Even if it is a significant impact in that it is making it such that she isn't performing close to her own ability, she is too able to have an IEP b/c she is compensating well enough to never fall below grade level.
That doesn't correspond at all to my understanding of what is mandated by law. They are required to give each child an "appropriate" education; if her disability is hampering her learning, they are required to address it, no matter what level she is working at.
We were given this run-around by our district at one point, too, argued the point, and eventually received appropriate services for him. You might choose to do some reading on Wrightslaw.com about your DD's rights if you want to know more.
* dd could qualify for a 504. This does not require any testing from the school and, in fact, normally does not include any testing done by the school.
Whether this is appropriate depends on what your outside tester finds. A 504 will not include any direct services to remediate deficits, but it can include accommodations (more time on tests, changes in how instruction is delivered). If they find your DD needs specific kinds of training to improve her capacity to attend, that won't be covered in a 504.
Essentially, what I was getting was that dd is too intelligent to have an IEP regardless of how significantly ADD (or whatever) is impacting her education. Thus, 2e kids don't get special ed services unless their disability is so huge that they perform below grade level. I'd gather from that that HG+ don't get IEPs.
Again, this is not an appropriate or legally correct position. Districts sometimes use this criterion to make less-informed parents simply go away and stop asking for services.
If your outside advisers name services that can improve your DD's educational experience in school, know that you don't have to accept the "grade level" argument, because it won't stand up to challenge.
DeeDee
