For his first five years in public education, Simon attended a self-contained classroom in the school across town with other students who were labeled with “intellectual disabilities.” Every school day, a bus designated for Simon and his classmates pulled into Simon’s driveway and delivered him to school, where he was met by his special education assistant and escorted to his self-contained classroom. When he wasn’t working on “life skills” with his class, Simon joined his non-disabled peers for recess on the playground and during music class. At the end of the school day, he returned hom
