Special Needs

Articles

...confidence, manage a schedule, and advocate in an IEP meeting. But meal preparation is something different....schedule, and advocate in an IEP meeting. But meal preparation is something different. It layers fine motor precision...isn't protection. What protects your teen is preparation, the right tools, and enough practice that safety...

...their learning difference in low-stakes contexts. Add self-advocacy to the IEP as a transition goal. Federal law requires IEPs to include transition planning...one way it affects their schoolwork in three separate settings (classroom, IEP meeting, conversation with a trusted adult)." This isn't about the student...

You walk into an IEP meeting prepared to advocate...parents lose their footing. IEP advocacy isn't about being combative....use them. Your Legal Rights at IEP Meetings. IDEA, the Individuals...participate as equal members of the IEP team. That means more than sitting...have the right to: Request an IEP meeting at any time, not just...

The night before an IEP meeting has a particular weight to it. You are...and placement rationales. Here is what careful IEP meeting preparation looks like, from the week before...placement rationales. Here is what careful IEP meeting preparation looks like, from the week before to the moment...

If you've ever sat across the table at an IEP meeting wondering whether the services on that document will show up in...services get delivered and enforced. Part D of IDEA, which funds teacher preparation programs, technical assistance to schools, and research dissemination, would...

...team to prepare their child for real life. The parents promise, at the IEP meeting, they will have their son or daughter start doing chores, prepare...doing chores, prepare his/her lunch, help out in the kitchen during meal preparation or clean up or begin learning all key grooming skills. I have witnessed...

...members of their son's or daughter's IEP team. They are often anxious weeks...the complex system involved in the preparation of IEP documents, the individualized...system involved in the preparation of IEP documents, the individualized special...Being a knowledgeable partner at the IEP table means understanding how to be...

Most parents sitting in IEP meetings don't realize their 14-year-old...side. Under IDEA, students become full IEP team members starting at age 14, and...by accident. They're the result of preparation that starts at home, long before the...state), your child must be invited to any IEP meeting where post-secondary goals...

You don't have time for self-care. That's not judgment, that's reality. Between medication schedules, therapy appointments, IEP meetings, and the daily logistics of raising a child with special needs, the advice to "take an hour for yourself" lands somewhere between unhelpful...

...state that requires clinical intervention. The Clinical Difference Between Stress and Burnout. Stress is situational and responsive. It spikes during an IEP meeting, a medical emergency, or a week of bad sleep. When the immediate pressure eases, stress eases with it. Rest helps. A weekend away makes a difference....

...assume you know what others are thinking about your caregiving decisions. "The therapist thinks I'm not doing enough at home." "Other parents at the IEP meeting think I'm overreacting." You can't know what they're thinking, but the assumption creates guilt based on imagined judgment. Should statements...

You see "recreational therapy" listed on your child's IEP or hospital discharge plan and assume it means supervised playtime with adaptive equipment. Recreational therapy is a clinical discipline with licensure...