TULSA, Okla. — As parents and children gear up for the start of the new school year, for some, it can be stressful. Specifically for some parents who have children with special needs.
A change in their child’s schedule can be hectic… and finding a suitable school can also be a daunting task. 2 News Oklahoma spoke to Robin Rhoades.
Her daughter, Sydney will be ten in October and is going into the third grade. But Sydney has special needs and Rhoades says finding a school that would take her was a difficult task.
Sydney was diagnosed with autism when she was two. So, while the back-to-school season is an exciting time for many parents and their children…
For some, it can be stressful.
“Any sort of transition for kids like Sydney is extremely difficult,” says Rhoades. “They are more likely to have meltdowns, uncontrolled sensory meltdowns.”
And along with the schedule changes, Rhoades says she had a hard time figuring out where to send her daughter.
Rhoades says finding schools that serve children with disabilities isn’t an easy task. And for schools, finding teachers to teach those with disabilities is also difficult.
We’ve spoken to several school districts that have told 2 News that they are especially short-staffed in the special ed classrooms. Especially when it comes to paraprofessionals.
Rhoades says she hopes a school specifically for children with special needs opens in our area one day…
But until then she says parents should lean on each other for support.
“If we all come together to try to find a solution for this and get the Department of Education to realize we are scared parents who really want to help our children and everyone’s children.”
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