Parents & The IEP Process

The process of developing and implementing an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) for your child can be overwhelming and exhausting for you as parent or guardian of a child with special needs. What may seem evident and important to you may not register in the same light with administrators, teachers, and related service providers. This guide will help walk you through the basic steps of the IEP process - from referrals and IEP team participants to your rights and responsibilities as an advocate for your child's education.

IEP Referral Process 

The following steps occur to determine a child's need for special education services. As a parent, you may initiate the special education referral process at any point by contacting your child's school and speaking to their general education teacher or school administrator. You may present any documents, records, assessments, private evaluations, or any other information you have as part of your case to the school. Knowing your rights as a parent is essential to this process. Read below for more details about the steps that occur in an IEP referral process.

1. Problem Observed: Teachers or parents may observe that a child is struggling in a specific subject or across multiple content areas. They may note specific instances where the student is not doing well (i.e. testing or note-taking) or general behavior (i.e. student is easily distracted by classmates or student frequently leaves room after being asked to read out loud). They may collect student work samples, assessments, and other relevant data along the way. 
2. Informal Consultation for Ideas: Teachers may gather together to brainstorm ideas about how to better serve and assist a student who appears to be struggling in their class. They may consult other teacher's who interact with the student to see what strategies have worked for them or to bounce ideas off of one another to help generate a plan to implement in their class. Teachers may try these strategies informally in class. If these strategies are successful, the IEP referral process stops. 
3. Prereferral Team Evaluation: The purpose of this team is to determine the need for educational interventions to help a student who is struggling to succeed in school. The team develops ideas for intervention strategies to immediately assist teachers and therefore help students in a timely fashion.  A timeline is established for these strategies to hold teachers accountable for establishing a change. Parents, you must be notified in writing of the team's recommendation of intervention strategies and the reasoning behind implementing them. 
4. Intervention Implemented in General Education Class: Using the timeline established during the prereferral team evaluation, teachers can use the following intervention strategies in their class to assist struggling students: modifications and adaptations to the curriculum and instruction (differentiated instruction), changing the classroom environment (moving around desks for better access to materials),  or classroom management (assigning peer tutors to help struggling students). If, after the designated time, these intervention strategies are insufficient, then the process for educational evaluation will begin. If these strategies are successful, the process stops. 
5. Referral for Special Education: The special education referral process can be implemented by students, parents or educators. The school will have a designated referral process, forms and staff who are part of the proceedings. As a parent, any educational evaluations and/or placement in special education programs must be completed after your written consent. All information to you as a parent should be presented in your native language both verbally and in writing. You may ask questions, review your child's records and ask for them to be amended if you feel that the information is incorrect.
6. Educational Evaluation or Assessment: This portion of the IEP referral process is extremely important in determining your child's specific learning and functional needs. The evaluations given provide an extensive look at how your child learns best, their current level of academic and functional performance, and what their strengths and areas of need are across multiple contexts (academics, behavior, etc.). A school evaluation team is comprised of a school psychologist and other specialists as needed (i.e. a speech and language therapist if there is a suspected speech concern). Evaluations that take place at this time may include various physical examinations and developmental histories, academic, adaptive, and socio-emotional tests. Again, teachers are asked to observe the student throughout their day and make note of the student's strengths and needs areas. All testing must be completed in the student's native language and must take into consideration the student's cultural or ethnic background to accurately determine the student's present level of functioning. As a parent, it is important to point out if your student's native language or culture is different than the general school population in order for your child to be fairly assessed. You may request for a reevaluation whenever one is deemed necessary. 
7. Case Conference Committee: This team is composed of anyone who is concerned with a particular student. Parents, you have the right to be included in this group as a party that makes educational decisions for your child. Other team members include your child's general education teacher, the special education teacher, school psychologist and school administrators (i.e. principal or special education director). Other school personnel such as the school nurse, speech and language pathologist, occupational therapist, and physical therapist may be part of the team. This meeting is to determine whether or not your child is eligible for special education and related services. If it is determined that your child is eligible for special education and/or related services, then an IEP is developed. For more information on the IEP process, see the IEP Components information facts below.  You as a parent provide valuable insights to your child's learning, behavior, home and social life, as well as their wants, needs, and habits. You should feel comfortable expressing your concerns with your child's learning as well as advocating their strengths and achievements in and outside of the educational system. Ask clarifying questions, develop a plan that works for you and your child and work with teachers, service providers and administrators to develop the best possible plan for your child. During the meeting, a team member will be taking notes and summarizing information on a case conference summary form. You are required to receive a copy of this form at the end of the case conference committee. If your child does not qualify for special education services, they may still qualify for services under Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act. 
8. Receives Special Education and/or Related Services: After the development of your child's IEP, your child will begin to receive special education services as outlined in their IEP. For more details about what an IEP covers, see below. This may include related services like speech therapy or occupational therapy. Related service providers are here to provide your child with another outlet of support within the school system. They work with you, your child's teachers and school administrators to develop an appropriate plan of action and measurable objectives in accordance to your child's IEP goals. 

