Stay Put

The time for Sheridan's second IEP came and went without a peep from our district. No big deal in my book... Stay Put is in effect so nothing changes. Additionally, it just so happens that Sheridan doesn't need any changes made to his supports/services. So I was perfectly happy exercising his right to Stay Put. Given that this topic has come up quite a bit lately in some discussions I've had with other parents, I thought I'd write a brief post about Stay Put.

What is Stay Put?

Bottom line, it means the school district is obligated legally to maintain the status quo. If the IEP team (meaning, the parents, educators, district personnel, etc) cannot reach an agreement on a new IEP, the district must leave the student in his/her current placement and the current IEP (educational placement, services, supports, etc.) must continue to be fully implemented.

Here is the actual language from IDEA, Section 615 Procedural Safeguards [20 U.S.C. 1415(j)]:

Maintenance of Current Educational Placement.--Except as provided in subsection (k)(4), during the pendency of any proceedings conducted pursuant to this section, unless the State or local educational agency and the parents otherwise agree, the child shall remain in the then-current educational placement of the child, or, if applying for initial admission to a public school, shall, with the consent of the parents, be placed in the public school program until all such proceedings have been completed.

Stay Put can last for a few weeks, a few months... I've even talked with families who have used it for YEARS. Basically, Stay Put is in effect from the time a dispute arises (in our case there was no dispute, Sheridan's last IEP - written through 09-01/2012 - simply "expired" so to say, but of course, IEPs never expire because of Stay Put), to the time it is settled (that can be via agreement and signing of a new IEP, mediation, hearings, etc.). 

A Few Things to Note

• If your therapist or service provider changes (or any personnel changes), that doesn't necessarily constitute a violation of Stay Put as long as your child is receiving comparable services. 
• Stay Put is not specific to location. For example, if your child is fully included in her elementary school's 3rd grade classroom, switching her to a new school (while still maintaining her full inclusion status) isn't necessarily a violation of Stay Put.
• If the dispute is over the initial IEP (e.g., services, placement) then there is no Stay Put provision (because your child has no existing, current IEP with placement, services, etc.). 
• Things can get a little tricky if your child is transitioning (say from preschool to kindergarten, or from junior high to high school) - that makes it hard to define "current educational placement" because keeping the child in preschool or middle school is not a viable option, yet the IEP does not have an existing placement for kinder or high school.
• In some cases districts will request parents to waive their right to Stay Put if they are negotiating private school placement (just one example) - I'm not a lawyer and would never even pretend to give you legal advice, but I would strongly recommend you not sign any agreement that waives Stay Put. Just sayin' :)

This is obviously not an exhaustive list of potential implementation problems, and it's certainly not a thorough discussion of the Stay Put provision. It's always IEP season so I thought this might help in those instances where it's taking some time to reach agreement.

Back to Sheridan's IEP... I decided I would do the prudent thing and email his Program Specialist and request an IEP. Trying to be collaborative - on the up-and-up - and most importantly, giving my boy a chance to shine and show how great he's doing, how much he loves school, how much he's learning, that his support services are making an important difference for him, and that he is making an important difference in the lives of his teachers and classmates. The IEP is, after all, all about him!

4th Birthday Bash

This year our little backyard could not contain Sheridan's birthday celebration. Between 36 children in his class and all of his friends outside of school, there was simply no way to do one of my do-it-yourself parties and keep my sanity. And truth be told, I've found a new admiration (the more parties Sheridan attends) for those parents who find places where you show up, the kids have fun, and you leave. No set up, no clean up, just pay and play. 

So we rented Funderland for Sheridan's birthday party. We had the whole park to ourselves (we had 100+ kids on the guest list and the parents who accompanied them - hey, if you're going to invite 70 kids, why not 112?). It felt safe, secure, and best of all for the kids, no lines! The only thing extra I did was feed the crowd (courtesy of the amazing crew at Magpie Caterers - everybody loved the food, from carnivores to vegans!).

Everybody had a great time... especially the parents! It was fun to throw a party that everyone enjoyed (and that was SO easy to do).

First things first (because I know you're all wondering)...

The Cake

Everyone knows that the cake is a big deal around these parts. Primarily because Jennifer (a former student of mine turned cake goddess who owns Salt Cake City in Utah) makes his cake (styrofoam inside, real fondant and sugar decorations on the outside) and ships it to me each year. I give her the theme or basic idea, but very little direction (other than, "make it big"). It is always a complete surprise when it arrives. I love it.

This year, for the first time ever, Sheridan cake was based on his favorite book (rather than his favorite song). I recommend you check out his 1st birthday cake, 2nd birthday cake, and 3rd birthday cake, too. 

Buddy's favorite book is Kisses for Daddy. He reads it nonstop (he has the story completely memorized) and it is a staple at nap and bedtime. 

