By: Christine Riley,
Education Advocate
Sitting
across the table from you are people with a large impact on your child’s learning and well
being. Typically, there are more of them—education professionals—than you, the
parents. That’s why nervousness is common when facing an IEP meeting. As a special
education advocate for families, I’ve been a part of hundreds of IEP meetings
and these suggestions are an outgrowth. The best
outcomes arise when parents consider the following:
Prepare
yourself
· Find out
who will be in the team IEP meeting, the purpose and the process. Call the
Principal’s secretary to find out if you are unsure. She has the means to
connect you with the right person if she doesn’t know herself. Preparation is
calming and powerful.
· Commit
ahead of time to reign in your emotions. It is your child being discussed, and,
when it comes to our kids, we wear our hearts on our sleeves. Use the count-to-three
delay before responding to or interjecting comments—this gives you time to
reconsider or, at the very least, get your emotions in check.
· Practice
your listening skills and make the choice ahead of the meeting to truly listen,
rather than mental prepare your response while others talk.
· Visualize
yourself in the meeting: What is your #1 goal? How will you ensure it is
addressed? Check and re-check your list of concerns. What
back-up information will you want available? Make sure your binder contains everything necessary. A regular three-ring binder with dividers
is all you need. Below this blog, I've included an easy checklist of items to include in your notebook.
The little
things absolutely matter!
· Flexibility: Try to be available for
the suggested meeting day and time. Teachers, administrators and specialists
have limited free time during the school day—meetings are sometimes scheduled
during their lunches, planning periods or before- and after-school, eating into
personal time.
· Punctuality: Arrive at least 5-10
minutes early. Do not be late. Period.
· Appearance: You want your child’s
needs to be taken seriously, so dress the part. Professionalism is essential,
as judgments are often made based on appearances.
· Distraction: Do not, I repeat, do not bring another child with you. Regardless of the child’s normally excellent
behavior, you will be distracted. Maintain your singular purpose by
enlisting a friend or relative to babysit.
· United Front:
Especially for Eligibility and Annual Review meetings, both parents should
attend if possible. It shows your child is important to both of you, and the
added support is invaluable.
During the
meeting
· Leave your
cell phone off; not just on vibrate. If you are concerned about an emergency,
tell the school receptionist your name, who you are meeting with and ask her to
let you know if an emergency arises.
· Humanize
your child and make your family relatable. Work into the conversation an
endearing story about your child. Your goal is for them to have a specific image
of a your child. For example, “I’m glad you’re working with Tommy on his
diction because last night when I was tucking him into bed, he said ‘I luff you
Mommy.’ It was an amazing end to the day!”
· Remain
non-adversarial, even if goaded. If someone around the table disagrees with you
or becomes disrespectful, keep your tone professional. Like everything else on
this list, do it because it is in the best interest of your child.
We can ease your mind by helping your prepare for the IEP
meeting and then attend as an experienced advocate by your side. Together with
you, I can help you make the most of this and future meetings about your
child’s special education needs.
Organizing IEP Paperwork in a
Notebook
What you need:
3-ring
binder
3-hole
punch
Binder dividers with tabs
Permanent marker
Sheet protectors (optional, but nice to use)
The first step is to set up the binder for easy reference. Create
individual sections for
the following topics using tabbed binder dividers:
Tab
1—Communication
Keep
a copy of the Contact Log Sheet (see
page 3) and record all contact you have
with the school regarding your child. Behind the communication
sheet, keep copies
of any letters and e-mails you send or receive.
Tab
2—Evaluation
Place all notifications and requests for evaluations, as well as
evaluation reports, in
this section. Your child may only be evaluated once every three
years, so this section
may
not contain information for some years.
Tab
3—IEPs
Hole punch and file all IEPs and IEP drafts.
Tab
4—Progress
Schools send home reports on progress toward IEP goals in addition
to report cards.
Keep this information in this section along with any other
reports, such as those from teachers.
Tab
5—Other Information
In this section, keep handouts from the school (e.g. Age of
Majority notification and
procedural
safeguards) and information regarding school policies.3—IEPs
Hole
punch and file all IEPs and IEP drafts.
Tab 4—Progress
Schools
send home reports on progress toward IEP goals in addition to report cards.
Keep
this information in this section along with any other reports, such as those
from teachers.
Tab 5—Other
Information
In
this section, keep handouts from the school (e.g. Age of Majority notification
and procedural safeguards)
and information regarding school policies.
How
do I maintain the organization system?
Each
time you receive paperwork from the school, immediately hole punch it and put the item behind the appropriate binder
tab. Bring the binder to any school meetings
so
you can immediately file information and ensure nothing is lost. Some parents
prefer to create one binder for each school year, while others create tabs for
each section in one notebook that is organized. How you decide to store the
information depends on the amount of paperwork your child has for each school
year and how frequently you
need to access past information.
How
long should I keep paperwork?
Keep
school related paperwork until your child is no longer receiving special
education services in the public schools. Many parents prefer to keep paperwork
until their child is 25 years old. Even then, you may want to keep copies of
the most recent evaluations, IEPs, grades, and progress reports. These may come
in handy when applying for
post-school programs.
You
can alter this system to meet your individual needs and preferences. You may
consider keeping all documents electronically and scanning hard copies. However
you choose to organize information, it is important to ensure that all the
documents you need are easily accessible.
SAMPLE CONTACT LOG
Date
|
Person
|
Type of
Communication
|
Notes
|