Choosing after-school and summer programs
Finding surround care for a student with disabilities can be a challenge. Some programs offer sub-separate options, while others don’t specifically identify as “inclusive”. Finding the right fit for your family can be as simple as a call to the program director for more information. Here are our top 3 lessons learned from navigating after school and summer programs in Boston.
Lesson 1: sub-separate programs are a choice, not an automatic. My autistic daughter loved to dance, so we signed her up for a general education dance class with Boston Ballet. Alongside their general education program, Boston Ballet offers an adaptive dance program for children with disabilities. Because the school offered only these two options, we picked the general education classroom because I thought she would prefer studying classical ballet (over the less defined goals of “developing movement, musicality, and personal growth"). My daughter, and one other autistic girl, by joining the class, essentially turned their classroom into an inclusion classroom. Over the years my daughter developed long-term friendships with three of the girls in this class, through sharing a common interest, and being on similar wavelengths.
Lesson 2: Your child can - in many cases - enroll in a program that isn’t advertised as “inclusive”. Many after school programs / camps will specifically identify as “inclusive”, but many do not. Do not let this deter you! If you find a program that seems like a good fit, contact the program director and explain your situation. For the Summer Program, the Grossman Camp I shared some advice on what accommodations would benefit my daughter, and the camp counselors were very responsive and comfortable with her being in a general education bunk. We’ve found many programs are open to being more inclusive than they advertise, which is a win-win: our daughter gets to participate, and we help make the activity more inclusive!
Lesson 3: When BPS shares lists of activities, it’s usually by diagnosis, and not inclusive. Our experience at BPS has been characterized by receiving a list of activities / programs that are designed for students with specific diagnosis's. They’re mostly sub-separate dedicated programs. Sub-separate can work if the atmosphere is one of acceptance and respect (like the camp in the wonderful movie "Crip Camp"). Sharing with the district which of these camps have that type of affirmative culture, would be beneficial for other families to learn. It would also be helpful to share strong inclusive options with the district, that they are currently unaware of, to add to their listings. In addition, asking other parents for suggestions, and contacting camps directly is recommended.