Hey everyone,
I'm looking for ideas for summer childcare for my special needs daughter (11 years old).
We have a few summer camp places in our area. Quite a few at gymnastics places and in the city parks and rec.
These are all for non special needs kids though.
My daughter's special needs aren't physical special needs. Mostly behavior management type special needs. I think she might be okay in a non special needs summer program, but would probably have some behavior issues and I am more comfortable with her being watched a little more closely to ensure she is making good choices.
Anyway, just wanted to know if anyone had any ideas about where to look for summer childcare for special needs kids. I know it will depend on our location, but I may have not thought of a type of facility that may offer what I'm looking for and so far I haven't really found much and I'm getting a little concerned since summer is closing in.
TIA
Where I am most special needs kids go to summer day camps and the government funds a special worker for the child.
One of my friends was an aide at the public schools for special needs kids.
She would work (privately) with some of the parents over the summer, week nights and weekends.
I don't know if this is allowed by you, but she had quite a following. She got a lot of experience from working in the schools, got to know the families well and built a lot of trust with them.
If you are connected to any teachers or schools maybe see if they could recommend anyone?
Good luck :-)
In Portland the Bureau of Parks and Recreation provides someone to help the special needs child for free. We do have to call in advance. My grandson had an aid in swimming lessons. His issue was managing behavior.
Could you ask her support people at school if they know??
I work as a spec ed assistant and here parents ask the Spec.Ed department to put out an email to all the schools to see if there is a teacher or aide who could care for the child during the summer.
My daughter has SPD and I have always put her in regular summer school programs (she is in the Oregon, WI school district). She Is now 15 and thinking about maybe helping a teacher teach a course next summer. I am assuming you have checked with the Madison Metro School Dist summer offerings. There is a K-8 private school--I forget the name--that deals specifically with kids with Autism; they might offer some type of summer program/school. You could also call the Waisman Center and see what they have to offer and/or recommend in the area. Also by Stoughton there is a horse-riding stable for children with special needs--3 Gait ?? Or sth like that. They might have summer camps and/or know where to direct you. The Oregon school district has one of the best special needs programs around--I am so thankful we ended up in their school district. You could talk to someone in the special needs dept; they might be able to help give you some help and advice as well. I believe you can even enroll her in Oregon's program, you'd just have to pay a bit more for the classes and provide transportation. Good luck!
I understand the level of comfort with a special needs program. However, If you can, put her in a regular program. She can benefit from it and use peer modeling behaviors. Just let them know what her issues are.
Maybe check with a camp and see if she could have a para attend with her. Last year my daughter attended a camp with a classmate of hers who has Down Syndrome. She had a para who was there with her every day. If you contact the education department at the university there may be an education major who you could pay to go to the camps with your daughter. I would have loved doing something like that when I was in college.
I would inquire about programs at the YMCA, as well as talking to her school's guidance counselor, psychologist, therapist or whatever type of resource person they have.
I googled "YMCA summer programs for special needs kids in Madison WI" and here's what I got.
http://www.ymcadanecounty.org/summer-camp
:)
I don't know your area resources but please talk to senior staff about how certain behaviors of hers will be managed. The counsellors are often 12-13 years old!
Autism? If so, I would check with the parent trainer for your school district. This person will usually have a complete list. Some parks and recs have special needs camps. I'd also check with local autism or whatever her particular diagnosis is parent support group. People wil either have specific recommendations or there will be a list that someone has put together.
Does the school before/after school program offer a summer one for working parents? Our son has ADHD, OCD, ODD and a list of other conditions. He went to the city/school joint program for the summer. The programs affiliated with public schools are quite familiar with working with special needs kids with behavioral disabilities. They just needed to be made aware of our son's conditions, what to do in certain situations and they were set. I talked to the program director and it wasn't a big deal. Our son did fine in the program.
If your daughter's conditions are more severe, I'd consider one-on-one or small staff-child ratio care. Look for a nanny who's experienced with special needs kids (Care.com is an option to find someone) or if that's out, find a home-based daycare situation who can handle special needs kids (our county had a list) who are older.
If she is getting benefits from the state, there are a ton of summer camps since special needs kids can't be left home alone. They also may qualify for a care provider to take them and do things with them during the day. However, if by "special needs" you mean something like ADHD and not state benefits or disabled, then you can check into "normal" activities and camps and talk to the leaders about what needs or issues your kid may specifically have and see if they can accommodate that. My kids go to boys and girls club. Good luck.
