What happens if a child turns 3 during the summer?
Timelines in special education are year round. Regardless of when a child turns 3, if they qualify for special education, there needs to be a signed IEP in place by a childs 3rd birthday. What may happen, is that services many not start until the school year begins. The start date for services is determined by the IEP team when developing the childs IEP. Services over the summer are called Extended School Year services (ESY). Generally, a child would be eligible for ESY services if they would suffer regression in their skills without services. It can be difficult to make that determination for a child transitioning into preschool special education from ESS, so teams should be encouraged to think about any new or emerging skills that may suffer without continued service.
