to stay in a regular classroom. I would try this and see if it helps and if his teachers are able to notice a change. And get them involved so that they are not giving him junk at school that might be compounding the problem. I definitely wish you the best and hope all goes well.

HI S.,
I AM A LICENSED PROFESSIONAL COUNSELOR AND DIRECTOR OF THE SPECIAL NEEDS PROGRAM AT GREENVILLE TEC. YOUR DILEMMA IS ONE I'VE WORKED WITH FOR 38 YEARS. PLEASE GET INFORMED ON YOUR RIGHTS. IF YOU HAVE AN ON-LINE COMPUTER, OR ACCESS TO ONE, GO TO YAHOO OR GOOGLE AND TYPE IN "SPECIAL EDUCATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA" OR CALL S.C. PROTECTION AND ADVOCACY FOR DOCUMENTATION CONCERNING HOW CHILDREN ARE PLACED AND WHAT YOUR RIGHTS AS A PARENT ARE--AND THEN YOU CAN TALK WITH THESE PEOPLE KNOWING WHAT THE LAW STATES. YOU MUST BECOME AN INFORMED
PARTICIPANT. DO NOT BE INTIMIDATED BY THE SCHOOL SYSTEM. YOUR CHILD WILL GET THE LEVEL OF EDUCATION YOU REQUEST. THERE ARE LOTS OF SUPPORT GROUPS FULL OF PARENTS WHO HAVE BEEN THERE AND THEY CAN HELP YOU RUN THE COURSE. IF I CAN BE OF AN ASSISTANCE, PLEASE E-MAIL ME (IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO GET ME BY PHONE). I'LL BE HAPPY TO HELP YOU. I'M NOT ANTI-SCHOOL SYSTM--I AM FOR BEING PRO-ACTIVE. MY ADDRESS IS ____@____.com LUCK!

S., I have a client that has a son who is 8 and he has ADD, ADHD and authoritative defiance disorder. She is a little overwhelmed but has put him in a school that deals with children with these challenges and she says he is doing extremely well. His behavior has improved and he is actually trying harder to make her life easier. The school is on the corner of Carmel and 51, I don't know the name of it, but if you are interested, I can find out for you. A.

Hi S.,
I don't have any children in self-containted classrooms, but as an attorney I have represented many, many, many kids with special education needs in their battles with their school systems over those needs. I did this in NYC and have not done any education-related law in NC, so I don't know the NC specific laws, but there are federal laws (The Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act) that protect you and your son that would form the basis of any NC law. One mother recommended checking into whether your school system has an IEP (Individuals Education Plan) or Behavioral 504 plan. All school districts have these- they are required under the IDEA. How well the use them is another issue. If the school wants to put your son in a self-contained classroom, they have to give him an IEP. Just know that you do have rights to challenge the results of assessments given your son and the recommended plan the school suggests. There are attorneys out there that can help you if you feel you need it. I would not rely solely on the school to inform you of your rights. It has been my experience that self-contained classrooms are not very good. They tend to be dumping grounds for the "troubled" kids. They are usually reserved for kids with diagnoses like Emotionally Disturbed. I'm not saying they are all bad or not right for your son, just do your research. Ask to observe the specific class they want to put your son in (you have a right to do that). And if you try it and it doesn't work, you can ask that his IEP be reevaluated. Good luck.

They tried to do my son they same way in the 2nd grade at the same age. They wanted to put him back into first grade because of what they said was ADHD. They said he could or would not pay attention. I knowed it was just the little boy in him because he was the same way at home. I absolutely refused. I took him to my doctor, had him tested. He was week in reading, that was it. The teacher said without it , he would fail. I bout him hooked on phonics and worked like crazy with him. He passed and went to the third grade where he met the teacher of his life. She put him in a reading class three days a week to strenghen his reading skills, he didn't like it at first , but quickly began to read more and more. He won the most improved reader achievement award that year in the third grade and he graduates this year with honors. So don't give up, put your foot down and work really really hard with him. Good luck.

Hi, my son is 9 and in 4th grade and is in a slef contained room with 7 other kids, he is considered other health impaired.He has an iep plan and we meet all the time.I must say I am for it and against it, and it really depends on the teacher.I have been dealing with this since my child has been in daycare and it hasnt stopped yet.My son got all a's this quarter which is the opposite end of what he has been doing the last 3 years.I am involved everyday and I am at every meeting,and I help with whatever they need for him.My son loves his room and does not want to go to a regular classroom even though that is their goal.The main objective is to get them in the least restrictive enviroment.Anyways I have alot of experience with this in nc and sc so if you want you can email me anytime.I hope it all works out and it should if you stay on top of everything

My son is in self-contained with CMS - if you want to discuss this, send me a private message and I'll give my email address. I've been dealing with this subject for 3 years now... my son is 8 also.

