Anybody have a tween with ADHD?

[Luv Bunnies]

I currently pay for my DD's aftercare. I don't have an issue continuing to do so. There are no programs locally for after school that will accept her after 12 years old...except one that is in the same town but not walkable, considered a different district, and generally for the younger kids. Part of her issues is that she is very immature for her age, so she's more comfortable with younger kids. It would be considerably less stressful for her (and us) to continue the busing through the school if we can get them to allow it. Her issues, while mostly ADHD, are more extensive and more global than just that. It is important for her to complete homework while the medication is working, with help from an individual who understands the course content. That's the challenge. I'm hoping to touch base with other parents in my situation to find out how they handle this, but I don't know anyone with similar issues. I have 2 older DDs who attended the same school and either I drove them or they walked, but they were equipped to do so. Unfortunately, they are unable to participate in transport and hw due to time constraints.

I have worked in special ed. for 12 years and have a special needs son of my own. As others have said, unfortunately, 504 programs and IEPs do not provide services after school hours are over. School districts are very careful about making special exceptions because what they provide to one, they have to provide to all.

I think you have a couple of options. First, find out if the program for younger kids will even accept your DD. Again, they might not make exceptions to their age cut-off. If they do accept her, you can probably find a transportation service to take her. School buses are generally not allowed to leave the district boundaries. In our area, we have a service called Kids Kab. They provide door-to-door service for kids of all ages. Parents have to pay for the service on their own. I can't see any way that a school would agree to pay for your child to get to an after school program.

Also, as others have said, you could find someone to pick up your DD after school, take her home, and help with her homework before her meds wear off. Again, that would be at your expense.

I bolded the part of your post above where you mentioned certain arrangements being less stressful for your DD and yourselves. I hate to be blunt, but the school most likely will not respond to (or even care about) this statement. They are only concerned about services they need to provide to get your DD through the school day. Saying that you have after school childcare and transportation issues will not get them to budge on their policies.

You could also ask for accommodations to be made during the school day to reduce the amount of homework she has to do after school. Perhaps homework assignments could be shortened (i.e. she has to do half of the math problems assigned, etc.). You could also ask if there's an accommodation for her to have a supervised study period each day. Does your school have a Resource Program? My son saw the Resource Specialist several times a week to work on math and it was helpful to him. He rarely brought math homework home since he did it all in the Resource room.

It's good that you're thinking about this now. Perhaps you can discuss a few options with the school in terms of accommodations, then do some research of your own on what's available to you. Good luck!