IEP Team Participants 

• Special Education Teacher: The special education teacher provides insights and strategies on how to best assist your child with their special education services. They work closely with the general education teacher to develop a plan of action to aide your child in a way that works best for you as a family. 
• General Education Teacher: The general education teacher observes and notes your child's needs, strengths, and is motivated to provide different intervention strategies as needed to assist with your child's learning. 
• Parents/Guardians of Child: You as a parent have the right to be present at all IEP team meetings and annual reviews. You are crucial to your child's success in and out of school and have a wider view of what works best for your child. With patience, communication, and clear expectations, a succinct plan of action can be developed between you and school personnel to best serve your child. Due process is always available to you as a parent to resolve any concerns, disputes or changes in your child's special education services or education. 
• School Administrator/LEA (Local Education Representative): The school administrator or a LEA will also be present at the IEP team meeting. They are aware of the IEP guidelines, state rule and regulations, and provide a clear timeline of events that need to take place to help the team be successful. 
• Related Service Providers: If your child may require related services such as occupational therapy or counseling, these related service providers may be present at the IEP team meeting. If it is recommended that your child receive related services, details on the implementation, duration, and measurable goals for each related service will be provided in the IEP. 

IEP Components 

An IEP is written during the case conference committee step of the IEP referral process when it is determined that a child is eligible for special education services. Here are some of the major components of an IEP: 

