Public vs private school

My little one is going to go to Kindergarten next year. I don't know much about the public school system. Private schools near me are a bit pricey. But would it be a better outcome? My son is a bit speech delayed but catching up and is not behind his peers in other things. Will he be forced to get an iep? We are working on that outside of school and his speech does not impact his academics as odd as that sounds because he finds that part easy and it shocks his preschool teacher. I just don't know what to do. If he went to public that would save me thousands over the years the way this economy is set up. Any input?
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I would google the public schools in your area to see if you can find out if they are good. Try and find a local Facebook group that would have people that go to the public school so you can ask questions. Ask some of the staff at the preschool if they know anything about the public school near you. I would get a much info about the public school before I considered private.

IEPs can be great, they can help him access services and accommodations you may not have even thought of. I don’t understand why you would avoid one? Where I live, it could even mean a scholarship to a private school, if that’s what you really want.

A lot of it depends on the school district. If you live in a good school district, your child will have opportunities to succeed regardless. If your child is speech delayed, public school will give him better access to services to support his speech development and get him caught up.

@Carly that is a good way of looking at it. He is receiving speech outside of school ( how've it is mostly the social aspect he has no difficulty with vocabulary or articulation). It is mostly talking to peers that is the issue. Once he knows them is fine, but new kids, it's kind of hard to talk to them. There is no worry in him communicating his needs, it's just not a quick or mature as other kids.( some kids talk in a very grown up way)

My daughter has a IEP and we just recently learned she has autism . Private schools did not have the right resources for her to get the help she needs we paid for 2 different private schools and no luck one of them didn’t even have a physiological Dr but begged for us to to keep her in the school as they were failing her in kindergarten due to her not being able to recite “bible versus” we decided to put her in a public school that me and her dad went to as kids . I can see a big difference and they are helping us so much but it all depends on the area and reviews . We learned a lot of people had made bad reviews at the private schools but were not shown on google due to them deleting the comments we had to go on there actual website or type in “the schools name with reviews” and speak to a superintendent. From my experience those type of schools only care about money, but that doesn’t mean they are all like that public school has made it alot easier for my daughter .

private school 110%

You only get an IEP after testing and parent consent. But they can be very helpful. If your child does end up needed speech services or other special education help down the road, private schools do not have to provide help. So I would go with public school. But I’m a public school teacher so I’m biased.

He won’t be forced to get an IEP. He won’t have the opportunity to get one if needed if he’s at private. And depending on the private school they may not take him if he is delayed in anyway. They are absolutely able and will discriminate against any kids with any disabilities or delays because they usually cannot accommodate them. Whether private or public is better depends entirely on your district, your zoned school (where you can send them) and the private school options available and affordable for you and your family. Hard to say. Some private schools are NOT worth it, some might be. I tried 2 private schools for my son and it went as horribly as it possibly could. Then he went to public and he’s excelling in every way. I think the private schools we tried weren’t right for him, and we lucked out on an excellent school district and school we were zoned for.

Thanks everyone for the responses. I see some pros. However, I would like to add that he does not qualify for speech through the state because his speech is not far from where it should be. So it is private speech at this point. The recommendations are more social based because he can tell you stories, how he's feeling, everything, but it is mostly interacting with new kids. Once he doesn't feel rushed, he is able to communicate better. And I did look into the nearby private schools and they do say they supply accommodations if necessary. I will look more into all options.

@Sheree can you share any insight? Most are saying public school. I don't have much experience with public, which is why I asked on here

Everything depends on your school district. The best thing is to call your board of education and get in contact with some public schools in your district and tour them. Ask any questions you have regarding curriculum, schedule, recess, test scores, homework and accommodations if he needs an IEP. The same with private schools. You have to do your research. Do they use the same curriculum as the public school? Have qualified teachers? Etc.

@Melissa I Live in a small town. There is only 1 lower grade k-1 public school. On the outskirts the neighboring county has a lot more options. This is why I was considering private. There are not a lot of kids and the age groups are broken down by a few age groups in 1 school and everybody goes to the same school in this district. I am not concerned with any schooling as that will be the easy part .

I have a lot of personal+working experience with private and public. I meet with about 5000 students a month from all over. Statistically, private is the best option paired with consistent recreational activity and parental academic support.

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