We got a plan

We had our IEP meeting today with the school special ed team. They presented their plan for Garrett, which identified two student-based educational needs: the need to increase his academic skills and the need to increase his functional classroom skills.

On an academic level, Garrett's behind his peers on identifying colors, rote counting, identifying and copying upper and lower case letters, drawing shapes and writing his name. Functionally, he needs help following classroom rules and routines, sitting quietly while facing the teacher, listening to the teacher, participating in activities and modeling appropriate behavior of his classmates. Basically, Garrett is now functioning at a three to four-year-old level, so we need to bring him up to speed.

The plan calls for Deb, the special ed teacher to pull him out of class two times per week for a 30-minute session. Then there's Darcy, the occupational therapist, who’ll make suggestions to both his kindergarten and special ed teachers. In late October, he will start an ESL class that meets 1-1/2 hours, five days a week. There will be two more progress reports for the year, after which they will determine whether Garrett needs more testing or if he qualifies for extended school year (AKA summer school).

Last, but not least, this plan is a legal document that holds the team accountable for meeting these goals. And the best part? I wasn’t asked to get it notarized and apostilled. Yaaay!!!!