• Student's current level of academic achievement & functional performance: This is used to create measurable goals for the upcoming year that suit your child's both functional and academic specific needs. Knowing where they currently stand gives educators a way to evaluate them throughout the year and see progress or regression by the next IEP meeting. 
• Measurable annual goals and short term objectives (functional & academic): This is based on what the case committee has determined your child should accomplish within the year. Annual goals may include academic goals such as reading grade-level texts or behavior goals like decreasing the frequency of elopement over the school day. These goals are measurable, positive and can be evaluated throughout the year. Goals may include life-skills (like being able to manage their own belongings in school or order food from a local restaurant) and involve looking at your child's current and long-term needs. Parents may suggest goals that they would like to see worked on in school that may help assist at home (such as organizational skills, managing personal technology, asking for help if frustrated). Short term objectives specify the steps needed to take in order to reach an annual objective. They are often scaffolded and broken down into measurable pieces that educators can implement in order to achieve parts of the objective. They generally have specific conditions, behavior and criteria in order to be evaluated and mastered. 
• Short-term objectives for students who take alternative assessments: Short term goals, again, are usually scaffolded and are a way to show progress on specific learning objectives for students who take alternative assessments. This may range from simple letter and number identification to the ability to sit in a room for a period of time in order to be assessed. 
• Statement of special & related services and program modifications to be provided as support for the student: Measurable goals for special education and related services will be outlined in your child's IEP. Teachers and related service providers will provide details in how they will modify and assist your child in specific education areas (i.e. reading, language, math problem solving). Related service providers often compose weekly treatment notes as a way to document your child's progress and evaluate them on their IEP goals. 
• Statement of individual modifications in state or districtwide assessment procedures: If a child receives testing accommodations such as a human reader, scribe, AT (assistive technology) or any other testing modification, it will be detailed and outlined in this portion of their IEP. Parents are encouraged to research and ask questions about what accommodations and modifications may benefit their child in all testing or assessment situations they may encounter throughout the school year. 
• If applicable, a statement of why a child cannot participate in state or districtwide assessment if alternative assessment is recommended 
• Start dates of related services as well as duration & frequency of services: If your child receives related services as part of their IEP, the duration and frequency of all types of related service will be listed in their IEP. Again, related service providers will have annual and short-term objectives to assist your child their specific area (i.e. for speech and language, a short-term goal may be for a student to independently request to use a preferred item without prompting with the long term goal of eventual self-advocacy). 
• Statement of transition services for all students age 16 and older, including post-secondary goals & transition services needed to meet goals: The case committee may discuss and determine your child's educational, vocational, or employment training needs. Parents can research and suggest vocational training opportunities and may ask for the IEP team to create measurable goals for transitioning their child out of the public education system if it is determined that their child may require continual adult services after completing high-school. 
• Statement of how annual goals will be measured, how parents will be informed, and how progress will be monitored: This is perhaps the most important part of the IEP process. It lays out in specific language how educators will go about reaching your child's educational goals set forth in the IEP. It will include the various steps, modifications, and scaffolding that may be needed to help your child reach both their short term and long term objectives. Your input as a parent is essential in making the home-school portion of this part of the IEP work. If part of the IEP is a behavior contract that involves at home monitoring, you are equally responsible in assisting your child's teacher in fulfilling the contract at home to show progress or demonstrate the need to modify part of this objective. Plans for communication between home and school will also be outlined (i.e. weekly reports, daily communication logs, monthly parent-teacher meetings, etc). You have the right to ask for what you feel is best for your family and child to help them succeed in and out of school. 
• Annual Reviews: IEP annual reviews are completed each year as a way to monitor a student's progress and modify/amend parts of their IEP. Again, you as a parent have the legal right to attend IEP annual reviews as part of the IEP team. Changes in your child's educational placement may be made based on the annual IEP review. After three years, there is a reevaluation process to determine if your child is still eligible for special education. 

(Mastropieri 37)

Autism Fact Sheet

Peer Tutors in Our Community 
In class, our students are learning about disabilities and how we can be superior peer leaders to those around us in the community that may have these types of disability. Our first Disability Fact Sheet is on Autism. Let's take a look and see what we can learn!

IDEA Definition
Autism means a developmental disability significantly affecting verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, generally evident before age three, that adversely affects a child's educational performance. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engagement in repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory experiences.
Source: http://idea.ed.gov/explore/view/p/,root,regs,300,A,300%252E8,


Characteristics of Autism
As we have learned about in class, some characteristics of a disability can be physical, mental or emotional. Here are some traits of people with autism: 

• Social interaction difficulties: People on the autism spectrum have a difficulty engaging in social behaviors with those around them. This may be indicated by their inability to interpret 'typical' social situations and behaviors. For neurotypical people, social cues, such as tone of voice, gestures and facial expressions, can help determine the meaning of a social situation. People with autism may not understand these often subtle 'clues', which makes the world a confusing place for them. Other social interaction difficulties come in regulating emotion or understanding things from another point of view, all of which can result in maladaptive behavior such as outbursts or self-injurious behavior. 
• Communication challenges: Many young children with autism are delayed in their communication skills. Typically developing children babble and reject things by their first birthday, whereas children on the autism spectrum may regress or are delayed in their language development until later in life. Children and adults with autism can use a variety of language supports to aide in their language acquisition. Sign language, AAC devices (Augmentative and Alternative Communication), visual cues (i.e. PECS), or other electronic word-processors. Echolalia is common with autism where individuals will repeat words or phrases over and over. Again, social cues and body language that occur when conversing with others may inhibit people with autism in communicating. Remembering that they might need more time to process what you are saying and 'hints' to what the topic is (i.e. "We were talking about sports. What is your favorite game?") may help them carry on a productive two-way conversation with those around them. 
• Repetitive behavior: People with autism commonly engage in some sort of repetitive behavior or restrict their range of activities (i.e. only going to the same place for lunch, sitting in the same booth every time). Physical repetitive behaviors may include hand flapping, jumping, rearranging objects, and repeating sounds or words. Some people with autism engage in these behaviors as a form of self-stimulating ('stimming'), which may provide a sense of order and calm to their life. If their routines or 'typical' activities are altered, this may lead to disruptive and anxiety-inducing situations. People with autism need schedules and an established routine to help deter outbursts.

