Home Schooling due to Autism?

Question

My 9 year old son has autism and is currently in mainstream public school. He is not doing very well and just does not have the comprehension.
If I decide to home school him, so that he can get the one on one and most of all so that he can learn at his own speed as oppose to class room, where do I get the lessons and what kind of support do I expect from the school, if any?
Also, if you have experience or know of any other alternative schooling or practice for autistic child, please let me know. Thanks

Thanks for all your advices and sharing your experiences. I will do more research.
He will be getting and IEP soon and maybe an aide for next semester. But, I feel that he needs more than just an aide in the class room. Thanks Again.

Answer 1

I homeschool my two autistic kids (along with my other children). We worked for three years to try and get the schools to straighten up, be compliant with the IEP, etc. They were not willing to use the curriculum that would teach to their learning style (and my daughter was partially mainstreamed, partially in an autism classroom)

I would suggest that you work with the schools, have a few IEP meetings. See if you can get them to realize that he has much more potential than they are teaching too, and that you expect that they do teach him. We gave it three months after setting that goal, and then pushed for a home setting. He would still be enrolled at the school, but he would be at home, and a teacher would come out to teach him as per the IEP. You really have to prove that the school CANNOT provide a learning atmosphere, he's stressed, etc. Please see www.wrightslaw.com for more information about that, they have a site search, type in homebound education.

Not many states have specifically autistic schools, NY is one, as is CA and TX. There is a big push to move towards total inclusion, and many believe that the existance of a specific school is a means for school districts to push out the hard students rather than fulfill federal law.

Schools are not required to provide you any resources if you decide to homeschool. However, it's very easy to find curriculum, anymore even Borders and Barnes & Noble have curriculum books. We buy most of ours at Mardels, and get a lot off of the internet. I love to buy the books that have the copy materials right...so you can make as many copies as you want. My daughter especially likes to do the same pages over and over, and that's how she learns.

Socialization is good for us, because we have seven kids altogether, and my daughter's emotionally fits with the younger children. We also have a humongous hs'ing community here, hundreds of families just in our metro. The kids are usually kinder than ps kids, and both of my autistic kids have made some great friends.

Answer 2

I know there are special schools for autistic kids and if I could afford the tuition I would have my child there in a flash. I've wondered about homeschooling to protect my child from all the negatives but even with the pain I feel watching the reality of the school experience for my child, there is no way I can provide the social interaction available at school (good and bad). Its such a difficult decision, agonizing. I've seen home schooling comments often on the internet looking for anything new on autism. Maybe your local Autism organization. Very good luck in your decision making. So many of us know exactly how you feel.

Answer 3

Hi, I just recently made the decision to homeschool my 10 year old. He had been in private school then switched to public because they were supposed to provide more support,( haha) I knew then, I could do better than anything they were doing. We go to a Dr.of education tutor who is wonderful ,to help him with his writing which is his most difficult subject..Of course If I have questions she will help. As for help, other parents are the best, and Lord knows we need each other. Don't be afraid to ask for help, the internet is full of options and the best part is you can do what works best for you and your son. They offer computer courses or you can get info online like brainpop.com and enchanted learning.com .There are also teacher stores like Lakeshore learning were you can buy whatever subjects you want or you can buy a whole grade curriculum online or in a single workbook at the local bookstore. Our tutor suggested high interest subjects. Lets say your son loves dinosaurs. You use names as spelling words, write stories about them, research info,etc... they learn because they are more interested.
I have only been homeschooling since the end of September and It has been the best thing I could have done for my son. We work at his speed and I make sure he understands before we move on, and If he doesn't get something I can take as long as we need. No distractions , no fear of bullies and no one yelling at him for asking questions and being curious. Sure I like the idea of a special school with understanding teachers and therapy available, but I haven't been able to find such a school were we are. With the diagnosis of Autism on the rise hopefully there will be an increase in schools,programs and awareness, but until then we need each other to get through.
So no matter what you decide, your decision will be in the best interest of your child . Good luck with your decision,I wish you all the best. You won't regret it. RV/Rn/Mom

Answer 4

There are lots of good homeschooling sites just about teaching autistic kids, so really surf the net.

