With three kids on Individual Education Plans (IEPs), we’ve killed a couple of trees throughout the years with the paperwork that gets generated by the schools when developing each kid’s IEP plan. Once a year (and sometimes more if we have something to change), I meet with each child’s team to go over the goals and communication access plans.
I learned right away that having a perfect IEP is a myth– there will always be things that go awry or teachers who are unaware of what’s on the IEP. Janet DesGeorges and I teamed up and wrote The Myth of the Perfect IEP: After the Paperwork is Finished.” One of the most crucial pieces of advice in that article is to find someone who can act as the MVP of your team:
Among the team that is assembled to deliver the services and supports for your child throughout the year, there is often an MVP -that professional who goes the extra mile, who supports you when you are advocating for your child, who you tend to call on when there is a problem. Whether that person is your child’s general ed. Teacher, sign language interpreter, Teacher of the deaf/hh or a speech language pathologist, you can create and sustain a positive relationship throughout the year by communicating regularly, contacting them when there are things to be celebrated, and not just complaints to be delivered etc. and to be able to create strategies for effective communication access.
If you can’t think of one person on your child’s IEP that you would consider an MVP, start thinking about who you could begin a positive relationship with in order to be able to collaborate with throughout the year, and be able to call upon for help when something falls through the cracks.
When my oldest son first attended the school down the street from us, I made it a point to go and meet the principal and tell her about David. She became an ally and an important part of the team. I also volunteered in the school for parties and at the library, getting to know the staff and the teachers. I spoke with each kid’s class during the early days, reading books and introducing signs.
When I work with families, I tell the parents that they are the case managers for their kids. The idea of parents acting as case managers on the IEP team may strike some parents as strange, because aren’t schools supposed to be doing that job? But here’s something to think about– the parents, are the ones living daily with their child from the time they enter the family to the rest of their life. The parents are the one steady part of the IEP team that is always there.
There are two books that I regularly recommend to parents:
Wrightslaw: From Emotions to Advocacy: The Special Education Survival Guide
The Complete IEP Guide: How to Advocate for Your Special Ed Child
Another neat tip that I learned from a parent long ago, is to put together a binder to keep all of your information together. Unfortunately, I was never organized enough to accomplish that. Some of the parents I’ve worked with have created booklets to give to each team member when transitioning from early intervention into a school. In the booklets, they include pictures of their child at home and at play with a paragraph or two (sometimes more) describing their child, including helpful tidbits about communication or assistive equipment.
You may find yourself in challenging situations where the IEP team does not agree or you may be presented with questions or statements that are difficult to answer. Hands & Voices created questions with answers that parents can use at an IEP meeting: Pop-Up IEP. You’ll also find the IEP Checklist helpful for figuring out what your deaf/hard of hearing child might need in their IEP.
If you have IEP tips, lessons or experiences to share, I would love to hear them in the comments below. Have you had an IEP situation that was challenging or that went well–share it with us!
Comments
15 responses to “Working with Your IEP Team”
My child, age 16, blind and with Aspergers, has lengthy IEPs. A binder holds one year’s worth, if we’re lucky.
He has his own file cabinet just for IEPs and other documents.
in my Teacher role, I’ve often been the MVP because I understand the parents. I speak their language. We’ve had many MVPs; I wish I could list them all.
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I have the large binder for each kid that also has a pic on the cover. I try to change it each year. One year I had 6 IEP meetings in total. I am not sure if the ITP meeting is at age 14 or 16, but I plan on having my HFA son attend, also the aide for my younger son to attend meetings.
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I just looked in my book and the ITP is for age 14. I had a typo on this website link from one other time so that is why the comment name looks so weird. I am now changing it to my blog instead.
I have one child sort of on an IEP. We met with a support group and most of them have kids on IEP, but they liked what we’re doing better. As you know IEPs are like a thesis of a child’s academics. Seriously, who has time to check the IEP for everything the child does when there are 10 to 20 kids in the classroom?
Instead, we use what’s called a 504 status. The committee meets whenever there’s a change or my son is struggling. We fill out a one sheet form that captures the discussion and accommodations. It works great.
I don’t mean to knock the IEPs. They are valuable when used to their fullest. Thanks for the great resources, Karen.
I agree that a very important aspect of a child’s education is the parent involvement. When my mom saw I was assigned the lowest reading group and near the bottom in math — she went to the school because she knew I didn’t belong there.
I moved to the top math and the third top reading group and excelled.
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@Daisy
You’re much more organized than I am! 🙂
I do have an MVP for each kid and turn to them when needed.
@Bonnie Sayers
Transition meetings do start at the age of 14. I was happy to see that because I know that when I was growing up, there wasn’t much in terms of transition after high school.
@Meryl
504s can be great for some kids. I keep my kids on an IEP because the law is behind us more through an IEP than a 504. For example, had my oldest son been on a 504 plan instead of an IEP, it would have been nearly impossible to get the district to consider out of district placement for him to attend a school with 70 other deaf/hard of hearing kids.
Thanks for pointing that out. That’s good to know. What works best depends on the child’s needs. My son is in 4th grade… so he’s only got one more year before middle school. Don’t know what the best option will be for him.
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I just had the 2nd of 2 IEP meetings for the year. Both my boys have Asperger’s. Maybe I’m just naive, but I don’t buck anything the teachers have decided and put in the plan. Or it just could be that I’m just extremely happy with what they’ve done with both my boys in the last few years. When you said MVP, I instantly knew who that was, and I’m grateful for her. I trust that the moment I had any worries or concerns about how my boys’ educational experience was progressing, she’d be in their corner in a heartbeat, ready to fight for them. I know I’m blessed.
When my daughter was in school, working with the school on IEP was time consuming but effective.
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Karen.
Great information. Even though we’ve been doing IEPs for six years now I always learn something new from others who have bee through. Thank you for sharing.
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Thomas
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Karen,
Thanks for linking so many great resources in one spot! Off to bookmark you…
Julie
Wow. I wish I would have found your blog so much sooner than I did. My daughter has hearing loss in both ears and it was like pulling teeth getting the school district to do anything for a long time.
I’m following you on Twitter now and look forward to your words of wisdom.
i need some help and I wish have someone to help me for my child because I don’t know where turn to. this is my child needing all the right services. seem like other people have no problems getting the help/services for their child, not me. i don’t know how because I have no oneI can trust or turn to. I worry about what my child would go thru in her future, if I don’t know how to do what other normal parents do for
First, try the special ed teacher. Then the principal. If neither works — go to your independent school district (ISD) for help. One is bound to do the job. I know of parents struggling in certain schools, but if they go to the ISD, they will get the support they need.
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