Source: https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/symptoms

Prevalence of Autism

According to the CDC, 1 out of 68 children have been identified with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Let's take a closer look at the most recent statistics:

• ASD occurs in all ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic groups. 
• ASD is five times more common among male children (1 in 42) to female children (1 in 189). 
• Parents with a child with autism are 2-18% more likely to have a second child who is affected. 
• 46% of children with autism have an above average intellectual disability. 
• 83% of children diagnosed with ASD commonly have a co-occurrence of a developmental diagnosis. 

Source: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html

Impacts of Autism on a Student's Learning 

• Communication: Because of various communication needs, students with autism may struggle in communicating their needs, feelings, or opinions about certain lessons or topics. They may not be able to follow along with peer's conversations or catch the social cues that are involved in group chats. Similarly, their receptive communication skills may require peers or instructors to slow down their directions, repeat certain phrases or provide visual cues for these learners. 
• Sensory Processing: Classroom sounds, smells, layout, and noise all contribute to a student's ability to learn. If a student with autism has sensory needs, educators may need to adjust their classroom elements to help ensure their students success. Children who are hypersensative or hyposensative may react differently to activities that require sensory input such as physical games or loud music. 
• Imaginative or creative play: Stemming from the same idea of social interaction, children with ASD may struggle with engaging in imaginative or creative play. Whether writing creatively or demonstrating parts of a story, students must be able to think outside of the box and sequence activities to knit a story together. People with ASD are often very literal and do not understand the variances required for imaginative or creative play. These are skills that may need to be taught over time. 
• Social Interaction: Students with ASD may struggle relating to their peers or the community in social situations. They have a harder time understanding gestures, facial expressions, verbal cues and other social behaviors. This may mean that their own behavior appears 'off'' or non-typical in these situations. They may become frustrated and have outbursts resulting in physical behaviors. 

Source: http://www.autism-help.org/autism-education-school-effects.htm

Classroom Accommodations 

There are many aspects of a classroom and learning environment that can be adapted in the classroom to assist students with ASD. Here are some of the ones we brainstormed in class: 

• Visual Cues: Creating a visual schedule, map or display of information that students with ASD can reference for easy and consistent communication of ideas and changes. Color coding different subjects may help with organization, as well as labeling important objects such as "Homework Bin" around the room can give clues to students as to where to put things without having to be verbally prompted. 
• Social Stories: Social stories are a great way to introduce new social behaviors to students with ASD. Topics for these stories could include how to ask a peer about their day or what to do in a grocery store. Pictures and appropriate language for the students age and ability can be used to customize the social story to fit their needs. 
• Sensory Breaks: For children with ASD who need sensory integration in order to be successful, they may need periodic breaks throughout the day to move around or decompress from all the sights, noises, and activities of the classroom. Sometimes, small 'fidgets' like squishy balls are easily kept in desks to provide instant sensory input. Other times a break from the classroom and change of environment can help learners re-focus on the task at hand. 
• Scaffolding skills, manipulatives and modifying curriculum: Generalization is hard for students with ASD so it is helpful to present material in a variety of ways using a variety of tools, manipulatives and scaffolding skills. Use of technology in the classroom can aide teachers when presenting materials. Students can use models, whiteboards, tablets or other electronic devices to demonstrate skills across a range of materials. Teachers should check in with ASD students frequently to see where they are in terms of mastering skills and adapt or correct learning as needed. 