Next, homeschooling is great. You can download the public schools SOLS and follow that. Or you can decide what you want to teach. A lot depends on where you live. PA is very strict, VA is not.

There are many ways to teach...get actual textbooks (thrilling), get curriculum sets (expensive but good if you have no direction), unschooling (teach by what they are interested in, what you are interested in), eclectic. On and on.

Personally I do a mixture of all. I follow the SOLS so I know we do what the other kids his age do. Then I add in Bible and whatever ds is into, right now its survival skills, lol.

For you, and many of us, the best thing about hs is that you can teach your child in the way he learns BEST. If he learns best from video/pc games, use them. Worksheets? Use those. Also, if you look at him and think, "He is not getting this..." then you can switch the way you are teaching it. Like when kids don't get fractions, try baking! That's how I remember them!

Good luck mom and you can email me any time for suggestions! Get a dry erase board, too. Kids love to write on them. :)

Answer 5

Help me understand your situation. Do you live in Australia? Why doesn't your son have access to an integration aid at school? The purpose of having an integration aid at school is so that the child can have access and remain in a mainstream school. My son, whom is almost 19 years old, attended mainstream school up until the point where they could not deal with his violent outbursts. He then went onto special school. Up until that point, he had the assistance of an integration aid. Why doesn't your son have that available to him, it is his right, and have you explored special ed? I know that you probably wanted him to fit into the mainstream schooling system, but be honest, you are not doing yourself or your son any favours. Please feel free to contact me if you wish to discuss this any further. If not for any other reason, you should allow your son to be able to interact with other children, he won't have that available to him if you home school him. I know things get really hard and so frustrating and you just want to lock your child away from everything that could possibly harm him or interfere with his progress, but, do what you can to help him, not hinder him. Good luck.

Answer 6

if he is currently educated in a mainstream/inclusion setting, request another IEP meeting to re-evaluate the effectiveness of this educational program. Tell him you think that the mainstream setting is too restrictive for your son (not his least restrictive environment). There are special classes and special schools specifically for students with autism. While it may mean a longer commute for your son, perhaps it would be more effective. I would try this route before homeschooling. He'll get a teacher who specializes solely in teaching students with autism, and even though you know your son best, this type of teacher will know a lot of strategies. Think of how exhausting and what a strain on your relationship with your son homeschooling would be for you.

Answer 7

What type of help you will receive with homeschooling depends upon where you live. I live in Wisconsin and homeschoolers get no help from the public schools. Last month I pulled my 14 year old Autistic son and his 10 year old brother out of public schools and I feel that it was one of the better decisions that I have made. Both of my boys are doing so much better now and they are both happier. You can buy curriculum at stores for homeschooling, the Internet, and other people who home school. You can also buy Cd's for homeschooling at Best Buy. If you have anymore questions e-mail me. Good Luck!

Answer 8

Try to work with the school district to get what he needs via IEP. SOmetimes parents and special educators don't agree on what the child needs. Request a meeting with his IEP team, keep an open mind and try to be realistic about his needs.

School systems have so many resources for special needs students. Hopefully, they are accessible to your son.

Keep working with the school before you sought private to minimize cost to you. If money is not an issue, get recommendations from http://www.autism-society.org/site/PageServer

Good Luck!

Answer 9

Homeschooling is the best thing for children with autism, because often they are too overstimulated to learn, and that is the whole purpose of going to school. I belong to a group on Yahoo that can give you all the answers you need for homeschooling your special needs child! There's over 500 members on there, some have been homeschooling for years, most of their kids have multiple diagnoses. It's HS-Plus, this link should get you there. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HS-Plus/ you can get ideas on curriculum, different styles of teaching and techniques, you name it. Personally, I wouldn't go through the school, for many reasons that I can go over later, or you can learn on HS-Plus. I am just starting the process, doing preschool with my autistic son this year, maybe kindergarten next year. Feel free to contact me, I also do my son's therapy on my own.

Answer 10

my son is autistic. I took him out of public school because of him being miss treated. He has done much better since being home he is now 17 yrs old and he has been out of school since he was in 2nd grade. There may be some kind of school just for autistic children. Ask around if he get some kind of assistance, they should know. Good luck and may God bless you