Parents are a child’s first and best advocate and are there for the long haul. As a parent, you are an expert on your child and it’s important that your voice is heard. Parents who learn good communication skills can be even more effective.
Parent and professional communication and effective partnerships do not “just happen.” It takes time, energy, and effort to build skills to communicate clearly and collaborate effectively. Becoming a more effective advocate by enhancing your communication skills can be a great benefit to your child’s education.
Being able to effectively communicate your child’s needs is another way for you to help your child develop and learn.
These are several resources from PACER Center available to prepare yourself for your child’s IEP meeting.
- Communication in The Special Education Process
- Communicate Using “Student Snapshot”
- Top 10 Tips: Ideas to Improve Parent-to-Professional Communication
- Use Questions to Find Answers
- How Can My Child Be Involved in the IEP Process?
- How You Can Help Your Child Learn to Be a Good Self-Advocate
- IEP Topics Michigan Alliance for Families
Parent Input at the IEP meeting
The Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance portion of the IEP is where parent input is documented. This is an important opportunity for parents to share information and concerns.
- Read more: PLAAFPP – Parent Input
Get and Stay Organized
Key to clear communication with your child’s teachers, therapists, doctors and nurses is keeping all your papers organized! Most parents find it very helpful to organize before it becomes a mountain of paperwork.
If a dispute ever comes up in the future, it will be very important for you to have established a paper trail – document your contact with the school – conversations, meetings and other events.
- Letter Writing and Documentation
- Prior Written Notice
- Parent Letter with Concerns for IEP Meeting
- Steps to Success: Communicating with Your Child’s School CADRE
- More on Dispute Resolution
- Self-Advocacy
Skills for Effective Parent Advocacy
Learn more:
- Find learning opportunities near you on the Michigan Alliance for Families calendar of events.
- Special Education Mediation Services (SEMS) offers training to learn collaborative communication and dispute resolution techniques that can help you be more effective in planning and decision making.