How can peer leaders help students with Autism? 

Peer leaders in the community can help students with autism by being patient and kind when they are in a class with a student with ASD. They can recognize that students with ASD may not always understand what they are saying and may need extra time to process conversations. Peer leaders can set a good example by following directions and demonstrating proper school behavior for ASD students to learn. Peer leaders do not bully other students or get them to do things that they may not want to do themselves. Peer leaders can ask teachers for advice on how to create a friendly and encouraging classroom environment for all learners and above all else, show kindness to all those in our community. 

Film/Video Clips

Hole's Movie Trailer

Holes - Trailer. (2012, May 18). Retrieved October 16, 2014, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEvLRtDKT0c&feature=youtu.be

This is the official Disney movie trailer for the film “Holes”. The clip is under three minutes in length and shows the main characters in the story and various settings where the film takes place. The clip teases the audience with some background information about the misfortune of the main character, Stanley Yelnats, and his detainment at the juvenile detention center called Camp Green Lake. Additionally, there are some flashbacks to the legend of Camp Green Lake and Stanley’s family, who are said to be under a 150-year-old curse. Students will watch this trailer before reading the book to complete a double journal entry about what they think the book will be about. While reading the book, they will fill out the second part of the journal entry. Finally, they will refer to those initial notes when they read a professional review of the movie, and then again when writing their own movie and book review.




Disney's Paul Bunyan


Paul Bunyan [Motion picture]. (1958). Buena Vista. Retrieved October 16, 2014 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uPt822HC5w

This Disney animated classic of Paul Bunyan, produced by Buena Vista in 1958 is 17 minutes long and can be accessed via YouTube. The video clip includes music, a narrated storyline, and different examples of Paul Bunyan’s wild adventures in the west with Babe the Blue Ox. Students will view this video after reading the book Paul Bunyan’s Sweetheart and discussing what the characteristics of a folktale are and how they can be seen in various texts, including the unit novel. Students will take notes using a movie graphic organizer and discuss in small groups the different ways the stories about Paul Bunyan were presented in the movie. They will also discuss aspects of folktales that work well in film versus books and take notes that they will use to create their own folktale at the end of the unit.

Websites

Scholastic.com's Interactive Holes Website

Holes by Louis Sachar | Scholastic.com. (2014, January 1). Retrieved October 16, 2014, from http://www.scholastic.com/holes


Children’s book publishing company Scholastic has created an interactive website for the book Holes. The website features games with book characters and plot lines, movie tie-ins and pictures, author information, and even an recipe for a important food in the book. Students will utilize this website throughout the unit for a multimedia, multimodal incorporation of the book. It can be used as a ‘fun’ way to interact with text for readers with multiple intelligences. Students can mimic the games on the website, like the matching game, to create their own game based off of a character, plot line, or legend mentioned in the novel. This website gives ample opportunities to teach Internet safety and have guided practice on how to use a website for fun and learning.

American Folklore 

Paul Bunyan. (2014, June 11). Retrieved October 18, 2014, from http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/paul-bunyan/

American Folklore is a folklore website created by author S. E. Schlosser of the Spooky Series. This particular section of the website focuses on Paul Bunyan and gives seven brief tales about Paul Bunyan and his famous traveling companion, Babe the Blue Ox. The stories are short and are excellent examples of the characteristics of folktales (i.e. nature, something magical happens, animals as characters). Students can utilize this website when researching ideas for their own folktale. They will have already read one Paul Bunyan story with the class and discussed the elements of a folktale. They can use the website to look up other types of famous folktale characters and storylines.

Periodical/Journal Articles

On the Trail of Paul Bunyan

Edmonds, M. (2008). On the Trail of Paul Bunyan. Wisconsin Magazine Of History, 91(4), 2-15.


