Imagine you are a special education teacher. You have been asked by your principal to develop an IEP for one of the 5 student profiles below.

Name: Jeremy Age: 4 Grade: Preschool Reason for Referral Jeremy was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder/Autism at two years and ten months of age. The diagnosis was made after his parents became concerned just after his second birthday. In a matter of weeks Jeremy had stopped using the twenty words he had previously learned. He no longer showed any interest in his parents or toys. Although his eye contact was never as good as his parents thought appropriate, he now refused to look directly at anyone. He began throwing and lining up toys, and spinning objects. He preferred to spend his time bouncing repetitively in place and flapping his hands and fingers. Whenever his parents tried to intervene, Jeremy would scream, cry, bite his hand, and bang his head on the floor again and again. Professionals at a developmental disabilities clinic at an area hospital assessed Jeremy and arrived at a diagnosis of childhood autism based on his developmental history (significant loss of skills around his second birthday), a score of 58 (severely autistic) on the Childhood Autism Rating Scale, and consultations with a speech therapist and occupational therapist. Jeremy was enrolled in a self-contained early childhood and special education classroom located in his local school district at age three. His language, fine motor, self-care, and social skills were assessed and found to be at the twelve- to eighteen- month developmental level. Jeremy's gross motor skills were determined to be age appropriate. Last year he attended the special program in the mornings only. This year, Jeremy attends the self-contained classroom in the morning and a general preschool program in the afternoon. He also receives private speech and sensory integration therapy and participates in private piano and swimming lessons. Jeremy's educational team agreed that next year he should attend a full-day integrated Montessori kindergarten class. Twenty typically developing children and six children with disabilities are enrolled in the Montessori classroom. Four adults currently manage this classroom: a teacher specially trained to set up and teach using Montessori methods and curricula, a teacher assistant with some Montessori training, an early childhood special education teacher, and a special education teacher assistant. This team of teachers often consults with speech, occupational, and physical therapists to ensure they are meeting the individual needs of students in the class.

Jeremy is a physically healthy preschool student diagnosed with autism just after his second birthday. He has received an array of early childhood education services and has made great strides in all developmental areas. While there is no denying his progress, Jeremy lags behind his typically developing peers in most domains. He has supportive parents who are concerned that professionals might not recognize their son's abilities and focus too much on his disabilities. It appears that he would benefit from another year in his special education preschool and collaboration with the team from the school where he is scheduled to attend kindergarten. At this young age it is difficult to predict with any accuracy how much progress Jeremy will make in the next six to nine months, so open communication, collaboration, and planning among the preschool staff, the elementary school staff, and Jeremy's parents is essential during this time.