Q is for Questions
If you’re just starting out on this journey, you probably have a lot of questions. Or, as your child with autism becomes an adult with autism, there are sure to be many questions that you’ll want to ask. Whatever the case may be, there are a lot of questions so that’s why Q is for Questions. The only part that I’m not really covering is questions to ask during the special education process. But that’s because I think those could be a post entirely on its own.
Questions to Ask During/Right After the Diagnosis:
Should we get a second opinion?
What type of services will my child need?
Can you provide a list of recommended service providers?
How are we going to pay for these therapies?
Are we eligible for Medicaid and/or SSI?
What are the special education services like in our area?
Are there private schools for special needs children?
Can we take a tour and/or sit down with the program director?
Who is the head of our IEP committee?
Who is in my support network?
Questions to Ask During School Age
What types of after school services are available?
What can we do for the summer? Extended school year, summer camp?
What kind of community support services are available?
What will my child do after middle school?
Will my child always need to be in a special needs program?
What kind of support can we get for home?
Questions to Ask Post High School
- How would you plan to transition my child from school and/or my home to a group home?
- Do you offer work activities or day programming? How do you determine which one is the most beneficial? What if I want to switch?
- What training on Autism do the staff receive? How often do they receive training?
- How are daily routines determined? How do you work in my child’s routines or preferences?
- What kind of life skills or other training can you offer? How are these skills taught, and who teaches them?
- What other kinds of supports do you offer or can we access? How do we access other services?
Above questions provided by D&S Community Services
There are likely hundreds of questions running through your mind at any given time and that’s normal. My best piece of advice would be to write everything down. Even if a question seems silly or might not be applicable at the time (ex. what will happen after high school when your child is 3)- write it all down. Keep a journal with you if necessary, but write them all down.
Asking questions the first time may not get you the answer you need, but it could very well lead you on the right path.
Kori
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