Published quarterly by the Wisconsin Historical Society, the Wisconsin Magazine of History is a reliable source of information about the state’s people, landmarks, culture, and local legends, such as Paul Bunyan. This article, “On the Trail of Paul Bunyan”, is rich with vibrant depictions of Paul Bunyan and the people who first wrote about him many years ago. Details of oral folklore are explained as well as how media, such as advertising, was used to transmit the story years later for newer generations. Students will close read the article and take notes about how legends are used in everyday life (movies, modern novels such as Holes, etc). Students will complete graphic organizers relating this article back to the children’s book about Paul Bunyan they have previously read. They will also use the article as another example in what to include in the folktale they will be writing and illustrating throughout the unit.

Holes Film Review

Scott, A. (2003, April 8). Holes (2003) FILM REVIEW; Not Just for Children, a Suspenseful Allegory of Greed, Fate and Racism. The New York Times. Retrieved October 16, 2014, from http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9B0CEFD7163AF93BA25757C0A9659C8B63

This is a NewYork Times movie review of the film “Holes”, an adaptation of the book Holes by Louis Sachar. It gives background information about the novel’s author, who wrote the film’s screenplay, as well as a detailed summary of the movie and it’s infamy among children. Though it is a more advanced piece of text for many average readers in the class, the students will use a movie review graphic organizer to dissect parts of the review (identifying the 5 W’s, summary of movie, opinion, etc). By the end of the unit, students will have watched the entire movie and will use this review as an example on how to write their own movie review, focusing on how it is similar or dissimilar from the original text.

Trade Books

The Lion & The Mouse

Pinkney, J. (2009). The Lion & The Mouse. New York, New York: Little, Brown and Books for Young Readers.


Winner of the 2010 Caldecott Metal, The Lion & the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney is a retelling of Aesop’s classic fable. Heavily illustrated with little to no text on each page, the book allows readers to take an alternative look at the seemingly ferocious lion and his prey, a timid mouse. Students of all reading abilities will be able to access the story because of the book’s low Lexile level and visually rich presentation. After reading the book with the class, students will work in small groups to take notes about what they think the story means and what stylistic and moral traits from the book are transferable to the characters and stories they are learning about in class’s unit novel, Holes.


Paul Bunyan's Sweetheart

Lorbiecki, M., & Graef, R. (2007). Paul Bunyan's Sweetheart. Chelsea, MI: Sleeping Bear Press.

Written by award-winning author Marybeth Lorbieck and part of Bank Street College of Education’s Best Book of the Year list, Paul Bunyan’s Sweetheart tells the story of the legendary lumberjack’s first love, Lucette. In typical folktale fashion, the two larger-than-life characters solve some big problems out in the woods, teaching children the history of Paul Bunyan with a modern twist. Students will access prior knowledge about folktales, using their unit novel and other in-class texts, to discuss the characteristics of these stories before reading this book. The book will be read together in class and then discussed in pairs, focusing on the elements of the story, characters, and lessons learned. The book will serve as a model, both visually and textually, for the student’s to create their own folktale by the end of the unit.

Introduction to Holes Novel Unit

            

In this novel unit, 7^th grade standard English and Language Arts students will be reading Holes by Louis Sachar. The book tells the story of Stanley Yelnats and his adventures at a juvenile detention center called Camp Green Lake. Once a thriving lakeside town, the camp is now home to quite a few holes, some yellow-spotted lizards, and a wild-west folktale that is almost too crazy to believe. There is also a legend about Stanley’s own family, which readers come to discover is the key to unlocking the mystery of Camp Green Lake.

Cover of Holes by Louis Sachar

The themes and topics highlighted in the unit will center on the book’s core ideas: family, legends and folktales, redemption, and friendship. An important aspect to the entire unit is media literacy. The book was made into a popular movie in 2003 and students will learn to compare and contrast what they see in movies to what a book actually says. Another important topic that will engage students is the understanding about folktales and legends. Average ability students will dissect lower level folktales using picture books in order to identify characteristics of folktales and legends. After reading a picture book about Paul Bunyan, students will research the legendary lumberjack to find that sometimes folktales are rooted in some truths behind an areas local culture and history. Students of all abilities will then go on to create their own folktale for a younger class with an opportunity for differentiation and multimedia incorporation.