Special Education Extended School Year: What You Need to Know
Summer is upon us! And yes, a TON of information can be lost during a long school break.
Okay, yes, it is only April. But my goodness, it is time for us to prepare for the summer in no time. That includes looking at what our children need during that long school break.
Typically, summer break lasts about two and half months. Yes, let that sink in, two and half months. That is a long time without school and structured learning for many of our special needs children. It is wonderful if you have lots of activity options for your children, such as that long summer family vacation (that sounds nice but not doable for a lot of us), the (very pricey) summer camps, or the (also very pricey) daily tutor. It is also wonderful if your children can easily transition to the next school year without experiencing a significant regression in the absence of a structured learning environment. But that is not the case for many of us and our children.
Especially for our special needs children, two and a half months without any structured learning can lead to a significant regression. That is where the school summer program ESY comes into the picture.
What Does ESY Mean?
ESY is short for the Extended Summer Year. ESY services are special education and related services provided to eligible special education students beyond the regular school year. It is apart of the Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) for a student with disabilities, and yes, it is mandated by the federal law Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). https://sites.ed.gov/idea/regs/b/b/300.106. ESY services are not the same as summer school, compensatory services, or enrichment programs.
An extended school year allows eligible special education students to maintain the same educational standards as when school is in session and prevent them from regressing.
Why Do You Even Want ESY for Your Child?
There are lots of benefits to ESY. For many of our children, having such a big school break can result in them losing skills learned. They might take a long time to regain those skills once they are back in the regular school session. By getting ESY services, you can help minimize the loss of skills that could happen during the big summer break. You can make sure that there is no big lapse in the support needed by your child to keep the skills learned during the school year, plus it can give your child more consistency during the big summer break.
How Do You Know Your Child Needs this Help?
Are you seeing that your child struggles to get back to school after school breaks? Are you seeing a loss of some of their learning after school breaks? Are you seeing a big interruption in overall skills and behaviors during school breaks? Are you concerned about skills loss during the recent school closures? Is your childbehind compared to a year ago? These are just some questions and concerns that are good enough reasons for you to reach out to your child’s teacher or IEPteam about the ESY services. Ask the teacher to share or assess any regression or recoupment issues your child has after school breaks.
Who is Eligible for ESY Services?
Suppose your child receives special education services and has an IEP in place. In that case, they can be considered for extended school year services. The need for ESY services is determined by your child’s IEP team. And yes, you’re a part of that IEP team, so your feedback and input are very important to the team. There are two main considerations for the IEP team when deciding on the ESY services:
(1) Will your child regress without continuing services during the school break, including the skills taught by related service providers such as speech therapy and behavioral intervention support?
(2) How long will it take your child to relearn or regain the skills they lost?
Your child’s IEP team determines the ESY services through the IEP process. The team must discuss and agree on including these services in your child’s IEP before they can be provided. This can be done at your child’s annual IEP, or you can ask for an amendment to the annual IEP meeting to discuss and add the ESY services. Depending on which state you live in, the eligibility requirements may vary. But the federal law IDEA states that schools can not limit ESY services to any eligible students.
How Much Does ESY Cost to You?
Zero to you. If your child is eligible, the ESY services are provided at no cost to the family.
Can you change your mind after you agree to ESY services for your child?
Yes, first of all, you canrefuse ESY services even if your child meets eligibility requirements. Second, you can change your mind after the ESY services are included in your child’s IEP. For example, your family’s summer schedule changes, and now your child can’t attend the ESY program. That is okay. Just let the teacher or school know before the program starts so they know not to expect your child.
Summer School vs. ESY: What’s the Difference?
ESY happens over the same calendar months as summer school, but it has a different purpose. It is not designed to prevent loss of skills over the summer, not to introduce special education students to new instruction or materials. On the other hand, summer school is not special education. A school district can choose not to provide summer school. However, suppose special education a student requires ESY services. In that case, the school district must offer an ESY program to address their individual needs.
Make sure to give yourself enough time if no ESY services are included in the IEP yet. If you wait too close to the summer, you might not be able to get the help needed on time. Look up your school district’s ESY information on their website, or ask your school or teacher for ESY information. Pursue if you can see your child canpotentially benefit from the ESY services.
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