Here's his cake:

This is what it looked like before it shipped. As with all of his birthday cakes, there's a bit of doctoring I need to do after shipping damage. This year, I was worried I wouldn't be able to save the cake (the US Postal Service did a doozy on it), but after a few hours of using corn syrup to put the broken pieces back together like a mosaic, it was good to go!

I used everything from different colored sharpies to color in the areas with missing fondant, to finding the broken pieces and glueing them back together.

The finished product at the party... you wouldn't know unless you were up close and looking for it!

Sheridan loved his cake, and so did all the other children.

Now, just a big photo dump of all the fun!

This is "Baby David" - Becca's nephew. Sheridan loves make "funny faces" to make Baby David smile.

Sofia came dressed and ready for the circus ;-)

LOVING the carrousel with Nonna.

Even Gary was required to strap himself in on the carrousel.

Driving the cars with Grandpa.

Let me tell you, riding the spinning teacups while pregnant wasn't the best idea I've ever had.
Took me 10  minutes to see straight.

Cake is fake, remember? So we did grab and go cupcakes so nobody missed out on too much action.

144 "regular" cupcakes, 36 vegan gluten- and soy-free cupcakes

He loves his Nonna.

And his Grandpa and Nanny Airplane.

Every day (often more than once a day), his friend Maddie points to her cheek and says, "Kissy!" And every time he complies with a little kiss. 

Emma & Eva are 6-year-old twin sisters from Sheridan's class (they are now in 1st grade and no longer his classmates, sadly). They are, without a doubt, his best friends. He adores them (and their younger sister Lara who IS gratefully still in his class, and especially their mom Miss Viva). These girls have the biggest hearts and were amazing friends, guides, peer models, and peer support for him during his first year of school. They challenged him, helped him grow more independent, and they love him sincerely. Love these girls!

Emma and Sheridan driving.

Eva and Sheridan flying tandem.

Sheridan has so many friends at school, and one person who is extra special to him is his Spanish immersion teacher, Martina. I've written about their special bond previously. Sheridan LOVES Martina.

 Happy 4th Birthday, Sheridan!

So happy to celebrate every single day with you, Buddy!

Thank you to my friend Michelle Marrone for the photos!

Spanish Immersion

Sheridan's Montessori class has three teachers - a head teacher (Martha) and two assistant teachers (Leticia and Martina). Martina happens to be the Spanish Immersion teacher - she speaks exclusively Spanish to the children. Sheridan loves all three of his teachers (truly, truly LOVES them), but Martina holds a very special, unique place in his heart.

Speaking of Spanish, Sheridan has picked up so much this year... his vocabulary continues to grow, and I was amazed a couple weeks ago when Martina had a full-blown conversation with Sheridan in Spanish. I didn't understand what she was saying (ok, I understood one word - literally one word), but Sheridan was fully attentive and engaged, responded in Spanish to her (1-2 word phrases), and did precisely what she asked.

He LOVES learning Spanish songs (well, ALL songs) at school. When he comes home with a new song it typically takes me about a week to figure out what he's singing - if it takes longer than that and I'm still stumped, I know to ask what songs Martina has been teaching the children!

Here's Sheridan singing one of his favorites: La Pulga de San Jose. This video was taken right before bed a couple weeks ago and he's SUPER sleepy, but you can still make out some of the lyrics which I found online.

Apraxia be damned... this boy is learning a foreign language!

Up, Down, & All Around

Nine months ago when Sheridan started at his current school he couldn't navigate the play structure independently. He couldn't climb up or down the ladders/structure with the exception of climbing up and down the stairs using both hands for balance, and walking across the bridge. 

Now he's jumping, handling a lot of movement on the bridge, and climbing all over the place independently. This video shows Sheridan working with his Physical Therapist who sees him at school once a week for an hour each visit - the first 30 minutes is just the two of them, the second half is when the other children (most of them 1-2 years older than Sheridan) are out playing, too. His skill level can vary depending on the amount of activity around him, so this combined session is perfect for helping him generalize his skills. 

I love how the other children like to get involved... little PTs in the making!

Not only are these important skills for his gross motor development, they help to increase his safety at school and, let's face it, that boy would live outside if we let him. Now he has increased confidence and ability to do what he wants to do. So proud of him!

The Right Motivation

I'm slammed with work and deadlines and blah, blah, blah... so I'm taking a mental health break and posting a quick video.

You'll remember a while back when Sheridan showed off how he counts to 10. He's been counting to 20 for some time now, and just a few weeks ago he came home one day from school and out of the blue he's counting to 30. Now, it's an emerging skill these 21-30... so about half the time he skips around a bit. Turns out, his teacher said he must have picked up this skill from some of the older children in class who are working on more advanced math skills because she hasn't worked with Sheridan on this.

Yet another reason to love that Sheridan is fully included in a multi-age classroom.

Sheridan is super motivated lately by reading, letters (phonics, more specifically), and counting. So, I use that to my advantage to motivate him to complete tasks. Here, I use his love of All-Things-Counting to motivate some self-help skills. Most importantly, it's stinkin' cute!