@mathmom, that sounds a lot like my daughter. It’s good to hear success stories. I worry about her future because you need math for so many careers and of course for college.
You need to meet certain math requirements to gain admission to college…and graduate from high school. For some majors, there is no math requirement once you are admitted to college (assuming you don’t have to take a remedial course because you haven’t met the minimum admission requirement).
My son was a performing arts major at a major top 60 university. In HS he took algebra 1 and 2, geometry, and statistics. He never took calculus or precalculus. For his major…not a problem either for admission or college requirements. He never had to take a math course in college.
I do think that talking to a lawyer one for an hour can really boost your confidence and you can bring it out in the meeting if needed. I went years going to meetings by myself. To tell the truth, I think the school wanted to do the right thing but had no idea how to solve the problem. The lawyer gave me an elegantly simple plan and the school was pleased to be provided a clear path. I only paid for that one hour.
I had a great guy at the Federal Dept. of Education/office for Civil Rights who advised me for free. I never ever filed a complaint. But he did eventually come down and do a training in our school.
A mom going by herself to meetings is in a hard place. I was grateful for the aha moment when a lawyer told me that of course this should be worked out and showed me how. I discovered in that moment that I was not being unreasonable, far from it, and that there really was a solution. I only casually mentioned it in the meeting and only as a positive solution.
Every parent I know has said that things go very very differently once you even mention a lawyer. If you do it with a smile, it is still friendly but lets them know you know what you are doing.
An advocate would generally go to the meeting with you. I preferred to wait on that, but it is available in our state through the Federation and trainees are free.
Where I am, advocates can also provide information to parents. They don’t JUST attend IEP meetings. They can be a huge amount of help preparing for IEP meetings.
To the OP…look for Wrightslaw on Google. Tons of information there. Use the search function.
When we first asked for testing for my son and we had a meeting to decide whether he’d get an IEP or 504 plan, an advocate called me up and offered to come with me. I think the Special Ed PTA arranges it automatically. Anyway it really was very helpful.
I’m looking into an advocate. Thank you for the suggestions. I also spoke with gentleman who is in charge of high school graduation requirements in my state in science particularly. It appears my D’s school has her on a math/science track that isn’t meeting graduation requirements. They are somehow making their own rules. They only have her getting a credit for one year of math (algebra 1) when the requirements are for 2 credits and 2 regents exams I believe. They also only have her on track to receive 2 credits for science when she would need 3. Needless to say I’m angry.
Hopefully, the school can get her on track with these “missing” courses during her junior and senior years of high school. There is still time!
Did the state person give you any pearls of wisdom in terms of getting this resolved?
In my state there are minimum course requirements but these can be addressed differently or modified for a student with an IEP. I am not in NY. And I do know that this accommodation varies by state.
@thumper1 The man I old me said to ask if the school offers an alternative science course for special Ed that she can take for the science credit. He also advised me to amend her IEP to make sure she has what’s needed for graduation with a regents diploma. For what I know, the only sciences with labs available are Chemistry and Physics. Both would be very difficult for her due to her poor math skills. If they allowed her to take Earth Science in 9th grade she would be set, and it would have be much easier for her.
She can still take Earth Science. 
no need for testing or anything.
Since handwriting is so painful, she should have some accommodation. 'she’s not trying’doesnt cut it.
It’s quite possible your school counts each year as a unit, so that your daughter would have the required number of units for graduation - it’s be illegal for them to put their iep students on paths that prevent graduation.
As I said, since she’s doing well in Algebra 1 have her continue with the easiest level of algebra2 offered. She doesn’t need geometry to take algebra 2 and she’ll continue straight from where she was.
BTW if a pass in Regents is a 65 that’s the standard you’d use to decide whether she can take algebea2 although I agree a 75 would be vastly preferable.
Get her back on track with a foreign language since she’ll need two units for admission to a 4-year college (or to graduate from one).
Be careful not to overwhelm her, make sure to know the process to switch or drop classes if such a schedule proves too hard.
Remember that she may have to go the cc-> suny route to ensure better graduation odds. There’s no problem with that if she needs extra support.
What’s next year’s schedule looking like and what did she take this year?
MYOS1634, thank you for suggestions. Last year she took Algebra 1 (it’s been expanded to a 2 year course.), English history, and biology. I’m going to ask about Earth Science. In our district the 9 grade is in another building do to overcrowding and I’m not sure if they offer it where she is (the building housing grades 10–12.). If she could take that it would be great.
Talk to your GC to see if she can be programmed for the earth science with labs to meet the physical science requirement.
If she took extended Living environment and algebra, how many minutes per week was the class? Did they meet 180 minutes or 54 hours per semester? If yes, she should have 1 credit per semester or .5 units. If she has done this over the course of 2 years, she will have 2 units or 4 credits. Once she takes the living environment, she will have the 3 units or 6 credits needed to fulfill the graduation requirement. She can even take earth science over the course of 2 years for 4 credits or 2 units.
If she has done the same thing in algebra, she will have maxed out her algebra credits this year. she should be placed in geometry as the extra year of common core algebra won’t do anything but waste her time (she will not be able to use to fulfill the math requirement and she cannot use it for elective credit).
OK so sophomore year = Algebra 1, English, History, Biology => 4 academic classes. She should have taken 2 or 3 more classes though. What were they? Or does she have a half day of classes and study hall the rest of the time?
