You're up for a big fight, but you can do I think for your child. It can be harder getting autism services for a girl because autism looks different in girls. I had to read most of the IDEA law to get Crystal special ed services, and we won't even talk about how long an Autism designation took. The law is written so that if their is a measurable discrepancy between ability and performance she qualifies for services.

You may want to check carefully and see if an IEP is more appropriate. To my understanding, an IEP can be more helpful and as it involves goals that can be measured, so it is far more enforceable. (Google "504 vs. IEP" for more details.)

If the school won't reasonably comply, seek out a special needs attorney in your area for advice. The schools sometimes discourage what our kids need because it is far simpler for them to sidestep an issue than to address and manage it. If a single parent lets such a situation slide, that is one child the school doesn't have to bother with. That may sound harsh, but it is reality.

I've gotten letters and test reports from her doctor and have given copies to her school. I just filled out an app for section 504 at her school.

@A MyAutismTeam Member we don't have a psychologist yet. Thank you for the suggestion and the prayers.

@A MyAutismTeam Member @MImom thank you for you responses.

Mentioned Users

A MyAutis...

A MyAutis...

What state your in makes a big difference. I would start researching the special education for your state. If your state doesn't have something it falls undert the federal law, no kids left behind. Having documentation from a doctor or specialist is a must and gives you something to fight for. You are your best advocate for your child so stand in there. If she is having terrible tantrums this is a sign that things are bothering her and she can't cope. They must be noticing this and dealing with them or just complaining about them, In that case this is a sign that she doesn need accomodations and help so some day she can advocate for herself.

Ieps are tricky ground to navigate because there is a lot of grey area between "educational needs" and "medical needs" so that schools really try to push off a lot things as not their problem. There is some language in the IDEA law that the scope should be broader than many schools interpretation but it doesn't stop them from trying to do the bare minimum.
Don't get me wrong, I truly believe that most of the educators out there are good people and are trying to do the best they can for our kids but "the best they can" is defined by a school district/state with no money to implement appropriate ieps. Which, according to the law, shouldn't matter. Your child should get what the need no matter what but the determination of what they need is largely left up to the school.
It's like telling your kid to clean their room but they can decide for themselves what constitutes "clean".
Here is a good primer from Wrights Law about writing ieps. I hope it helps.
http://www.wrightslaw.com/bks/feta2/ch12.ieps.pdf