What to look for in an alternative school?
Posted by SPOOKY on April 26, 2011 at 8:02pm
I will be touring 2 alternative schools on Thursday. What questions should I ask? What should I look for in the school? I have time to make the decisionas my son will be in outpatient for 8 weeks before he starts the new school. He is 9 and just diagnosed bp after an inpatient hospital stay. I have some questions prepared already but am open to any and all suggestions. Thanks
Yikes! I guess you have already done the visits. But it is not too late to continue to ask questions.
Although the link here is for residential programs, many of the questions would still be valid for an alternative school:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/products/pro27.pdf
I hope you are finding places that you feel would provide your son with the support he needs.
It will be helpful if he can visit before he has to attend too, in my experience.
My daughter was very definite about where she felt safe and where she did not.
Good luck!
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Joan in IL
Co-Moderator of Dual Diagnosis/Substance Abuse group with Becky
Family Response Team Volunteer
Link to my bio: http://www.bpkids.org/user/29354
To support CABF, go to https://www.bpkids.org/donate
Thank you for suggesting he visit. Despite what I feel about the schools his comfort level is most important. It's him that will be there every day not me.
One thing to keep in mind is the population of the two schools. My son attended two therapeutic schools. One was a disaster and resulted in him being asked to leave, which in turn made it hard for us to get another placement. The other school, which we had to fight so that they would take him, ended up being wonderful and a great placement.
I am told that on paper the two schools are very similar and take a similar population of kids. But the reality is that one school takes kids who are a bit "faster" and more "sophisticated" socially then the other. The second school tended to have kids who were more "nerdy". That made a huge difference. But I always tell parents who I help as an advocate that these things do change over time depending as the populations at these schools shifts depending on who they admit.
Another thing to consider is their therapeutic philosophies. At one school kids were expected to stay in class and see their therapists at set times. At the other school there was always a counselor available to meet with a kid if needed and a kid could leave class to see a counselor at any time.
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Jistac
Mother of 3 (21, 19, 16) with a variety of mental health issues. Been involved with using Empower as a treatment since 2003
If you're trying to decide which alternative school like teen boarding schools are the best for your family, you should consider three important things. Primarily, the educational philosophies of the school should be weighed, as should the governing philosophy of the community within the school, and finally the nutritional offerings and level of physical activity available. In order to nurture a child in a healthy way, attention must be paid to their intellectual, spiritual and physical development. An environment that nurtures all three of these needs will always be the best choice.a