Ideally, next year, her schedule should look something like:
Algebra2, English, US History, Earth Science, Italian1 for core classes +Theater and Current Events (or similar, so that both classes involve a lot of speaking and little writing)
Senior year, something like:
Math for Personal Finance or Statistics, English, <social science="" of="" her="" choice:="" economics,="" psychology,="" sociology,="" human="" geography,="" world="" religions,="" european="" history,="" contemporary="" us="" it="" depends="" on="" what="" your="" school="" offers…="">, Italian 2, <something to="" do="" with="" computers:="" digital="" media?="" if="" and="" only="" she="" does="" well="" a="" keyboard="" vs.="" handwriting=""> OR Marine Science or another science, Culinary Arts (very useful for life), a class that requires a lot of oral work but no/little writing (Theater, choir…)
What does she think about such a schedule? Would it be too much? Would she be overwhelmed/too stressed? What about you, do you think such a schedule would be doable?
by this time she should have complted the following
3 credits or 1.5 units of English
3 credits or 1.5 units of social studies (probably global)
3 credits or 1.5 units of mathematics (you state that she has had algebra for the past 2 years)
3 credits or 1.5 units of life science (you state that she is has taken living environment for the past 2 years)
1.5 units of PE (pe each term)
has she taken
Health
foreign language
Arts (art music, theatre, etc)
She should be taking the following regents this spring
Global history
Mathematics
Living Environment
You should try to meet with the transition coordinator so that she can start working on her CDOS requirements in the event she may need it for her +1. Has she ever worked a summer, after school job, internship or community service? Make sure that you have her check stubs/time sheets or that you will be able to get them. They will count toward her 216 hours.
Junior year
English (culminates in regents)
Math
U.S. History (culminates in regents)
PE both semesters
Earth Science with labs (culminating in regents)
electives hopefully some type of work-based learning
foreign language (unless it is listed in IEP that she does not have to take it. She can also fulfill this with sign language)
Senior year
English
Mathematics
Earh science (if she needs an expanded course for the regents)
Social studies : 1 semester of government and 1 semester of Economics
1 Semester of PE
Complete CDOS requirements , electives (any course listed above that she did not complete
@sybbie719 I was told she’s on track for a regents diploma, but do far it doesn’t look that way. She is taking those 3 regents that you listed next month. Foreign language was waived at mute quest because she was finding it very difficult. The school never mentioned CDOS. The junior year schedule you wrote is what I would like for her. Right now they have her scheduled for marine biology (without telling her or me that’s that course will not satisfy the requirements for a regents to diploma. And this was after I specifically told them that is what she’s aiming for. I just hope she can pass the Algebra regents and take Geometry. I heard it was harder than the one before Common Core. I feel like maybe I should have been more knowledgable of the new requirements in NY for graduation and I caused her to fall behind by allowing them to track her this way for math/science.
Spelling correction : at MY request
I agree you should aim for a regents diploma.
BUT I a going to qualify that by saying…we don’t know your student’s specific learning issues, and how they might impact her ability to take a more aggressessive course load…wit one or two more academic classes a year.
Some kids can adapt to this, and others cannot for any number of reason.
I think your district needs to be VERY clear on the reasons why they are suggesting your daughter take the courses they are suggesting…with firm data to,support their recommendation.
If you feel should be taking more challenging courses, you need to have something to support that she will be successful doing so. And you need to ask for supports for her so that she can be successful…if this is a possibility.
Without knowing her specific needs, it’s punting to give you any firm suggestions.
And NO, I don’t exoect you to put her specific needs on this forum. But it’s something you need to think about.
Would it possibly make sense for her to take one of the courses she needs this summer in summer school?
@thumper1 To be honest, I don’t know what her exact disabilities are. Her classification is other health impaired. I only know there is an issue with writing, which has affected note taking, easy writing and math. She also has trouble staying focused and her work is inconsistent. She has supports in place now and I agree that a more challenging course load might be too much for her. How what I do not agree with is how the school just put on in this track, knowing she won’t meet regents diploma requirements. These people are very good at making my child feel incompetent. this placement was based on tests scores in math. She is doing above average in science. I don’t know why they took earth science away with the only explanation being “if a student is in self contained math, they automatically have to be on that track for science as well.” Maybe things have changed but I don’t remember much math involved in earth science. I assumed all 9th or 10th grade students took it.
I would strong,y suggest you start with your child’s special education case manager. It is imoortant for you to understand her specific disability and who it impacts her learning. Very important.
Other health impaired is usually used as a disability when a medical issue is the primary disability.
You need to learn more from your child’s school in terms of what her specific special education needs are…and why.
It sounds to me as if there is a scheduling problem, so that kids who take the math class your daughter is in are in the same track for science, because it is too complicated for the school to figure out how to schedule it otherwise. The fact that there are two buildings would further complicate things.
We have a small school and lots of scheduling problems result. When one of my kids dropped back a math level in order to get music theory into her schedule, but continued honors or AP in other subjects, her scheduling got really difficult. There was no science class at all that fit in.
She ended up taking environmental science online. Believe it or not, it was a lab course, or counted as one, and it was not difficult at all, but she got credit. I wonder if an online class might help give more flexibility to your daughter’s scheduling, allow for customization of her classes, and solve a problem for the school at the same time.
Our experience was successful enough that our school actually joined http://thevhscollaborative.org/ so that 25 students per semester can now take online classes. This school requires that work be done weekly. Aventa Learning is self=paced. There are many others.