By Kristin Stanberry
When you have your IEP meeting, the team at school will share all sorts of information about your child. But there are certain insights that only you can provide. And they are important to share with the team.
Rather than just talking about your observations or concerns, it can be helpful to come prepared with a written “parent report.” Creating one is a great way to document your child’s strengths, struggles and successes at school, at home and in the community. This is your chance to tell the team who your child is beyond her test scores and performance in school.
Your parent report isn’t an official document, so there’s no special format you need to follow. It can be as simple as a letter or a list. Here are some things you might want to include:
- How your child is doing. How do you think your is child doing academically and socially? What are your observations and concerns about what you’re seeing?
- What works at home. What learning strengths does your child show? What homework strategies and technology help your child most?
- Success outside of school. Share your child’s successes and strengths in extracurricular activities. What activities does she find interesting? How does she benefit from them?
- Behavior at home. What changes have you seen? Has your child become more responsible and respectful? Or have things gone in the opposite direction?
- What your child is saying. How does your child feel about school and learning? What brings feelings of success or failure? Do you hear self-confidence or frustration?
- Life after high school. Mention your child’s interests and goals for after high school. If your teen has a transition plan, let her take the lead on this.
- What you think of the IEP. How do your child’s progress and problems connect to her IEP goals? What new or revised goals do you recommend? How do you think the school can help your child?
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