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I'm fearing that Middle school with be hell on earth!

My autistic son will be entering middle school this Fall. His school sent home some forms to fill out regarding the classes he will take.One was for music. They said I should choose chorus for him. How the hell is he going to participate and sing when he hardly speaks? His music class now is once a week and it's more a play along to songs with drums,and sticks and such,class
He'll be going into full stimming mode from changing classes 7 times a day,and all those different students,and the noise and chaos.
I don't know how they're going to expect him to adjust
Thinking of this Fall is causing me SO much anxiety
I'm so scared that they'll expect him to keep up with the other kids.
I'm imagining him being teased and shunned for being so different.
Sticking him in classes with "normal" kids sounds like such a bad idea
He's going from being one of the oldest kids in school to going with kids up to 15 years old
Once those hormones kick in,the kids won't be very happy to help him out and be his friend like they are now. It'll be all about the opposite sex.
Think about it,were you eager to be the friend of the outsider when you were a teen?
Kids can be evil

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butterflyblue19

Asked by butterflyblue19 at 5:16 PM on Jan. 25, 2013 in General Parenting

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Answers (22)
  • My son is going to middle school this fall, too. I've been really worried about it because our elementary school has been wonderful about helping him any way they can, and they've really gone out of their way to make everything smoother for him. I love the support staff at our school, and I know the middle school isn't like that here. I have a lot of the same concerns you do.
    JulieJacobKyle

    Answer by JulieJacobKyle at 7:43 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • It's not that bad, one of my sons best friends is autistic & they still watch out for him. You can set up a Pre middle school Iep meeting & discuss your concerns and make adjustments. You would be quite hocked that not much changes. Good luck mommas
    funlovinlady

    Answer by funlovinlady at 5:22 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • My sons friend didn't because a huge problem with him is noise. They made the accommodations, have you talked to them already?
    funlovinlady

    Answer by funlovinlady at 5:31 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • Any other options? My oldest is 15 and had autism. Middle school was amazing for him! He had a "home base" in a special education classroom with 6 other kids with autism, 1 teacher, 1 assistant. They taught him math and language arts, he went to typical social studies, science, art, chorus, etc. He was very well liked, had several students take him under their wing, and I couldn't walk down the hall with him without hearing other kids calling out to him. I never thought that would be the case!
    Will he have any type of curriculum assistance at all?
    missanc

    Answer by missanc at 5:55 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • Music is often a "key" that can sometimes unlock things in people, unless of course he has sensory issues with noise, then no way.
    PartyGalAnne

    Answer by PartyGalAnne at 7:07 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • IDK I don't think he should go to this school.What are the other electives beside music?
    jerseydiva

    Answer by jerseydiva at 5:21 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • I feel it is a huge change for him and I am guessing that there will be kids from other schools with him? IDK sounds like you need to do some talking with the school etc.
    jerseydiva

    Answer by jerseydiva at 5:33 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • I'm sorry, Butterfly, I don't have any advice for you. Kids can be evil- middle school was hell for me without special needs. All I can say is, I do think that kids are a bit more sensitive now, in general. They're being taught from early on not to tease just because someone is different. I hope you find a solution that eases your mind. Hugs!
    KA91

    Answer by KA91 at 5:34 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • Is there a school in your district that handles kids like this on a regular basis? I went to an elementary school that was for the handicapped and the other types of children with challenges (back then they were called emotionally challenged). They went to this school b/ they had physical therapists as well as OT and ST on staff. They also had nurses and teachers that were special needs teachers. I also went to a middle school that had to same types of things. These 2 schools were the only ones of their caliber in our district when I was growing up. When we got to HS all the HS had a special needs teacher and they only changed classes a few times a day. Does your son have an IEP and a counselor or therapist he sees on a regular basis? They may be able to help with possibly getting him out of that "required" course. BTW I was one of those kids that was friends with the ones on the outside...I really enjoyed those kids.
    coala

    Answer by coala at 5:44 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

  • Bring in everything you can from a doctor. That's where my friend always got hosed dealing with her boys' school - she had them seeing several specialists who were therapists, but they weren't actual MD's. Nothing those therapists said was good enough for the school, even though their doctors weren't that involved in their autism treatment, that was the only opinion the school cared about.

    FWIW, she ended up homeschooling them with a co-op of other autism parents, but she also had the advantage of being in a large enough city to have that kind of option.
    NotPanicking

    Answer by NotPanicking at 6:34 PM on Jan. 25, 2013

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