SEN register

[ktyhindle]

So my 6 year old in year 2 has come home from school with a letter explaining that he will be put on the SEN register. No leaflet, no previous discussion with the relevant people!
I am aware that he is behind with his reading and writing.

My son wears glasses and had bad eyesight from an early age. We regularly attend the eye hospital and he has had to wear a patch on one eye. He has never been interested in books or colouring/writing even though he has always been encouraged to. I think his poor eyesight from an early age has helped create this lack of interest.
I think the lack of interest is now having an effect on his learning.

I have not been informed as to what parts of his development needs monitoring but I am quite sure it is his reading and more concerning his writing.

I am yet to receive an appointment with the school which they have said they will arrange, which is probably a good thing as I think I would have 'lost my rag' with the lack of communication about their decision!

If any mums out there have any suggestions of points I could raise when I do discuss this with the school i'd be grateful.
Does this sound like a 'normal' approach for teachers when deciding to put a child on the SEN register?

They should certainly have been raising concerns with you at parent-teacher meetings before now, and maybe it should have been flagged up in last year's school report.

However, even if communication hasn't been great in the past, I would suggest that this is a positive step - it means that he has been flagged up as needing some extra help and that can only be a plus for him if he is lagging behind with literacy.

So I suppose you need them to explain what their concerns are and what they are planning to do about it. Ask if they have carried out any specific assessments and what his reading and spelling ages are, and where he is in relation to where he should be. Talk about whether they plan on getting any advice from, say, a specialist teacher or educational psychologist, are they going to look at anything like small group support or even 1:1 support and what they will be doing with him. Ask what you can do to help at home. And ask what they will be doing about monitoring him to check whether their interventions are helping, and ask for a report back to you at least half termly.