Before School Meeting

I couldn't have been more scared for this meeting. After the meet the teacher night last night and seeing the schedule they currently had in place for Jayen I was so nervous. I want him to have friends. I want him to have ownership of a teacher and classroom. I want him included! I grabbed every paper I could find that would help me. But the best piece of evidence I could have asked for was thankfully written on a very legal binding IEP! It specifically stated that Jayen would be in his classroom for everything except reading, writing, and math.

Jayen's ABA tutor, Ms. Mayra, was able to meet us at school. It was so great to have her there. This was also her last day with Jayen. We had to switch our schedule around to accommodate a full school day and that meant loosing her. We are so sad to see her go. She knows she is always welcome in our home and can stop by any time! Thank you for all the support you have given him. He is where he is because of you! You will be missed Mayra!
When we arrived at the conference room, we set up Jayen and Ms. Mayra in the corner where they could still continue their work but be within eye sight if the teachers would have liked to see him or ask questions. I laid out all of my notebooks, binders, and information I had prepared. I sort of took charge of the meeting at that point. I knew there were so many things I wanted to cover and not enough time. I had overheard the assistant principal the day before that there was another meeting an hour and a half after ours. We better get started!
We were able to talk about Jayen's medical needs in quite length with the school nurse while the team was present. A new plan will have to be made and put in place for Jayen's seizure protocol. Team members will have to be assigned a role. We were given a bunch of forms to fill out for everything from carrying the medicine with him to a chronic illness form to get him out of school early twice a week. I was able to leave the backpack with the nurse and was assured it would be with the para in the morning. Although a new one on one has not been hired for Jayen, we were assured that they would pull someone to fulfill that position until one could be hired. We also discussed his feeding issues and tried to convey the need for someone to watch him closely. I'm not sure they understood the extend of his feeding needs, but I will make sure to explain this more.
Most of the meeting time was spent on Jayen's schedule and what we would like to see for next year. We were so thankful that everyone was willing to work together to make sure that Jayen received the support he needs while also joining his peers. We were so lucky that Mrs. Lake took so much time to line her schedule up with the elementary schedule. Jayen will still be able to participate in the general education classroom while also receiving individual support for the areas of Math, Reading, and Writing. I hope this can be the best of both worlds. Ideally I would love to see full inclusion, but I'm dealing with it and can't wait to see the progress he will make. Today truly was a great meeting. We were all able to come together to figure out what is best for Jayen. I am really looking forward to this year! I know there will be hiccups, but I am hopeful that we can work them out as a team!
We left the meeting with presents for each of the members. They were each given a copy of Jayen's portfolio and a snack to help them get through the first day of school!