Coming Soon... IEP Clinic - Help with Your Child's IEP

Feb 27 NCEB LDA’s 2nd IEP Clinic - Help with Your Child's IEP

Model organization

By Jaclyn Kratzer - examiner.com

Organization, or rather lack thereof, seems to be the common problem for most students with disabilities. I hear it all the time. It usually comes in the form of homework not getting completed or paperwork never coming home. There are of course things the IEP team can do and should do to help. I find it sometimes to be a simple thing, but then a notice that the child may not see organization done at home or school or have any frame of reference to emulate.

Read more HERE.

Legal and Appropriate Educational Programs for Children with Autism

By Lee Wilkinson - examiner.com

More children than ever before are being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now estimates that 1 in 88 eight year-old children has an ASD. This dramatic increase in the prevalence of children with ASD over the past decade, together with the clear benefits of early intervention, have created a need for schools to identify children who may have an autism spectrum condition. It is not unusual for children with milder forms of autism to go undiagnosed until well after entering school. In fact, research indicates that only three percent of children with ASD are identified solely by non-school resources. As a result, school professionals are now more likely to be asked to participate in the screening and identification of children with ASD than at any other time in the past.

Read more HERE.

SPED acronyms explained: Part 1

By Karen DeLaughter from examiner.com

Navigating through a student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) documents can be a bit overwhelming. Even reading a website about a learning disability or news article on the topic of special education can contain a lot of vocabulary or acronyms that are not part of everyday conversation. Here are a couple of the most commonly used acronyms that you might find.

AT – Assistive Technology
When most first read or hear this term, computers with special personalized software might come to mind, but assistive technology (AT) is actually a term used to describe a lot of things. It’s any object that is used to assist a child to maintain or improve their ability. It is also a term used to describe objects that increase functional capabilities. This means that AT is more of an umbrella term that includes objects like pencil grips, grid paper, highlighting tape, audio books and the like and not just high tech items.

RTI – Response to Intervention
Response to Intervention (RTI) is a fairly recent term that is used in education and can probably best be described as a universal screening that schools use to monitor progress and identify as early as possible if any student may need extra help or services. In a general education setting, reached based methods of instruction and assessment are used to determine if any students in the classroom might have difficulties in a given area of learning. If a student is identified as having some difficulties, then a short term intervention is developed in which the student receives researched based intervention strategies of instruction and is monitored more frequently (often weekly) to ensure growth. If the student’s learning does not respond well to this first intervention, one more intense intervention occurs. During this more intense intervention, the student receives individualized instruction for longer periods of time and is still monitored frequently. An RTI often occurs before further referrals are made for more extensive services, including those most commonly associated with traditional special education services.

Article HERE.

Section 504 and IDEA Comparison Chart

School can be a stressful environment for the child and a time of vulnerability. Appropriate accommodations and modifications can reduce stress and can assist in achieving and maintaining educational success. 

As a parent, you are your child's greatest advocate, supporter, and cheerleader. By becoming knowledgeable regarding educational laws as well as services and programs available within your community, you can ensure that your child receives a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). There are two primary laws that cover your child's rights to a public education:

Read more of this article at The National Center for Learning Disabilities website HERE.

5 Tips For a Successful IEP When Inclusion is the Target

By Tiffany Wilson, MA from Special-Ism

As IEP season is upon us, it is always good to remember these helpful hints to ensure that your child’s IEP goes in your favor when requesting that he/she be included into a general education placement with typically developing peers.

1. Educate Yourself

• Become educated about special education law, specifically, the Individuals With Disabilities Act (IDEA).
• Your child is entitled to be educated in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). This can be an inclusion setting at a child’s home school with his/her siblings and neighborhood friends!

2. Be Prepared to Advocate for Your Child

• Have a friend or consultant accompany you to your child’s IEP for support.
• Sometimes a school is unable to effectively include a student with autism into the typical classroom without some support from outside agencies specializing in inclusion or behavioral intervention. This type of support may be needed in order for your child to have a successful inclusion experience.

Read more HERE.

IEP Meeting Conversation Stoppers

From the National Center for Learning Disabilities by Candace Cortiella, Director, The Advocacy Institute

Some of the statements made to parents at IEP meetings are “conversation stoppers”—comments that create barriers and can prevent the IEP team from working cooperatively to develop effective special education services and supports for students with disabilities.

