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Masshole1981 t1_j1ut00t wrote

Reply to comment by peanutbuttercandy8 in help!!! public school navigation by peanutbuttercandy8

Kindergarten is mandated by the state. So each district has to offer kindergarten free to all residents. It’s essentially the first year of “public school”. You don’t have to apply to get into kindergarten. You just have to register for it. You can’t get denied from kindergarten and it’s totally free.

For preschool, it gets a little trickier. For public preschools you can apply for a spot and if they have one open you get it. If they don’t, then you’re out of luck. The only exception is if your child is a special education student. Each district is mandated to provide services for kids 3+.

For head start you have to meet the federal poverty line, which i believe is less than $25K a year. If you make below that you qualify. If you make too much $$ you don’t.

Private preschools are totally different. You have to pay no matter what.

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peanutbuttercandy8 OP t1_j1utkz4 wrote

Thank you. That clears it up quite a bit. Do you need a doctor recommendation to be a special education student do you know?

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ihatelettuce t1_j1uyqow wrote

If you think your child has a developmental delay or any disability, look into getting an assessment done by the public school district you reside in. If your kid qualifies, you will get free preschool and services if your town has a public preschool.

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Masshole1981 t1_j1uzjyl wrote

In Massachusetts in order to qualify for special education you have to have a diagnosed disability. There are several different disability categories. For something like Autism that would come from a doctor. But things like a developmental delay or specific learning issues would usually come from an evaluation that is done by the school district.

If you think your child has a disability you need to contact the special education office in your district and request an evaluation.

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HunterGraccus t1_j1vz812 wrote

Inform the your city/town school department that you suspect your child has special needs. The school has their own educational psychologists that will perform testing to identify the disability and the school will develop a plan to address your child's learning needs. In MA special education is taken seriously and a wide variety of services are available. Massachusetts has excellent school systems, so your child will have a great chance of success!

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LadyGreyIcedTea t1_j1wzogm wrote

No. You need to write to the school special education department and say that you suspect your child has a disability or developmental delay. At that point, the school is obligated to evaluate the child for special education services. They will send you a consent form for evaluation which you will then sign and send back. They will evaluate your child to determine if he qualifies for an IEP and then hold an IEP meeting where they will share the results of their evaluations and discuss his eligibility for services.

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0bsidian0rder2372 t1_j1wyt00 wrote

You can get evaluated for an IEP by the school system. Call them up as soon as they open next week to get the process started. Depending on where you are, it may take awhile.

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