APD - starting school

[loonlorn]

hi all
hi all! i have a son with suspected APD & am wondering what is the best thing to do re schooling. We cant get a statement at this stage but have been offered a nuture unit (for 2 years) or mainstream ed with an IPA.
really want to get it right for him (due to start reception year in sept).
has anyone been through this & got any advise on best route to take or how an APD child manages in the normal classroom environment?
Has anyone used a nuture unit & how did their child cope after the 2 years - did they adapt & fit in to regular classes & schooling ok? Feel very torn & confused right now. any advise or experiences would be really appreciated.
Not much on APD in the uk so help & advise seems hard to find.www.mumsnet.com/te/11.gif
thanks xx

Hi,

Who advised you re the comment below:-
"We cant get a statement at this stage"

IPSEA's website is very good at the whole minefield that is the statementing process. There is nothing to stop you personally applying to the LEA for such a document now.

Hi,

My son has Apd, Asd, Add,SLI, learning difficulties and Dyslexia. My Advice would be to try and secure a statement as soon as possible. It is very common for Apd to be associated with other difficulties eg Autism, learning difficulties. If your Son does have APD he would I imagine have some Speech and Language needs?. Having been through the Statement process I would strongly advise that you get in touch with Speech and Language for help/advice and assessment. SALT input was crucial to us securing a statement as most LA's have a service level agreement that if your child has Speech and language difficulties they have to statement. Also if your Son is found to have the condition a device called I Sense can be used in the classroom, the child wears an ear piece and the Teacher has a microphone attached to her clothing all very discreet. The device cuts out all the background noise and the child only hears crystal clear instructions. My Son is trialling it at the moment with good results. Also Earobics is supposed to be good you can google it for more information. I have yet not tried it but hearing positive things about it. Also ask for a sensory profile to be carried out. Hope I've pointed you in the right direction, and must stress again that Speech and Language help is crucial. good luck and keep us updated. x :)

loonlorn

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) is relatively new to the UK the Medical Research Council (MRC) published it first APD pamphlet in 2004.

APDUK was founded in 2002 initially to lobby the MRC to carry out APD research. APDUK has been participating on the government run Senco Forum for over 5 years now so most Sencos should have some idea about APD.
On the APDUK web site there is an Ideas to be Considered Prior to Creating an IEP for an APD web page and the contents are part of a combined pdf download. the APDUK web site has been designed ot be APD friendly with regard to text so those who may have visual issues may prefer to THE ALTERNATIVE PAGE.

As part of the MRC APD diagnostic guidelines APD needs to be assessed and daignosed by a multi - discipline Team. An audiologist the diagnose the APD issues, a speech and language pathologist to assess any speech and langauge issues the diagnosed APD issues can cause, and a psychologist to assess and advise on living with the diagnosed APD issues. Currently these procedures are being carried out at Great Ormond Street Hospital, where the relevant professionals are trained tor be members of future multi discipline teams. This process provides a an all in one report, and can look into other issues which could be co-morbid.

There are many remedial programs associated with APD but none have so far provided research data to demonstrate reliable effectiveness. You could have a look at the recently revised Wikipedia Auditory processing disorder articles which has recently been edited by a leading UK research professor, and I believe the MRC are now monitoring the articles content.

I have APD, so do all of my 3 DSs and my DW, so we are family of 5 APDs There is an adult APD forum the OldAPDs which is almost 12 years old, and has over 600 members, and there are various APD support groups on Facebook.