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Meet With the School
Step 3: Prepare Yourself
Come to the IEP meeting with the list of your child’s symptoms, as well as a list of interventions such as sitting the child closer to the teacher or instructions that you would like the school to provide.
Step 4: Set Goals for the Year
While at the IEP meeting, you should also work with the school to develop a list of specific, measurable, and achievable goals for the school year. These goals should be set to time limits: Johnny will improve his ability to respond to the teacher from 1 out of 10 times to 8 out of 10 times by the semester break; Johnny will reduce his interruptions from 10 times a day to 2 a day by month 3; Julie will be able to decode words at the 50th percentile as measured by the "Evaluation of Basic Skills."
Step 5: Get Specific
Be clear about the ways in which the school will teach your child to achieve the goals you've set together — and include them in the IEP. "Every misbehavior signifies the need for instruction," says education advocate Dixie Jordan. Have the school write into the IEP exactly how they'll teach Johnny to follow directions or stop interrupting. Which services will help Julie attain higher reading scores? If these strategies aren't written into the IEP, you can't enforce them.
Next: Check Their Track Record...
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