The Master of Deception
Solving Problems & Protecting Relationships
Draft IEPS, Special Ed Humor

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April 10, 2007

ISSN: 1538-3202
Issue: 386
Subscribers: 46,842

More Info From Wrightslaw

Doing Your Homework
Ask the Advocate
Parent Advocacy

IEPs
FAQs
Law Library
IDEA 2004
Yellow Pages for Kids
No Child Left Behind

Training Schedule

April 13-14: Nashua, NH - Two-Day Special Education Law and Advocacy Training

April 14: Knoxville/
E. Tenn
- IDEA 2004 & NCLB: What You Don't Know CAN Hurt You!
April 26: Russellville, AR - From Emotions to Advocacy Training
April 26: Jacksonville, FL - Special Education Law and Advocacy Training
May 9: Indiana, PA - Special Education Law and Advocacy Training
Yellow Pages for Kids
 Contact Info

Pete and Pam Wright
Wrightslaw & The Special Ed Advocate
P. O. Box 1008
Deltaville, VA 23043

Website

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Copyright © 2007, Peter W. D. Wright and Pamela Darr Wright. All rights reserved. Please do NOT reprint or host on your website without explicit permission.

At Wrightslaw, our mission is to help you gain the knowledge and skills you need to navigate the confusing, changing world of special education.


The Special Ed Advocate is the only weekly e-zine with accurate, reliable information about special education law, education law, and advocacy for children with disabilities.

Published continuously since April 1998, subscribers receive alerts about new decisions, events, and special offers on Wrightslaw publications and products. Sign up free today!
 

In This Issue:
Dealing with a Master of Deception: Homework Refusal & School Failure
How to Solve School Problems and Protect Parent-School Relationships
Draft IEPs: Are Schools Required to Provide Parents with a Copy?
2006 Tax Benefits for Parents of Children with Disabilities by Mike O'Connor, Esq.
Lighter Side of Special Education: My Law Practice by Aimee Gilman, Esq.
Poll Results: Eligibility Under IDEA
The Special Ed Advocate Do you know others who want to learn how to advocate for a child with a disability? Please forward this issue or the subscription page so they can learn about special education law and advocacy too. Newsletter Archives (1998-2006)

Dealing with a Master of Deception: Homework Refusal & Failure

"My son is a sophomore in high school. He is a master of deception. He says he has no homework. By the time I learn that he did, he has another "0." He is failing and won't graduate on time. I'm afraid he will drop out.

"Can I demand that the teachers give me his homework assignments? When I request this information, the teachers won't give it to me. I'm told that 'teachers are too busy.'"

What do you think?

Do parents have a right to demand that teachers provide a list of homework assignments? Will this solve the problem?

In Dealing with a Master of Deception: Homework Refusal & School Failure, Sue Heath analyzes this parent's concerns, identifies key issues, and offers strategies to resolve the problems.

Read articles about reading, No Child Left Behind, advocacy strategies, high-stakes testing, and retention by Sue in Doing Your Homework.

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How to Resolve Problems and Protect Parent-School Relationships

"Our seven-year old has autism. After his aide told us he has not received all the speech language and OT sessions called for in his IEP, we wrote letters demanding that the school make up the missing sessions."

"The teacher told the aide she cannot talk with us. Doesn't she have a right to communicate with us? Is there any law we can refer to?"

In How to Resolve Problems and Protect Parent-School Relationships, Pete and Pam Wright offer strategies to resolve problems by restructuring your relationships, learning effective advocacy skills, using strategies in letters, and learning to negotiate and persuade.

Learn why Pam says, "You need to view your relationship with the school as a marriage without the possibility of divorce." Read article.

More articles about effective parent advocacy.

More Frequently Asked Questions.

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Draft IEPs: Are Schools Required to Provide Parents with a Copy Before an IEP Meeting?

"I have a question about the recent poll results about draft IEPs.

You wrote: 'Fifty-two percent of you chose the answer 'Yes, but the IEP team needs to provide the parent with a copy before the IEP meeting' - the correct answer.

"I am not aware of any legal source that states that the parent has a right to a copy of the draft IEP ahead of time. Can you provide your authority?"

In our answer to this question about draft IEPs, we provide the authority for our answer: that schools provide parents with copies of draft IEPs well in advance of the IEP meeting. Read answer.

Learn more about IEPs.

Learn more about parental rights and procedural safeguards designed to protect the rights of children with disabilities and their parents.

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2006 Tax Benefits for Parents of Children with Disabilities

Tax day is nearly here. If you have a child with a disability - a severe learning disability (SLD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), AD/HD, or other physical, mental or emotional impairment - you may qualify for valuable tax benefits.

Did you know that "tuition costs for a special school that has a program designed to educate children with disabilities and amounts paid for a child’s tutoring by a teacher specially trained and qualified to deal with severe disabilities may be deducted"?

Did you know that "Special instruction or training or therapy, such as sign language instruction, speech therapy, and remedial reading instruction" may be deductible? Did you know that related books and materials can qualify for the medical expense deduction"?

In 2006 Tax Benefits for Parents of Children with Disabilities, parent attorney Mike O'Connor provides a summary of the most significant federal income tax benefits. Please print this article and provide your tax advisor with a copy.

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Lighter Side of Special Ed: My Law Practice by Aimee Gilman, Esq.

Aimee Gilman is an Ohio attorney who represents kids with disabilities. Aimee is also the parent of a child with a disability who has a quirky sense of humor.

Aimee shared her views about IEPs and IEP meetings in The Lighter Side of Special Education: The IEP.

"Your school district, in an ongoing effort to remind you of the incredibly small role moms and dads play in this process, will start by sending you an 'Invitation to attend your child's IEP meeting."

If you chuckled when you read The IEP, you'll enjoy Aimee's description of My Law Practice.

"Several years ago, I must have sustained a major head injury (so bad I can't remember it) because I came home one day and told my husband I wanted to open my own law practice.

"At the time, my husband thought this sounded like a good idea because he only hears little pieces of the things I tell him ("Honey, I'm…open…to…practice.") It came as a big surprise when he discovered that what we had previously considered our "supplemental income" became our "no income." Read article.

Poll Results: Eligibility Under IDEA

Last week, we asked readers to answer the following quick poll question: "Can a child who receives passing grades be eligible for special education services?"

 

The results from our most recent poll showed that our readers are on the ball when it comes to special education eligibility under IDEA.  By choosing "YES" to our latest quick poll question, 93% of you answered correctly.

 

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What People Are Saying About The Special Ed Advocate Newsletter

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Great Products From Wrightslaw

Wrightslaw: Special Education Law, 2nd Edition, by Pam and Pete Wright Wrightslaw: No Child Left Behind

Surviving Due Process: Stephen Jeffers v. School Board

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