The Wrightslaw Way

A parent writes, The IEP has been ongoing for a year now. There have been endless problems:     -no response to requested evaluation    -IEP is still unsigned    -procedural errors by the team    -reevaluation committee met, the teacher was not there     -two new people attended the meeting, neither knew my child How […]

My daughter has pulmonary hypertension. Her cardiologist’s orders say no physical activity – “must be excused from PE.” The principal informed me that she would HAVE to participate in PE. When I disagreed, the principal accused me of being argumentative. What should I do? First, you need to document what happened in the meeting by […]

Things I have learned through the years that have helped me get a program to meet my children’s needs. 1.  Knowledge is power. I learned as much as I could about the law.  I used the internet, library and support groups.  There is a wealth of support groups online. Find one right for you. Use […]

Guest post from a grandparent advocate who says, “Excellent job again Wrightslaw! There is nothing like the power of getting organized!” Our school district knows that I keep records and am well-documented when advocating on behalf of my grandchild. The district’s ombudsman listens to me and treats me with respect. When I provided proper documentation […]

2011 Summer School Short Course Assignment #2: WRITE A LETTER Your assignment this week: Write a short, one page letter to the school to request an action. Before you write, answer these questions: Why am I writing? What is my purpose? What do I want? What am I trying to accomplish? We will use a […]

At Wrightslaw, we have always recommended creating a paper trail through documentation in letters. Many parents think you should send important letters to the school by certified mail.  This could have a negative impact on your relationship with school personnel. It may cause the recipient to feel defensive and mistrustful.  So how do you establish […]

A Guidance Counselor ignored our parental consent form and conducted some tests on our daughter against our written instructions, even though she also signed the form acknowledging our concern. Our parental control was totally ignored. This guidance counselor is listed as an IEP Team member, but my wife and I can not trust her anymore. […]

Preparing Documentation is Essential to Good Advocacy Your goal at an IEP meeting is to initiate or obtain additional special education and/or related services for your child. A successful outcome at an IEP meeting depends on the documentation you make available to the team. You can’t wait until the last minute to prepare documentation. Documenting […]