An Invitation to Meet a Member of your IEP Team

So, your child has been diagnosed with ADHD, or perhaps Autism, or even PDD-NOS. You have been invited to an IEP meeting to discuss this diagnosis and develop strategies for how to best educate your sweet child. Upon arrival you are met with, perhaps, an EC teacher, your child's teacher, a school psychologist, and maybe even the school counselor. They talk around you, not to you and give you a ton of papers to sign with the promise that they will make great strides in your child's academic progress in the next eight months and he/she will be "on grade level." You leave the meeting wondering what in the heck just happened , as they throw jargon your way and condense the whole that is Your Child into just a few capital letters- EC. As you get in your car you begin to wonder, truly, if they, the "team," even know your first name. Welcome to Special Education!

I have been at these meetings and sat at that table. Not on your side, but as the Exceptional Teacher- the one "leading the meeting." My name is Jill Critchfield and I am a Nationally Certified Exceptional Children Teacher. I have seen the heartbreak of a mother hearing for the first time that her child has a learning disorder. I have also seen the jubilation that comes from knowing that there is a reason your child has a harder time learning, paying attention and acquiring information than the other students in class. I have also witnessed parents being bullied by administrators into signing papers, legal documents, that parents may or may not understand. I have been reprimanded for informing parents that they have legal rights not to sign an IEP that they don't agree with; for encouraging parents to have a voice in the IEP process. Please know that the person at the IEP team meeting that knows your child best isn't the school psychologist that has just diagnosed your child; it isn't the school teacher that has sent home more frowny faces on the weekly behavior chart than stars; it isn't even the special education teacher that has years of education and has worked with many children with similar diagnosis as yours. It is YOU. You know that beautiful child that God has given you inside and out. You have a voice that needs to be heard.

Ever sit in on one of these IEP meetings only to have the EC teacher hand you forms that have already been filled out, goals and all? That is wrong. They can have a rough draft prepared, as I often did, but as a TEAM they are required to ask you for your input. Ever see a goal that states that Johnny will complete a task with "80% accuracy?" How are they keeping record to determine if he has reached 80% in achieving the stated goal? Ever have a teacher tell you they don't have "enough time" to fill out a dialogue journal to keep you posted on your son or daughter's progress? I have.

It is time to develop a working relationship between parents, teachers, principals, EC directors and students that is forward-thinking and mutually beneficial. I have lots of strategies and encouragements to share with you. My heart is for your child. Every child has the right to a "free and appropriate education." Who determines what is or is not "appropriate?" You do! You are a vital part of the IEP Team and your opinions matter. Through accepting the invitation to blog, I encourage you will come to me with questions which will lead you to be the best possible advocate for your child. Together I hope that we can arm you with suggestions for additions or addendums to your child's IEP which will push the EC teacher to think outside of the box. Perhaps your child struggles with Accelerated Reader (AR) time and doesn't perform well during "silent reading." Have the EC teacher tape record herself reading aloud the storybook for your daughter to listen to as she is reading along. With AR there are tests to take on each book that the student reads. If your child performs poorly on AR tests, have the teacher write down the questions ahead of time and use them as a guide for learning -- isn't extra time on assessments one of the boxes checked on the IEP forms? Isn't the goal reading comprehension...not good test taking?

We, at Spruce Kids, want to invite you to ask me questions about...well, just about anything to do with Exceptional Children. If I don't know the answer to your query I promise to seek the answer and respond in my next blog post. You may either respond via the comment section or email me at Jill@sprucekids.com. I believe all of God's children are Exceptional and Special. I have been blessed to be an educator, and now I am blessed to be a mother. I am honored to see all sides of the table. Come and join me in providing your child with the best opportunity to grow and learn. I am on your side.