Son being kept in most of the time

[user1473454752]

Hi there, my son has not long been diagnosed with High functioning, he has just gone into year 5, he has been telling me hes being kept in most break times at school because he has not completed work.

Now I understand he has to finish it, but why is he not finishing it? is he struggling and not getting help? I have asked him and he has said he is struggling with some subjects, he has also said he talks a lot, he has also asked if he can move to a table by himself and they have said no.

I just think that this might start escalating if it does not get sorted out, should I make an appointment with school?

Yes, make an appointment.

When I worked in a primary school we had ASD pupils who spent some of their time at a separate work station or who completed independent written work on a computer, as this also suited their way of working.

Sometimes staff are worried about isolating a child who works on a separate table but in most classrooms it's possible to go there for independent work and then have another place for the rest of the lesson.

I'd definitely ask to meet with them to find out what the issues are and look for a way of resolving them.

My ds, who has ASD traits but no dx, found it hard to start tasks when he was young so he didn't finish on time because he'd taken so long to start. When he got over this he then started over-focusing on just one aspect of a task e.g. spending ages on an elaborate drawing when he was supposed to be doing a simple picture and labeling it. If the main task was the labeling, he never got there. If something like that is going on, your ds may just need a bit of support to identify what he needs to do. Or if he's talking, a visual prompt for working independently might help.

Thanks so much you have been very helpful xx

Point out to them that, if this is related to his autism (which seems highly likely) then they are punishing him for his disability and that is unlawful discrimination.