How much help would you expect?

[DiscoBabe]

Ds is starting reception soon. I have a meeting with Senco this week to discuss his IEP

On his IEP will be,

work towards his social skills (the only adult he will talk freely with is his key worker who he will only see in the afternoons in reception)

Potentially something to do with his pencil grip and fine motor skills. They also want him to choose a dominant hand (is this necessary?) But this might not be added until his next review as they may want to wait and see how he progresses when starting reception.

Then his speech work which involves:

Rhyming work
Blending work
Listening work
Sound production work

With regards to his speech work how much should i expect them to do in school? Obviously i will also be working at home with him, he will also have phonics and reading homework coming home but i have no idea how often i will be expected to do those with him. I feel the poor lad's going to have a lot on his plate!

I know they will try and say he only needs to work in group sessions (they told SaLT he wouldn't work 1-1 which has resulted in her suggesting group work but they only tried twice with him which i don't think was giving it a fair go?). But how often should i ask them to help him? Currently he has two 10 minute group sessions a week. Would it be reasonable to ask for this to continue plus a 1-1 session of 10 mins a week for a few weeks to try it again? Or should i pushing for more?

They have also applied for extra funding for him but if they get this it will only last one term as its for early years only so should i really push my luck for this one term if he gains the extra funding?

TIA.

I don't know what he needs - but it is reasonable to ask them for everything he needs. If he needs daily 1-1 to 'close the gap', then that's what you ask for.

Funding it is the school's problem not yours.

If they're silly enough to say they can't afford it, then you smile sweetly at them and ask them if they will be applying for a statement then if they can't meet his needs from their current resources.

(More likely they won't say the can't afford it, but rather give some other excuse.)

But at the same time you do want to work together with them, and keep talking about all the things you will do at home with him as well.

Also, this is a marathon, not a sprint. The first IEP won't be great. Make sure it's updated at least termly. And try and make each IEP better than the last one......

One of the most important things to get out of this meeting is a date for the next one - where you can discuss if the current strategy is helping, or if he needs more / different help. ( Ask them how they will know by your next meeting this....)

IEPs should be updated at least every term - but can be done more often. If they want it to be longer just tell them 'it is best practice to update IEPs at least termly'

Don't forget that his IEP needs to be SMART. Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time based.

IE Not woolly, something they can measure progress against, something it's possible he can achieve in time, something he actually needs to be able to do and how often will they measure him, at least by next term's review.