I hate IEP days

CaptainSerious

I'm always blindsided.  Always.  Even the day they gave us everything we asked for--because I was sure they were going to fight us on everything (as they have in the past) that I worked myself up so much before we went in.  I'm always stunned and shocked when I come out.  Today was no exception.

They agreed to keep M's program exactly as it's bee, as we liked it...and recommended he participate in the extended school year program.  It's a fantastic, one-month, morning program that has a waiting list, and M would have a spot if we agree.  The thing is, it's 2.5 weeks until the end of school, and he's SO looking forward to his summer break.  He's supposed to be on the swim team, which would directly overlap the ESY program, and through which he finally made a lot of local friends. It really helped his self-confidence and social skills last year, and he even went to the championships.

So now we have to decide what's best for him as a whole person, not just a student. We know the program would be a huge help in him not backsliding too much over the summer, and we are thrilled the district/child study team is finally seeing the full extent of his needs, but we also know that we've made other plans for him and been getting him excited about them (part of the reason I left my job was so that he could be on swim team and not have to go to camp all day), and I really don't want to make this choice. I also am trying really hard to make the beat choice and not let the fact that he may hate me for this affect my decision, but when it comes to something this big (in terms of how a 3rd grader views the world), I'm having a really hard time towing the line.