Here are nine common “conversation stoppers,” some information about what may be the real issues of concern and suggestions for how parents can respond in a forceful but respectful way so that planning for their child can move forward.

Stopper #1: “The General Education Teacher Could Not Be Here Today.”

What is the issue?

The vast majority of children with disabilities spend most or all of their school day in general education activities or classrooms. It is essential that the general education teacher be an active IEP team member. This does not mean that parents should expect teachers to leave their classrooms for long periods of time. However, it is reasonable to expect the general education teacher to attend IEP meetings to contribute expertise in setting academic, behavorial and social goals, to advise the team about curriculum and help identify where and when adaptations and accommodation will be needed so that your child can be successful in the general classroom and have meaningful access to the general education curriculum.

Here are possible responses

“Nina is one of Miss Taylor’s students and we think she is doing very well. However, I have no idea if the goals, accommodation and other supports we are suggesting are going to be helpful to Miss Taylor in adapting the curriculum and classroom activities so Nina can be successful. We need to schedule another IEP meeting so that Miss Taylor can attend for at least part of the time.”

“This is the first year my child has been spending a lot of time in a general classroom. I do not want to have IEP meetings without my child’s general education teacher. We can complete the main parts of the IEP and give a draft to Mr. Jones. But then we will need to schedule another IEP Meeting that includes him so that our team is complete.”

Stopper #2: “Your Child Can’t Participate In Academic Classes If He Can’t Pass the State Assessments.”

What are the issues?

Both the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA 2004) and the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) encourage schools to have high expectations for all students and require schools to provide equal opportunities for students to receive academic instruction. Students with disabilities have a right to have meaningful access to the general curriculum. Parents and IEP teams should work with general education teachers to identify those areas of the curriculum that can and should be incorporated into the student’s IEP and then provide modifications and accommodations through special education services.

Read more HERE.

Special EDition: August 2013 - Back to School, Again

From Disability Rights Education & Defense (DREDF)

School has started and those back-to-school calls are pouring in to DREDF's Parent Training & Information Center. This month we're reprising an oldie but goodie Back-to-School issue of our Special EDition. Enjoy!

The start of the school year brings anticipation and excitement for many students—and sometimes a little relief for parents and caregivers! For students with disabilities and their families, excitement about new friends and a new classroom is often tempered with apprehension:

• Will my child receive the accommodations she needs? 
• Will her new teacher understand my child's special needs? 
• Will my child continue to build on the success she achieved last year? 

In this newsletter, we offer tips for approaching the new school year to ensure a productive school year.

New School Year, New Start

• Gather Your Child's School Records 

 It's helpful to keep copies of all school records: cumulative records, grades, progress reports, tardies/absences, special education records, health records, discipline records, and any others that may be kept by the district. You'll also want copies of any assessments your child has taken and your child's IEP/504 plan.

If you don't have a good set of records, write a letter to request "any and all" records, so that your files are up to date. In California, the school district must provide records to you within five business days. For those of you who don't live in California, check with your localParent Training & Information Center.

Once you've received copies of your child's records, organize them by date. This will help you to see trends and identify which accommodations and strategies have worked for your child in the past.

When shopping for school supplies pick up a binder and anything that will help you to keep the records organized.

Read more HERE.

Free E-Book: IEP Meeting Planner

From the National Center for Learning Disabilities

Whether you're getting ready to attend your child's first Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting, or you've already gone to a number of them, these meetings may be intimidating, complicated, and sometimes confusing.

One way to lessen your pre-meeting “jitters” and to boost your confidence during the meeting is to use our detailed planner. This planner describes specific actions you can take:

• Before the meeting
• During the meeting
• After the meeting

Register for the free planner HERE.

How Can I Request Changes to an IEP?

By NCLD Editorial Team

Making Changes to the IEPAfter the initial IEP is finalized or later IEPs are agreed upon (usually annually), IDEA 2004 provides new ways that parents and schools can make changes:

• Once the annual IEP team meeting has taken place, schools and parents are allowed to amend or change the IEP without holding another meeting of the full team.

