Is this a reasonable time scale? (School, need to reply tonight)

[WilsonFrickett]

Very briefly, found out at parents night that DS hasn't settled at all well at new school. His IEP is also out of date. Have requested urgent meeting to request this, first date they can give is 3rd May. We break for holidays tomorrow so that's 13 working days, ie nearly 3 weeks. And they've known his IEP is out of date.

WIBU to push for an earlier meeting or is my judgement being clouded by irrational hatred of new HT who I suspect is behind this? In the scheme of things, would getting a meeting a week earlier make a real difference?

Need some perspective as would need to reply tonight...

I can't be neutral about this either. I see lost time as wasted opportunities.

3 weeks of inaction is 99 hours of potential therapy/intervention but I think I would look insane saying so.

Nothing is going to happen until after holidays. Even if you had meeting before hols it wouldn't be typed up and duplicated, never mind any changes made to interventions until after hols anyway. I would just take the date offered.

We're off from tomorrow cansu so I def can't see them before we go off . I know Star, I'm raging because they waited till parents' night to flag it - time lost, the IEP was supposed to be ready for next term anyway - time lost, and I fail to see how it will take them three weeks to put together a draft plan - because it is a draft until we input to it.

They've also been incredibly snippy about my ABA person, disregarded her recs but then at the end of the email ask if she has any recs for a specific situation. WTF?

Also was chatting to some mums today who were saying the old HT (the one that really wanted us to go to that school) had an open door policy and would basically just put his timetable up on the window so parents could pop in. I've never actually formally met the new HT.

Cansu, I think WF means there are 2 weeks hols and then 3 weeks of inaction, not that it is expected that the IEP will be done during hols.

I've done less than keep DS off school in such instances as the wrong behaviour might get reinforced during that time which will take another 3 weeks to undo, or tell them if they haven't the resources to meet your ds' needs your ABA team will do the IEP. Unfortunately you won't win friends oor build relationships this way because 3 weeks of inaction WILL be seen as reasonable by those for whom that length of time is the norm, or fast even.

I suppose it depends how far along the broken relationship path you are reay as to how you play it.

seems a bit odd that they don't have time to meet for three weeks after the hols. IEP meetings are quite informal and usually take less than an hour. I guess it depends on how you are feeling and how much fuss you want to make. If your ds is not coping well in the class surely that would make it more usual to speed things up.

I've basically gone back and said:
Instead of saying you'll meet me on x and then every four weeks which would give us 2 meetings next term, I want three meetings over the term - 1. asap to discuss IEP and if that is still in draft form at that meeting that is fine, 2. halfway through term to discuss progress, 3. at end of term to consolidate and new P3 teacher should attend this one.

I'm trying very hard to not go down the broken relationship road, I very much feel that its the inexperience and 'protectiveness' of the new HT that's causing the issues rather than the individual teachers so I'm trying to keep it all positive because, after all, they're the ones who are with him all day. This approach may change, however...

I don't think what I've asked for is unreasonable either - sometimes it is and I know it is because I'm pushing for something else, but I think actually three meetings over a term when I've been told at P night that he's failing to engage and they can't judge his attainment levels because he's not working enough - I think that's fine, actually.

Thanks for the listening ears!