Sequential Acquisition of Core Basic Skills

Aaron is in 2nd grade, inclusion class, with pullout resource for reading and math. I got a call at the end of the sememster saying he wasnt meeting his IEP goals and we needed to have a meeting. It is next week. He is making fine grades, but I requested his tests (his resource teacher won't ever send them to me, long story I won't bore you with) and at least in math, they are not teaching him new concepts at an acceptable pace IMO. I'm not sure if they are limiting thier meeting to math or not, but that is what I am seeing. Also, I guess they could say he isn't reaching them in reading because he is reading at end of first grade level, and only making 70-75% on his comprehension tests as of late.

- In educating our daughter, I would say that I could care less what his "grades are," as the important focus is on how he is learning the skills of reading and math. For a 7 year old with DS to be reading with 70 to 75% comprehension at the end of first grade in second or even early third grade would be excellent in my book. Many kids with DS can learn to read, but do not have great comprehension skills. I would not squander the sequential development of this most important life skill just to say he is being exposed to a grade level of reading that his inclusion peers have the skills to master. He needs to move through each level of reading and learn the related skills as well as he can and then move on.

His IEP states that he will meet 1st and 2nd grade minimum benchmarks with 70% accuracy. THis allows us to work on any 1st grade things he didn't reach last year and continue on with 2nd grade work.

- In my opinion this is the fallacy of inclusion if you are told this is the way it must be done. How can one expect a child with mental retardation to be able to focus and perform on higher order skills in reading or math when the earlier skills have not yet been mastered. Would you expect that a typical student to read chapter books without pictures and a lot of detail before mastering a chapter book with pictures, larger print, less material and less detail?

- With the option of pull-out, why is Aaron simply not working on a continuation of his IEP goals in reading and math during the timeframe when his classmates will be doing reading and math skills? Then, if the reading period extends beyond say his pull-out time, he could have seat work to complete on his own of with an assistant overseeing.

- Aaron does not need "any allowance" to continue to work at his pace on his skills as that is federal law under IDEA. Now is it that the school division is trying to push him out of the regular classroom setting -- then this is an entirely different issue? Would the school division really rather have him in a fully self-contained class?

So my question is with the math. I have, up to this point, been against a calculator. I wanted aaron to understand the concepts of addition and subtraction, etc. He has mastered those, with double digit numbers, without regrouping. He uses a number line. He still gets lost with higher numbers at times, which seems to be a problem with focus, not the actual concept. So, I am wondering if we should start allowing him to use a calculator for some math concepts so he can move along at a more acceptable pace. He is great with concrete concepts, but not as good with abstract things (like regrouping numbers). I'm at a loss. I want him to keep learning, and if its just my stubborness getting in the way, thats just silly. What have you done for your child? Thanks for any advice!

- It might be for a particular skill in math that a calculator would help him, but he would not need it for all tasks. You could put it in his IEP that for the task of XX, he will use a calculator. For example, when ready, he may well be able to understand/memorize multiplication facts, but may need a calculator right from the beginning in division.

It sounds like he is doing well in school so you do not want him to become frustrated and suddenly see himself as not a "successful learner." Fair goals need to be set for him based on his progress to date with performance based not perhaps on what his typical peers are doing, but on how Aaron is doing in terms of material presented and learned. I understand that this can be a very hard thing to understand because the pace of learning picks up as most students are assumed to be independent readers with related skills by the end of 3rd grade, but it is so very, very important to keep a focus on what the child with the disabiity is accomplishing without necessarily a parallel timeline for skills
mastery.

Vicki, mom to
Aaron, Jacob and Kaelin