• The entire IEP does not need to be rewritten in order to include such changes; however, parents may request a copy of the revised IEP with the changes included. At a minimum, you should receive a copy of the IEP changes in writing.

If the changes are made in this manner, all members of the IEP team must be made aware of the changes and their responsibility in implementing the changes.

While these new provisions make it more convenient for both parents and schools to make IEP changes, you should be cautious about using this approach to changing your child's IEP. Minor changes involving things such as accommodations can be easily revised like this, but significant revisions such as changes in the services, frequency of those services, and how behavioral or disciplinary issues are addressed are good reasons to have a full IEP team meeting. When making IEP changes without a team meeting, you should make sure that the school representative making the change(s) is authorized to do so by the school district. Parents are free to request an IEP meeting at any time, and requests should always be made in writing.

Our IDEA Parent Guide, specifically Chapter 7: IEPs – Developing Your Child’s Education Plan, will be helpful to parents grappling with questions like these and other about Individualized Education Programs.

Article HERE.

Is It Too Late for My Child to Get an IEP?

By NCLD Editorial Team

It’s true that the earlier a child’s LD is identified and addressed, the greater his chances of success. However, there are many reasons why some children aren’t identified until middle school or high school. Depending on the type and severity of the specific LD and a child’s ability to compensate for it, some students don’t appear to struggle until their teen years. So don’t despair; make the most of special education services that are available while you can.

Special education services are available in public schools through Grade 12, so if your child is eligible it’s possible to get an IEP until he graduates from high school or turns 22* (whichever comes first). (Note: 22 is the maximum age for special education services in most states.) In fact, having an IEP in high school is a great idea because, in addition to receiving academic support and interventions, teenagers with IEPs are entitled to transition planning, a process that is crucial to a student’s success after high school. Transition services must be included in the first IEP that will be in effect when a student turns 16, but you can (and should) start preparing for it when the student is 14 or 15.

Article HERE.

Conversations

By Robert Rummel-Hudson from SupportforSpecialNeeds.com

I feel like I want to talk about the events of last week, in which we revisited Schuyler’s IEP from a few weeks ago in order to put in place better speech and language goals than were originally presented to us. I want to talk about the shift in philosophy in her AAC use, how her verbal expressive language isn’t keeping up with what she’s capable of. I want to talk about how she’s been allowed to make some choices that she wasn’t quite ready for, and the work that lies ahead for her and for us. These are the things that have occupied my mind so deeply for so many weeks, so much so that the thought of actually discussing them in detail now feels rather daunting.

So I’ll simply say that conversations have been had, many of them. These conversations could very well lead to big changes, or they could provide a smoke screen, cover for returning to a way of working with her that has been easy, even as it hasn’t worked.

I guess that’s been the recurring theme. Conversations.

There were conversations in the original IEP meeting that were less than productive. Opening salvos, perhaps. “Here’s how things are going to be, and lucky you, dumb parents! All you have to do is sign!”

There were conversations that followed, in which our concerns were expressed, perhaps vigorously, about how Schuyler is communicating, how she is allowed to make herself understood, painfully, and what a very low bar was being set in school for what we should consider to be success. We talked about what she’s capable of communicating when she uses her iPad, and we handed out copies of the poem she wrote a few weeks ago, to teachers who were frankly shocked that the monosyllabic student they thought they knew had written such a thing.

Conversations were had about the future, and how Schuyler desperately needs a total shift in the communication philosophy being followed by every teacher who sees her. We talked about how that change might take place, and about what we want the school district to give. We asked for an outside consultant, one who’s been working with Schuyler and with us, to come facilitate a conversation, a workshop with the whole team. We were told that this was the job of the assistive technology team already in place. We met resistance.

Conversations took place, frank ones, about our lack of confidence in those changes truly being embraced without a facilitator from outside the system. Conversations took place that were difficult to hear, for both sides.

And Schuyler was there for every last one of them. Conversations were had about her, and not without her.

This past week, before the IEP followup, a very different conversation took place. Three of us were on the line; a representative of the school district’s assistive technology team, the amazing speech language pathologist with whom we’ve been consulting and who has come to know Schuyler as a friend, and myself. It was a very good conversation. It was one in which all three of us at one point or another faced ideas and concepts that were new to us. It was a microcosm of exactly the kind of facilitated dialogue that we’re pushing for, and pushing hard. It felt like success.

