Maybe you’re one of the growing numbers of parents who choose to homeschool children who have learning disabilities or require additional academic help. If so, you have many options available!
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but a springboard featuring several places, all based in the Kansas City area, which may help you on your journey (listed alphabetically):
Applied Learning Processes
This learning center in south Kansas City provides diagnosis, treatment and consulting services for learning difficulties experienced by children, adolescents and adults.
Autism Society of America (KC-area chapter)
The Autism Society – The Heartland chapter has many opportunities for people looking for support, education and advocacy for the autism community.
Beach Center on Disability (University of Kansas)
This Beach Center on Disability is intended for families who have children with disabilities. It’s an affiliate of the Life Span Institute and the Department of Special Education.
Billings Speech Pathology Services
With two locations in the Kansas City metropolitan area, this private practice has been providing speech-language therapy and myofunctional therapy services since 1994.
Ability KC
Since 1947, Ability KC has been providing educational and therapeutic services for children with disabilities. These range from aquatic and occupational to physical and speech therapies across a variety of ages, beginning at preschool.
Children’s Therapy Services
Based in Overland Park, this private speech therapy clinic offers services to more than 5,000 families in the Kansas City metro area. Its programs include sensory integration therapy, early reading skills, parent education, social skills instruction, and IEP navigation.
Educational Therapy Center
This learning center provides tutoring and one-on-one instruction in reading, writing, spelling, fluency and comprehension using the Orton-Gillingham Approach.
Joshua Center and Family Development Center
A United Way agency and member of DonorEdge, the Joshua Center has been in operation since 1996 and offers remediation and enrichment programs for children with neurological disorders.
Missouri Family to Family
Housed at the UMKC Institute for Human Development, Missouri Family to Family provides information, support, advocacy and consultation regarding disability resources and assistance.
MPact
This organization offers parent training and mentoring, including classes about understanding and writing individual education plans (IEPs).
Although they work mainly with public school families, all classes are open to anyone, and they welcome the homeschool community. Offices are located throughout the state of Missouri.
Poss-Abilities Children’s Therapy Group
This pediatric therapy clinic with locations in Merriam and Lee’s Summit specializes in therapy for children of all ages, in a kid-friendly environment. The clinic’s founder, Jean Wetherilt, is a retired homeschool mom.
Sherwood Center
Started in 1974 by a group of UMKC psychology students, this nonprofit agency provides services to children and adults with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities. A free book is available upon request – “The Fact Book: Facing Autism Courageously Together.”
Strategic Education, LLC
An approved educational supplement service provider for the No Child Left Behind Act, Strategic Education offers diagnostic testing and program implementation in its offices, one of which is based in Overland Park.
Other resources
Every year, our homeschool conference features a track just for special needs.
Be sure to come join other local families with exclusive workshops and speakers who have all experienced what you’re going through!
The following national resources are also available for special-needs homeschoolers:
- HSLDA. Resources include free articles, checklists and ideas for out-of-the-box homeschooling.
- National Center for Learning Disabilities. See this website for information on learning disabilities, as well as a comprehensive list of resources and programs.
- NATional cHallenged Homeschoolers Associated Network (NATHHAN). Find books, recipes, crafts and other resources with a Christian focus for families educating special needs children at home.
- Special Needs Resources for Homeschoolers. This website has a handy set of links for further research on homeschooling and special needs, including descriptions of (and help for) particular disabilities.
This blog post was originally published in September 2015. It has been updated for timeliness and detail.
Do you know other special needs homeschool resources in the Kansas City area that we missed? Let us know in the comments!
Our son has an amazing 1:1 tutor that is licensed with the program Academic Associates. This program has been very successful for him.
We also see Dr David Beaulieu, . This has been a great for our son.
In Dec we discovered he was having ocular migraines.
I found Northland Eye Specialist Dr Andrea Keele evaluates and performs vision therapy. The eval was painful for me to watch, seeing the struggle during and exhaustion when it was completed.
http://northlandeye.com/about-northland-eye/meet-our-staff/dr-andrea-keele/
I highly recommend all three. I am thankful that God placed the information and opened doors for our son to get the help needed.
Thanks so much for sharing, Nancy! We really appreciate it.
Awesome resources!! Thank you, Shanxi!!
As an alternative to ABA therapy, we attend a Kansas City Developmental Therapies center (there’s a location near Prairie Village and one in Olathe) for their neurodiversity affirming Floortime/DIR strategies.
Aww, thanks for the kind words, Sara! We so appreciate them. And thanks for the recommendation as well!