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What happens when children with epilepsy go to school?  Are they equipped to handle my child if he/she has a seizure?  Does the teacher know what to do?  What should I ask the school or teacher?  These are questions that parents of epileptic children ask when their child goes to school.  Many parents have had different types of experiences when their epileptic children go to school.  I’ve even known parents who don’t know if they should even mention that their child has epilepsy, because sometimes, seizures only happen when a child is drowsy or sleeping.  So, how do schools handle epileptic children?

Lorianna doing her morning work.

In my personal experience, I’ve had an amazing experience at the school Lorianna currently attends.  They have a full time nurse practitioner on hand who has spent a lot of time familiarizing herself with Lorianna’s case, talked to her neurologist to get all the facts, and has spent time observing her when the teacher isn’t sure whether she’s having seizures or not.  They call me immediately if they see anything unusual so that I can come down and check on her and if necessary, bring her home.

If you have a child with epilepsy, the first thing you should do is contact the school.  Let them know your child has epilepsy and set up a Seizure Action Plan.  This is a plan that the school follows if your child has a seizure while there. It should include information on medications, your child’s doctors and a specific plan to follow if/when your child has a seizure while in school.  In ours, since Lorianna has a VNS, the teacher or nurse would take the magnet and place it on the VNS for 3 seconds, then remove it, and wait a minute.  The magnet gets swiped every minute for up to 5 minutes or until she comes out of the seizure.  They are to contact me so I can come and pick her up.  If the seizure lasts more than 5 minutes, rescue medication is to be given and if I can’t be contacted (this is highly unlikely) they would call 911.  All Lorianna’s teachers are to be trained in the use of the VNS and how to recognize seizures too.  Lorianna’s rescue medication is kept in the school clinic.

Lorianna with her 3rd grade teacher.

You should also stay in touch with your child’s teacher, updating them on how your child is doing, and getting frequent updates on your child’s school progress.  Sometimes, children with epilepsy can fall behind at school if they have uncontrolled or frequent seizures.  Since seizures affect the brain, knowledge can be lost when your child has seizures.  This is why it’s important to work to get seizures under control, whether through medication, diet or, if necessary, surgery.

Lorianna with one of her best friends

Lorianna’s short term memory is affected by her seizures, because she has them so frequently.  For this reason, she has struggled in school and is way behind her peers.  She has an IEP, which allows for in class instruction from a special education teacher and pull out throughout the day.  She also gets extra time for testing and a reader and scribe when necessary.  She is also learning how to use voice-to-text software on her school chromebook, because she is unable to write legibly and she is struggling with typing.  This allows her to get her thoughts down and then she can edit as needed.

Lorianna’s favorite para-educator.

So remember, the most important things are to make sure you have a seizure rescue plan on hand and stay in communication with the school.  Remember they are there to educate your child.  Special needs children still need to be educated, sometimes it just requires extra assistance.