Last week, we looked at step one in communicating with your child's school.  Today we will look at step two:  Prioritize and Plan.  What's the most important thing that needs to be accomplished for your child?  Make a list of issues, questions, and possible solutions.  Rank them.  Decide if there are any you can pass on and which ones must be addressed.  Plan how you are willing to give and take in order to achieve the higher goal.  Map out what you need to say and practice, if that helps:  "What's most important for Jordan right now is...", "We really need to focus on...". Referring to these few notes, with key phrases jotted down, can help keep you and the meeting on track.   Reprinted from Cadre, Steps to Success; Communicating with Your Child's School.

This is very good advice.  So often parents get overwhelmed by the meeting and forget what the issues are that they wish to bring to the table.   Having your concerns written down give you something to refer back to.  Make sure you make notes of what the school has agreed to do.  Then make sure those agreements are written into the IEP.  Remember, if it's not in the IEP, the school doesn't have to provide it!

Cathy Boswell

InSource