S.,
You have my sympathy! I am a teacher and a mother so I can relate to both sides of this. First, remember that you have to be your child's advocate. Only you know what your child is truly like, and if what is being done at school has a negative effect on him, you must make this known. That said, schools generally don't recommend putting a child in a self-conatined classroom unless it is truly a last resort. First, it is much more expensive for the school system to do this, so they try to avoid it at all costs (we know how important money can be to the schools!). Second, by law, a child must be placed in the "least restrictive environment", so schools are very slow to place in self-contained rooms because it is very hard to prove that it is necessary. So if the schools think they can prove that it's the best place for your son, they probably have a bit of testing and anecdotal evidence for it. All of this only applies to public schools, however-- if your child is in a private or charter school, the rules can be different. If I were you, I'd ask to see any test results and any other evidence they have (often notes or journals from teachers) and remember that self-containing is not usually a bad thing. I've had students over the years who were mostly self-contained or were transitioning out of self-contained, and they really, really loved being in "their" room, as opposed to the regular classroom. It can be a huge relief to a child who has had discipline problems to finally be in a "safe" place, where they can relax a little, learn good behavior in a non-threatening environment, and not let their behavior (and its consequences) get in the way of their actual learning, which is why they're in school in the first place. Good luck with this!

Hi S.,
Yes, I have had lots of experience with self containment. My advice is DO NOT DO IT...
My son in the 4th grade was that he should go into this setting to help me. They LIED. They said this class was supposed to help him be able to have a teacher one on one and it would improve his behaviours. This is the TOTAL opposite of what happened. The children that end up in these classes are the ones that are the TRUE trouble makers. They are disruptive and bring the negatives that they have to the class. No LEARNING can be done in this setting, as the teachers are constantly trying to reprimand the ones(which normally is 90%) that are misbehaving. I tried for 4 years to get him out, and was told the same thing over and over that he had to do well for so long and then they would consider it. My son in the 8th grade ended the year on the A-B honor roll for the year, and they still did not remove him. Each year, it got worse. He learned the worst things and his behavior and attitude for school went straight down hill. His 9th grade year started ok, but then it went down hill from then. To get him out of the system, I had to move him to NY with my parents. One because, if I did not, I probably would be attending my childs funeral,and secondly he just wasn't learning what he should have been. My father attended school with him for the last 6 weeks of his 10th grade year. He would have failed if he was not there to keep him focused on what he had to do just to get out. From my fathers first hand experience, the children that were there and wanted to learn, could not. Please listen, and if this information helps any other parent, do not subject your innocent child to this. I unfortunaltey had to learn the hard way and only wished that I was told the truth.

I have a 7 yr old son who is also in the 2nd grade and has ADHD and Asburger's Disorder. I had to fight the school system about the same problem you are having. You need to see if your school system has a program called the IEP and if they have a Behavioral 504 Plan. Please feel free to write me and ask any other questions and I will try to help you talk to the right people.

Dear Shelia
I have been a teacher for the last five years and please let me reassure you that children do NOT get placed in a self contained classroom unless it is absolutely necessary. It is a very time consuming process for the parents and the teachers to do this. Please also know that the teachers and administrators have your child's best interest at heart and want your child to succeed. If your child needs a self contained classroom so that he can succeed then you should do it, afterall you want the best for him too, right? I know it is difficult to accept that your child is having so much trouble, but you owe it to him to give him the best chance possible and that will be with more attention in the self contained classroom. Good Luck!

S.,

I am a third grade teacher. Wait and see what they say at the meeting. I know that I like to through out possibilities so that parents are not surprised later on. You do have a say in what happens with your child. Please talk with someone at the school and find out your rights. You do have them in this process. Also keep in mind what will be best for your son in the long run. I have ADD and ADHD children in my room and they are on meds. It really seems to help for one and only so so for the other. I do know that self contain classes do work. They allow the child to feel like they are just like everyone else. What kind of class is it? Just wait and hear all of the information before you make a decision. The school will have to live with the choice that you make. He is your child. Hope that this helps and please feel free to email me a note if you want.

S.

Hi,
I am not sure if this will help but in my family we have a lot of special needs issues. My son is ADHD he is not hyper but has a very hard time focusing on school work. There is no other problem besides that. He is 14 and has been dealing with this since first grade. The sooner you deal with it the better the chances of seeing improvement. Also my brother in law is 16 with Autism. Both of them have an IEP and are not in a self contained class room. The 14 yr old is main stream with help from the resource center. The 16 is in the EC life skills room with a trained behaviorlist that sets up his program and comes once a week to make sure it is going well at the schools expense. She is trained in ABA and I have worked with a lot of children with different needs and ABA works the best out of all that I have seen. I feel the teachers are overwhelmed and not sure how to handle him so they pass him along. You will have to fight it but it is your childs right to have this help. IF they get trained it will not be so overwhelming. It has made a huge difference in the 16 year olds life. He was disrobing, hiiting and biting himself(almost placed in an instution) because they did not know how to deal with it until the ABA behavioralist stepped in. Now it is a piece of cake but you will always have to fight for it because of the money but I feel evry child needs their needs met. Like I said I am not sure of all of your details but I hope something I have said helps.
C. W

What was the decision on the self contained classroom?
How is your son doing?

There is another school that can help your child to develop without this "Self-containment". Let me know if you would like additional information.