Transition

When looking at an IEP the transition plan should drive all other parts of the IEP when the students turns 14.  So, where does the plan start?

1. Interview-  This should be where the students interests are discussed. What does the student like to do outside of school?  What are the students hobbies?  What kind of jobs has the student had in the past?  There are many other questions that are asked in the interview, but that is a start.
2. Post Secondary Goals-  What skills do does the student need to work on in order to get a job?  Does the student have a drivers license?  Does the student know how to fill out an application?  Does the student know how to dress appropriately?
3. Outside Agencies-  This is where DORS, DDA and BHA.  These are all the outside agencies and those that help the students outside of school.

Now this is just the basics of the IEP transition plan, but it is vital to know what goes into each one.  This section should be very detailed and organized.

As always send questions or topics you would like to read about. 

Where to start with an IEP

Present Levels-  This is the most overlooked part of the IEP.  This part not only shows the students highlights, but also what they need to work on. 

Student Highlights- This should show how a student functions in a positive way in the classroom.  Do they come in prepared?  Are they happy when they enter a certain class?  There could be many things that are under this section.  This should be a very positive section of the IEP and should not be negative at all.

How the disability affects the student?-  This is the section that will hopefully be across all curriculum areas.  If it defers from class to class then there might be an issue and the parents or teachers should question it.  If it is the same across every class this will help the student achieve their goals faster.

Questions let me know?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYNqOF8PXsU

Testing

When is enough!

Teachers and students are expected to TEST, TEST and TEST!  When does the teaching go on?  How does a kid make progress on their IEP goals with so much testing.  The sad part about it is, the state and the whoever makes the rules do not listen to teachers when it comes to testing.  It will take parents to step up and say "Enough is Enough!"  Teachers have the most knowledge about the toll that testing takes, but unfortunately more often than not it looks like they are just complaining.  Parents are the ones that are most heard and if you are tired of your child just testing(which they are) then speak up!

Special Olympics

Please help my school raise funds for Special Olympics!  Just donate $1 only will help so many!  If you cannot donate please share! Just copy and paste the link in your browser.
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Helping Your Child Transition after the Holidays

First off happy holidays and I hope that you and your family had a safe and blessed holiday.  With school starting on Monday here are some helpful pointers to help your child with a learning disability transition back into school.  There are also some additional pointers to help in future holidays.

1. Remind your child every couple of hours of what is going to happen tomorrow.  Tell them school is starting back up.  Ask them questions like; What do you have to do when you wake up?  What is your first class?  What bus do you ride home?  All of these will be reminders to students and will help them transition to the start of school.  One of the biggest issues with students with disabilities is their resistance to change, help make the change as easy as possible.
2. Set a time in the day to review some of the skills the child was working on before school ended.  Many students forget simple steps in math or facts about history, that if they had practiced for an hour or so a day, the steps would still be there and they would remember the facts needed for school.  
3. Remind the students of who their teachers are.
4. Go through safety procedures encase of an emergency. 
5. Have your child tell you the house phone number.

I hope these tips will help you.  As always leave a comment for a future post.

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Been A long Time

I have been off on my blog for quite sometime now.  I am hoping to start again, as I have had my personal life straitened out.  I would love to hear from all of you.  Please ask questions and offer suggestions for future posts!  I am going to try and grind this out and offer a chance to keep me financial sound for the future.  If I missed a question from before about IEP's or students with Special needs please let me know and I will do my best to answer them.

ESY

I struggle with the weekly task of qualifying a student for ESY (Extended School Year) on a weekly basis.  Will ESY benefit the student or do they not require ESY?  Some cases personally I do not think ESY benefits the students at all.  It is usually twice a week and the students do not get much out of it.  I personally think that the students benefit more from summer school, because it reteaches the student some concepts they did not master during the school year.  Now I do have very low students who I recommend for ESY, but that is mainly because I do not think they will get the support at home and they did not fail a class therefore would not qualify for summer school.

Who else has experienced positives and negatives in regards to ESY?