What You Should be doing over the summer with your IEP

I will try to make this list short because after all it is summer break. Summer break is a good time to read over your child’s IEP and make sure you are ready for the beginning of the school year.

1. Make sure you understand the IEP.

Read over the IEP and make sure it is clear. The IEP should be clear on its face. You should understand what services and supports your child is receiving. You should be able to take your IEP to another district and the IEP should be clear enough that the new district can implement it. If the IEP is not clear, you should call an IEP to revise it to make it clear.

2. Review the goals.

You should read over the goals. Do they make sense? Are they measurable? Have they been attained already? Are they too hard? Too easy? Have you received a progress report? If so, review the progress in terms of the goals. If the goals need to be revised consider requesting an IEP to discuss them.

3. Has there been assessments in all areas of need?

The district is required to do an assessment for students in all their areas of need. The two most common assessments that districts fail to do is for behavior (functional behavior assessment) and assistive technology. If the student’s behavior is impeding the student’s ability to learn, then the district should do a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) to determine why the student is having the behaviors and how to reduce them. Assistive Technology (AT) should be discussed at every IEP according to the law. If you think AT could help your child, then an AT evaluation should be done. If your child needs an evaluation, then you should make a written request for a new evaluation.

4. Is your child getting all services needed?

In reviewing your child’s IEP and progress made over the last year do you think that your child might need more services? Does your child need more services in order to meet their goals? You should carefully consider whether adding more services will take away too much classroom time for your child. If you child needs more services you could request an IEP at the beginning of the school year to discuss those services. If those services are critical to your child, you might want to consider filing for due process.

5. Decide whether you should request an IEP meeting at the beginning of the school year.

In addition to yearly IEPs, a parent can request an IEP at any time. After you request an IEP the district has 30 days to hold the IEP meeting. If the IEP is not clear, you want to change the goals, or request new services, you should request an IEP meeting in writing. IEP meetings do not need to be confrontational. It should be a meeting where all parties discuss how things are going and how best to provide special education to your child.

6. Decide whether to file due process.

If you have already tried to resolve the issues above at an IEP meeting or the issues can’t be resolved in an IEP you should consider contacting a special education attorney to discuss whether you should file due process. Even though due process sounds like a very formal procedure, it is often a very effective way to resolve disagreements with the district outside an IEP.

7. Make an appointment to meet with your child’s teacher before the beginning of the school year.

It is always a good idea to open the lines of communication early with your child’s teacher. You can introduce yourself and the needs of your child at this meeting. You can discuss how you will communicate with the teacher during the school year and any other important information. Also, it never hurts to bring treats to the meeting to start the relationship off on a sweet note.