And the next day, there was the IEP followup. We pushed hard for our own communication goals to be written into the IEP, and we were ultimately successful. We also advocated for this facilitated workshop, but with no concrete decisions made. We made a solid case for it, though. Of that I feel relatively certain. The answer we hope to get from a dialogue like that isn’t one I could even quantify, I said. In a conversation of less than an hour the previous day, three of us opened our eyes to possibilities. A larger conversation? Those possibilities are unimaginable, if only people will choose to hear.

There have been so many conversations of late. Schuyler has been a part of most of them. The SLP with whom she’s worked remotely has had the most interesting perspective, because she’s never really communicated with Schuyler verbally. They’ve communicated via text message mostly, and so the Schuyler she sees is something a little like the fully realized communicator I’ve always imagined her to be one day. As if to bring the point home, she spoke to Schuyler on the phone the day before the meetings began. She got the verbal Schuyler, just brief words, yes and no and bye. She witnessed the kind of verbal expression that has served Schuyler so poorly at school for the last two years.

There has been so much conversation, so many choices to be made, all focused on enabling Schuyler to have the opportunity to fully realize the potential of the technology that so many people worked so hard to provide to her. That technology has changed her life. The early years are crucial to language development. It was almost too late when she first started at the age of five, and we did what we had to do to give her that tool before the doors slammed shut for good, pride and principles be damned. I would do it all over again, except years earlier.

Time was running out for Schuyler. Time is always running out for Schuyler.

So we have the conversations, and she joins them now. One day, she’ll lead those conversations, and she’ll do it with a voice that’s strong and autonomous and eloquent. There’s a lot I’ve gotten wrong with Schuyler, and more that I will screw up in the future. But these conversations? We’ll have these until our voices crack. Because ultimately, if we get this right, these conversations will begin and end with her.

Article HERE.

When There Is No IEP: How To Help Your Child Succeed In School

Guest Post by Suzanne Burchill from The Friendship Circle

My son was diagnosed with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) about 4 years ago. Today he is in 5th grade and still struggles with the classic symptoms of ADHD: lack of focus and attention, easily distracted, difficulty staying on task, lack of organization, blurting/ shouting out in class, difficulty sitting still/staying seated, and lack of impulse control.
Can we have an IEP?…. Pretty Please

These symptoms have caused a lot of problems for him both socially and academically. Last year, my husband and I started to notice that my son’s grades were beginning so suffer, so we requested an evaluation from the school for an Individual Education Plan (IEP).

At the end of the evaluation, the school professionals decided that my son wasn’t performing poorly enough to qualify for an IEP. So my husband and I were left to ask ourselves “What do we do now?”

Without the requirements of an IEP, how could we make sure that the school was doing everything that they could to help our son succeed?

Read more HERE.

Top 10 Things to Know About IEPs

By National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) Editorial Team

If your child is struggling in school because of a learning disability (LD), an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) might be an option to support his or her K-12 educational needs. Every public school child who receives special education and related services must have an IEP, and it’s hard to understate just how important this document is—it’s the cornerstone of a quality education for many students with disabilities. As a parent, you play a key role at all points in the IEP process, and your knowledge and advocacy can make a big difference in ensuring your child’s success. As you browse NCLD’s IEP Headquarters and learn more about IEPs, here are ten points to be sure you take away:

Getting an IEP is one step in the special education process.In order to get an IEP, a child must be evaluated and found eligible for special education services. An IEP does not automatically follow a LD diagnosis, and not all students with LD will be eligible for an IEP. (If your child is not eligible for an IEP, a 504 plan may be available for in-school support.)

Read more HERE.

The Importance Of Including Your Child in Their Own IEP Meeting

We as parents spend a lot of time advocating for our children when they are young.  However, there comes a time when our children become older and they have to learn how to advocate for themselves; knowing when the time is right will depend on your child.  If your child is still attending elementary school, they are most likely NOT mature enough to participate.  For those of you who have children in middle school, now is the time to think about the prospect of someday having your child attend their own IEP meeting.

