The Wrightslaw Way

New Information – Live Feed Registration Option Now Available! $99 -Includes morning coffee and books. No breakfast or lunch served.  Details are available here! Did you know the peak color for fall leaves in Connecticut is estimated to be between October 5th and November 13th? So…check out this Wrightslaw Special Education Law and Advocacy Training […]

My child has a learning disability. Her Individual Education Plan (IEP) puts her in general education with accommodation. She also receives one hour of pullout reading services each day. She excels in this placement. The school wants to place her in a special education team-taught class because she has an IEP. I want her to […]

School districts track students that are classified with a disability. The committee tries to determine whether services are provided in district or better served out of district. Are there measurements that can be used to compare what is considered “best in class”? This is a new one. I have never heard that term used in […]

My child’s doctor recommended homebound instruction. The school said they had the authority to override that recommendation. Why won’t the school provide homebound services? Issues of homebound are determined in part by state law and state regulations, if any, on the subject. IDEA 2004 and the federal regulations provide no guidance on this issue. However, […]

I see the social aspect of inclusion as the priority over the educational aspect.  I have concerns about the inclusion “movement” disallowing for appropriate services, i.e. cognitively delayed students who would not be receiving remediation if placed in a regular classroom setting. I am concerned that we are no longer addressing the student’s unique needs […]

Success Story: How We Got an Appropriate Education and Avoided Due Process I wanted to let you know about the difference you are making in the lives of disabled children. After struggling with our school district for over a year to provide services to my disabled child without success, I knew I had to educate […]

A sped director told me some states were “minimum” FAPE states and some were “maximum” FAPE states.  Where can I find this concept in writing? There is no such concept as a minimum and maximum FAPE state.

I am a general education teacher. One of my students, who has an IEP, interrupts class several times a day.  It is not uncommon for him to blurt out on-  and off-topic comments, or start singing, or get up and leave the room. I have been told that there is nothing the school can do […]

My child has reading, speech and OT in her IEP.  How many times a month are the therapist’s “allowed” to miss a session? There is nothing in IDEA or the federal regulations about “missing services.” Here is a statement from a Related Services fact sheet from Families and Advocates Partnership for Education (FAPE) funded by […]

For Brian and me, the autistic behaviors of Jack, our now six year old son, first appeared at age 10 months. Nearly one year later, we finally received the diagnosis that I had feared: Jack was autistic. A mom of a child with autism shares her experiences and gives us 10 tips from a military […]