Midway through the school year is a great time to check in and see how your child’s education is going.
There are those rare and wondrous years when special education really works. Your child’s teacher works well with them, and the specialists are competent and provide services on time. Your child is happy and making progress on goals. During those times, express your appreciation to the people enabling it to go well, and enjoy. Save your energy.
Then again . . .
There are years when things do not go as planned. Your child has a teacher with whom they are not compatible, and the district is not able to provide specialists. Sometimes they cannot hire permanent teachers, or your child’s teacher is out on long-term leave. Perhaps progress on goals is minimal.
Thinking about review
With four months of the school year gone and over five months left to go, now is the perfect time to have a mid-year course correction. If you call for an IEP before Thanksgiving, you can have the meeting before winter break. If not, you can have the meeting in early to mid-January with plenty of time to devise and implement course corrections.
IEP goal corrections
We see a lot of IEPs with poorly written baselines and/or goals. Making both more specific and measurable will give you a greater ability to verify progress—or lack thereof.
Appropriate placement
If you are seeking a less restrictive environment, either in the spring or the 2020-2021 school year, letting the team know sooner rather than later gives them more time to plan.
Behavior challenges
If your student’s behavior interferes with their ability to access their education, the district must help. Most start with a Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP). If that is adequate, great. If not, request a Functional Behavior Analysis (FBA), which is performed by a Board Certified Behavior Analyst.
Improved communication between school and home
Need to know more about significant parts of your child’s day? As part of the IEP, you can set up formal communication systems to obtain that information. This requires finding a solution that works for the teacher and provides you with the information you need. There are many ways this can work.
Would you like expert help at your child’s next IEP meeting?
For more information about special education advocacy services, please call or email via our contact form for a FREE 20-minute consultation to see if we are a good fit for you.
As parents, we understand. As experienced and trained advocates, we can help.