When you and your child have come to the conclusion that they are ready to participate in their IEP meeting….then by all means, bring them in!!  When they first attend, it’s not necessary to bring them in for the entire meeting.  It’s important to make them feel comfortable and let them know that the team is there to help them in school.  The purpose of the IEP is not to discipline your child but to encourage them to become an integral part of some of the decisions pertaining to their IEP.  When you have finished discussing whatever you needed with the school, then bring your child in to participate.  It’s important to make it a positive experience so they are not afraid to participate….it can be frightening for a pre-teen/teenager to walk into a room by themselves with ten adults staring at them.

Read more of Dennise Goldberg's Special Education Advisor article HERE.

Are You Overwhelmed by Your Child’s IEP?

Given the complexity of the IEP and IEP process—and its importance to a child’s education—it’s understandable that parents often feel overwhelmed. In fact, the whole IEP process can be an emotional roller coaster, as we learned from a survey we conducted in 2012. We asked parents what feelings they have ever experienced during the IEP process. The results were eye-opening, with over half of respondents saying they felt overwhelmed, confused, powerless, and/or intimidated. On a more positive note, many of those surveyed said they felt (or had at some time felt) hopeful, confident, thankful, and trusting. 

The same survey told us that, while many parents are satisfied with the IEP process and their involvement as members of their children’s IEP teams, just as many were dissatisfied. More than half feel prepared at IEP meetings, so preparation alone clearly doesn’t wipe out the host of emotions many parents feel!

Read Kristen Stanberry's National Center for Learning Disabilities article HERE.

How Can I Request Changes to an IEP?

By the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) Editorial Team

Making Changes to the IEP

After the initial IEP is finalized or later IEPs are agreed upon (usually annually), IDEA 2004 provides new ways that parents and schools can make changes:

* Once the annual IEP team meeting has taken place, schools and parents are allowed to amend or change the IEP without holding another meeting of the full team.

* The entire IEP does not need to be rewritten in order to include such changes; however, parents may request a copy of the revised IEP with the changes included. At a minimum, you should receive a copy of the IEP changes in writing.

If the changes are made in this manner, all members of the IEP team must be made aware of the changes and their responsibility in implementing the changes.

While these new provisions make it more convenient for both parents and schools to make IEP changes, you should be cautious about using this approach to changing your child's IEP. Minor changes involving things such as accommodations can be easily revised like this, but significant revisions such as changes in the services, frequency of those services, and how behavioral or disciplinary issues are addressed are good reasons to have a full IEP team meeting. When making IEP changes without a team meeting, you should make sure that the school representative making the change(s) is authorized to do so by the school district. Parents are free to request an IEP meeting at any time, and requests should always be made in writing.

Our IDEA Parent Guide, specifically Chapter 7: IEPs – Developing Your Child’s Education Plan, will be helpful to parents grappling with questions like these and other about Individualized Education Programs.

Article HERE.

Four Important Signs That Your Child’s IEP Is Working

By Candace Cortiella, Director, The Advocacy Institute

The Individualized Education Program (or IEP) lays out the school’s commitment to provide special education and related services to your child. Developed annually, an IEP must be tailored to the individual needs of your child, with your involvement and input. Once formulated, the IEP becomes your roadmap to track your child’s progress throughout the year.

Here Are Four Important Signs That Your Child’s IEP Is Working:

Your child’s IEP has been reviewed by all teachers and related service providers.

All school personnel involved with your child’s education should be aware of and have access to your child’s IEP. This includes general education teachers, special education teachers, and any providers of related services such as speech/language.

Everyone should be knowledgeable about your child’s learning disability and its impact on all aspects of learning and behavior. Everyone should be clear regarding any instructional support, accommodations, or other services that must be provided your child and the role each must play in making certain they are provided consistently.

Your child is receiving behavorial supports, if needed.

Every IEP must consider the student’s need for behavioral interventions if behavior impedes the student’s learning or that of others. If your child requires such support, the IEP should clearly spell out what interventions are required. All those involved in your child’s education should be aware of behavior challenges and how they are to be addressed.

Your child has access to assistive technology and accessible instructional materials.

Confirm that your child is being provided with any assistive technology (AT) and/or accessible instructional materials (AIM) listed in the IEP. This includes any training your child needs in order to use the AT or AIM, and any training you might need to assist your child. Simply asking your child about use of AT and AIM is a good way to determine if what’s been promised in the IEP is actually happening.

