Special Education ? Parents Guide to IEP for Learning Disabilities ...

For more years than we collectively like to acknowledge, we have advocated for thousands of students who have struggled with learning.

While we were successful at making a difference for many of your children, we always knew that there were many more parents who needed the assistance of an advocate to get the help they needed in the education arena.

As the Internet became a fixture in homes across the United States, we felt that the time had come for us to explore how to widen our ability to help you and your kids.

We know you will find the answers for many of your questions here, and that with your new understanding, you will be better able to advocate for your child?s much-deserved educational needs. You are invited to join us in our new endeavors to assist you with your child?s educational challenges.

"My wife and I would like to express our thanks and appreciation for the work Ailsa Wonnacott has done on behalf of our 16 year old son. Our son is both bipolar and severely ADHD. Both conditions have created big social and academic challenges for him in high school. But, in consultation with Ailsa at our home and on the phone, and with her participation in our latest meeting at the school, we are very happy with the direction we are going.

Ailsa is knowledgeable in mental health issues, school district matters, and the rights and needs of people with disabilities. She is a great advocate for our son. She is professional and is empathetic to the challenges he faces. I wish we had met her a long time ago, but now that we have, we are happy to have her in our support network.

"When you finally do get the confirmation that your 3 year old son is having a difficult time communicating and being understood, it is heartbreaking. Then you have to deal with the school.

I was overwhelmed and searched locally for help, but had little success. I called a friend 1000 miles away, and she gave me an advocate?s phone number. The advocate, Bev Jones, shared a ton of information, plus gave me a step-by-step plan of things to do to get the school district to listen, provide evaluations, and then give my son help. I decided to go to the meeting by myself to get the testing results. But I felt lost and outnumbered, and walked out crying. I called Bev again, and she suggested that I request another meeting; she would join by phone.

The next meeting was better, mostly because Bev was so helpful. She knew all the terminology and explained everything in detail. Suddenly, the team decided they needed an administrator to approve or deny the services we requested.

At the third meeting, which Bev attended by videoconference, we requested Extended School Year (ESY) therapy services. The district administrator stated that ESY was not a service that was provided in California. Bev politely read from the federal rulings regarding ESY and mentioned that any public school district nationwide that receives federal funds is subject to these rules. The administrator grew quite upset and stopped the meeting, saying that I would be notified of their decision later on. Bev told me not to worry and a week later, I received a call ? all the services were granted for the school year and the extended school year!

Since that time, I have learned much about being a good advocate for my child. Nonetheless, I have always had Bev attend the annual IEP meetings, either via teleconference or video conference.

My son is now in second grade and is doing grade level work with lots of help and services?thanks to an advocate!"

Ask The Advocates e-book will get you through a number of the obstacles on your way to helping your child overcome his or her learning challenges. After all, child advocacy is not a mystery, and it is entirely possible for you to effectively advocate for your child. But often a special education advocate can save you time and get your child services that you don?t even know exist.

My son is 7 years old and has ADHD. His teacher says that she will have to hold him back if he does not start paying attention. I am so frustrated with her calling to tell me this. I know he has these issues, but his teacher believes he is purposely not paying attention. He had the same behavioral problems at a previous school, but the teacher said that he just needed some ?one on one.? He passed there with flying colors! She said he was a wonderful student! Help please!

Here are some things to try. If you haven?t already done so, ask your son?s doctor to write a letter stating that your son has ADHD and how this affects him. If the ADHD behaviors are getting in the way at school, as you discovered last year, your son probably needs extra help. Last year?s teacher was willing to provide this; this year?s teacher and this new school may be willing to do so with written documentation from the doctor.

Next, write a list of everything the previous teacher said your son needed to pay attention and to be more successful in school. Do not just write that he needed ?one on one? help. Include what specifically the adult did during this ?one on one? time which worked for your son; you may need to contact the previous teacher to find this out. The good news is that if your son was a wonderful student in the past, he can be again with the right help . . .

"The difference between our son?s first and second initial special education eligibility meetings was like night and day. At the first meeting, it was as if we walked into a time warp and had no idea what was going to happen. My gut feeling was that what they were saying about our? Read?more?

Source: http://hotreviews.com/special-education-parents-guide-to-iep-for-learning-disabilities/

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