Need help coming up with an accommodation for DS1 for school

[bisous]

DS1 is in 7th grade and he has type 1 diabetes AND ADHD. He is actually doing so much better this year and I'm so excited about it. Almost without too much effort he has mostly A's whereas last year he had lots of D's and F's.

For the past two months he's had a few incidences where he'd have repeated low blood sugars at school. This usually occurred between 10 and 12 every day for three days or so and then it would be fine but the week after that it might happen again. His proper insulin doses are a rapidly moving target due to the hormones of puberty. The school handles it well from a medical perspective BUT he is having a really hard time catching up when he misses class academically. He either misses the beginning of the class period and so forgets to turn in the homework that he did the day before and he gets a zero or he misses out on classwork which is a huge part of his grade. Sometimes he misses the instructions for homework assignments too. I'm trying to figure out a fair accommodation for this.

Of course, we'd love for the erratic blood sugars to go away. Our endo assures us there is nothing more we can be doing medically. Instead, we need to figure out how to help DS for the time periods when he is absent.

Another related concern is that he definitely performs most poorly with the classwork portion of his grade even when he does not miss class due to his diabetes. He has a hard time concentrating and producing good results in a large class. He tests well and he always does his homework.

See how related these issues are? I have a 504 meeting tomorrow. What would you ask for?


TIA,

Jen

[sariana]

Maybe a Study Buddy or two? Another (responsible) student who could make sure he gets the information and assignments he needs could be helpful overall, not just on days he misses. This (or these) student(s) could also help make sure he turns in assignments. [ETA I mean per class, at least in each class that is a challenge.]

I think an accommodation regarding deadlines also would be appropriate. Earning (or rather, not earning) a zero for an assignment he simply neglected to turn in does not give a valid assessment of his achievement of the standards, which after all is the whole point of education. The teacher needs to be more accommodating, and if it takes a legal document (such as a 504 Plan) to do that, then so be it. (Giving zeros for forgotten work is a highly controversial issue to begin with, even without extenuating circumstances such as a health issue.) I would ask for some sort of plan that allows him to extend deadlines as needed. (And then be willing to compromise for diminishing credit or something, though I personally would not do that as a teacher. But it gives you something to bring to the table if anyone balks at your initial request.)

[sariana]

Good luck at the meeting. I hope you and his team are able to find good solutions.

[bisous]

Thank you!

I'm going to bring up the idea of having a student be his helper. I think the idea of having more fluid deadlines is a good idea too. I want to be kind of strict with him but I think that if he's missing class because he is having what accounts to a medical emergency there should be some leeway there!

My sister the ESL teacher thinks that I should just have them scrap the problematic classwork. If he's doing well on test that should be enough! I'm not sure I feel that strongly about it!

[sariana]

My sister the ESL teacher thinks that I should just have them scrap the problematic classwork.

That seems premature to me. It sounds as though he is capable of doing the work but just needs to fill some holes. The teachers may have some other suggestions, too, but right now it seems that he mostly needs help being accountable for the work. Due to circumstances beyond his control, he is missing instructional time and/or assignments, so start with looking for ways to close those gaps. You can always revisit the plan later if it doesn't work out.

[o_mom]

Thank you!

I'm going to bring up the idea of having a student be his helper. I think the idea of having more fluid deadlines is a good idea too. I want to be kind of strict with him but I think that if he's missing class because he is having what accounts to a medical emergency there should be some leeway there!

My sister the ESL teacher thinks that I should just have them scrap the problematic classwork. If he's doing well on test that should be enough! I'm not sure I feel that strongly about it!

I thought I had replied to this, but it must have been eaten.

I would *not* ask for other students to be responsible for his accommodations. The school should be responsible. Having other students providing the notes, etc. can lead to resentment on their part, not to mention drawing more attention to needs.

I would ask that they be responsible for providing written instructions if he misses the instructions, that they are responsible for specifically asking him for homework when he returns late, that they adjust any participation grades to account for missed time, and that they allow him to do classwork as homework if he misses it (depends on the kind of work, obviously).

[HannaAddict]

It shouldn't be up to the other students and that is not an accommodation. My child is one they go to all the time to help the kids who need more support and it is draining on her. It is fine to have kids asked to help on occasion but that should not be the actual accommodation. They should be more flexible with deadlines or not counting something he missed in class that he can't make up at home against him if missed for medical reason. Good luck.


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