You are receiving regular progress reports from the school.

IDEA requires that parents be provided with regular reports of progress toward each of the annual goals in their child’s IEP. These progress reports must be provided as frequently as reports are provided for all students.

Reports should involve objective measures — such as results gathered by curriculum-based measurement and standardized tests — and should not rely on any one single measure. A combination of measures will best document your child's progress and show if the special services are meeting your child's needs. Teacher observation and teacher-given grades alone are not appropriate measures of student progress.

If your child’s progress will not result in accomplishing the annual goal, expect to be given information on how the instruction will be changed in order to speed up progress. If progress is more than predicted, consider re-writing the goal to reflect more progress.

What to Do If Your Child’s IEP Isn’t Working

While your child’s IEP must be reviewed each year, if you feel that your child’s IEP is not providing appropriate progress before the annual review time, you can (and should) request a meeting to review and revise it.

Always make your request in writing. Provide times that are convenient for you to meet, either in person or by alternative means such as conference call, and a date by which you expect the meeting to be convened. Changes can be made to your child’s IEP by developing a written document that amends or modifies your child’s current IEP. There is no need to convene an IEP team for the purpose of making changes. If changes are made, the school must ensure that everyone involved with your child’s education is made aware of the changes.

Read more HERE.

How to Read an IEP: Acronyms and Language

By Marcie Lipsitt, NCLD Parent Leader - National Center for Learning Disabilities

Learning the Language of Special Education

As parents of children with special needs we pride ourselves on being experts. Unfortunately, too often we are expected to be experts in the field of public education, special education, and research-based educational best practices, written in a language that we do not fully understand. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 2004 (IDEA 2004) ensures that parents are equal members of their children’s IEP teams and with that comes an implied responsibility. Our children’s right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) and meaningful educational benefit rests upon our willingness to embrace the uncomfortable and learn everything that we can about this special education Holy Grail — the IEP — and the special education acronyms inherent in building this document.

IEP Terms: Special Education Acronyms

IDEA – Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 2004
IEP – Individualized Education Program
IEP Team – Individualized Education Program Team
IEE – Independent Educational Evaluation
BIP – Behavior Intervention Plan
PBS – Positive Behavior Supports
FBA – Functional Behavioral Assessment
LRE – Least Restrictive Environment
FAPE – Free Appropriate Public Education
PLAAFP – Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance (also known as “PLOP”)
ESY – Extended School Year
CBM – Curriculum Based Measurement
RTI – Response to Intervention

Read more HERE.

Are You Overwhelmed by Your Child’s IEP?

By Kristin Stanberry from the National Center for Learning Disabilities

Given the complexity of the IEP and IEP process—and its importance to a child’s education—it’s understandable that parents often feel overwhelmed. In fact, the whole IEP process can be an emotional roller coaster, as we learned from a survey we conducted in 2012. We asked parents what feelings they have ever experienced during the IEP process. The results were eye-opening, with over half of respondents saying they felt overwhelmed, confused, powerless, and/or intimidated. On a more positive note, many of those surveyed said they felt (or had at some time felt) hopeful, confident, thankful, and trusting.

The same survey told us that, while many parents are satisfied with the IEP process and their involvement as members of their children’s IEP teams, just as many were dissatisfied. More than half feel prepared at IEP meetings, so preparation alone clearly doesn’t wipe out the host of emotions many parents feel!

IEP Scenarios – Why You Might Feel Overwhelmed

Here are some common reasons why you might feel upset or uncertain during the IEP process — along with some possible remedies:

1.  You feel outnumbered and intimidated. Even if you attend the IEP meeting with your spouse/partner, you’ll almost always be surrounded by more than two educators. Here are some ways to bolster your confidence:

• Capitalize on the good relationships you (and your child) have with certain educators on the team, whether it’s your child’s general education teacher, the school psychologist, or someone else.

• Enlist an advocate to join you at IEP meetings if doing so gives you confidence.

• Remember that you are a valuable member of the IEP team. The others may be education experts, but you are the expert about your child. No one else on the team has a lifelong relationship and or the same level of awareness you do of your child. Make sure your voice is heard!

Read more HERE.