ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Preparing for an IEP

Updated on March 23, 2012


There are several things that parents should and should not do when attending an IEP meeting for their child. First and foremost parents need to come prepared, being forearmed with information is in the child’s best interest. Parents should not come into the meeting focused on what they want for their child; rather they should have suggestions of what they think their child needs in order to be successful at school. Parents should have their focus on what the professionals are recommending be done for their child, because these are the things that the school will most likely follow through on, as there is a professional recommendation rather than just a parents say so. This is not to say that a parent should not have their own ideas to suggest and work into the professional recommendations though. Be an active part of the meeting; ask questions and give feedback! Lastly, a parent should not have a closed mind when attending an IEP, they need to be open minded so that they can not only be receptive to feedback but so that they can be a part of coming up with a workable plan that is in their child’s best interest.

The IEP and initial evaluation can be a long and stressful process. Parents are their childs best advocate, and this means that the parent needs to be involved in the process every step of the way. You know your child best, so while an evaluation is great your input is even better! Try to communicate with the school in writing as much as possible, so that there is a paper trail in case there is ever a question or doubt about what has transpired. When communication must take place via another method, keep track of it; write down the who, what and when. Be pushy! Sometimes schools will be slow to react, you need to be persistent. Don’t wait for the school to try to make changes. Do your homework and try different things, that way when you have your IEP meeting you can tell the evaluating team what you have already tried.

Depending on what your concerns for your child are, there are many things you can try on your own prior to the IEP meeting. There are several resources available through the internet, public library or a local or online bookstore. Some of the books that I found useful are: Raising a Sensory Smart Child by Biel and Peske, Steps to Independence by Baker and Brightman and A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children by Webb, Gore, Amend and DeVries. Many online book retailers will let you have a small online preview before you purchase, or go to your local book store when you have some time on your hand and sit down and read through a few until you find the right one for you. Remember, this is for your child and no one is going to invest more time and effort than you.

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)