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The day I finally got an Individualized Education Program (IEP), I was in my junior year of high school. Now, I understand that when people think of a student who has an IEP, they usually think of a young child in elementary school. Unfortunately, for me, that wasn’t the case. For many years, my family and I tried to figure out my diagnosis and get me an IEP, but this process took longer than anyone could have imagined. After many visits to the neuropsychologist, I was finally diagnosed with dyslexia, AD/HD and auditory processing disorder.

We as parents spend a lot of time advocating for our children when they are young. However, there comes a time when our children become older and they have to learn how to advocate for themselves; knowing when the time is right will depend on your child. If your child is still attending elementary school, they are most likely NOT mature enough to participate. For those of you who have children in middle school, now is the time to think about the prospect of someday having your child attend their own IEP meeting.

No one wants the words “post-traumatic stress disorder” and “children” to appear in the same sentence. But recent events like the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting are reminders that children as well as adults can be exposed to events that cause this debilitating but highly treatable mental illness. Previous posts in this series explained why I advocate for children with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), explored 5 myths and misconceptions about PTSD in children, and defined both trauma and PTSD from a child’s point of view.

West Seneca, N.Y. — In an elementary school hallway, a teacher takes her second-graders to the library, leading a single-file line of giggling boys and girls that's perfectly ordinary until you get to a sleek white robot with a video screen showing the face of a smiling, chubby-cheeked boy.Devon Carrow's life-threatening allergies don't allow him to go to school. But the 4-foot-tall robot with a wireless video hookup gives him the school experience remotely, allowing him to participate in class, stroll through the hallways, hang out at recess and even take to the auditorium stage when there's a show.

Although there are a variety of school-based services available for children with learning, emotional, and social disabilities, one critical need often goes unfulfilled: providing guidance and strategies that instill self-advocacy.       Most students have only a superficial notion of the reasons they receive these special accommodations, and many children are completely uninformed. Resource teachers and specialists do not generally have the authority to label and enlighten students about their disabilities, the foundation for building self-advocacy. If children are to learn how to become better consumers of educational resources, especially as they grow older, someone must take the lead.      Parents of children with disabilities can fill this role by doing the following: Introduce children’s diagnoses to them in elementary school so that they can make sense out of their struggles Use a matter-of-fact tone of voice when explaining to children that they learn/behave/relate differently from other students and, therefore, need extra help to ensure that they can succeed just like their classmates Don’t leave out the disability label—such as writing disability, ADHD, or Aspergers Syndrome—since labels are a reality of their educational life Emphasize that the teachers and special staff at school who help them will be aware of this label and prepared to help in certain ways to make school a fairer place for them to learn and grow      It’s important to review with children the ways in which their school must provide special help and services. Emphasize that these accommodations are rules the school must follow. “You have the responsibility to do your best job, and teachers must follow the learning/behavior/friendship helping rules that make things fair for you,” is one way to put it. Explain how extra time on assessments, decreased homework, or social skills groups are examples of the helping rules that schools must follow. Discuss how there is a written promise called the individualized education plan (IEP), which includes all the helping rules and makes all of this clear.      Find child-friendly resources—such as books, websites, and videos—that explain in detail their specific disability and the ways other children have learned to cope and achieve despite these limitations. Use these materials as a springboard for deeper discussion about past times when their disability created significant stress or barriers to success. Reassure them that this was before their problem was known and that there is so much that can be done to build a plan for success now that it has been identified.      Point out that one of their most important responsibilities is to be able to discuss their disability with teachers and ask for extra help and accommodation when struggles are too great. Make sure that these discussions take place before middle school, when developmental factors make it harder to get such discussions started. Ensure that they know what practical steps are in their IEP at each grade so that they can respectfully remind teaching staff if necessary.      Having a disability is like having to wear glasses; students with glasses have accepted this fact as necessary to seeing clearly.

When Lara Duranti's husband Anthony was transferred to Malmstrom Air Force Base from Colorado this time two years ago, she was on the phone immediately with the school district working to make sure that when her special needs daughter enrolled at Loy Elementary, she wouldn't fall behind.

A yearlong student-teaching model being used on a limited basis at the University of South Dakota is showing how more classroom exposure helps to better prepare future teachers.This fall, using a $4 million grant from the St. Paul-based Bush Foundation, USD began piloting a full-year residency for teaching candidates. Ten senior education majors have spent the school year so far in classrooms at Lowell, Harvey Dunn and Anne Sullivan elementaries in Sioux Falls.

Click here to register and get more information!What:Free training for general and special educators, paraprofessionals, agency personnel, parents andothers who work with elementary age children.Any reading program can be “powered up” when delivered with effective instructional techniques. Participants will review the “Big Five” strands of reading instruction with a particular focus on phonological awareness and phonics. They will learn and practice evidence-based, explicit teaching techniques, practice, and activities that can increase student learning whether used with large groups, small groups or individual students.When and Where:8:30 AM - 3:00 PM MountainDecember 7th, 2011 - Great Falls, MT - Hampton InnDecember 8th, 2011 - Havre, MT - Fifth Ave Christian ChurchContact:Aileen CouchPhone: (406) 265-4356 ext. 322Email: cspd@havre.k12.mt.us

Students with learning differences are twice as likely as their peers to drop out of high school, according to the National Center for Learning Disabilities. Betty Ann Bowser visited an elementary school that practices early intervention -- engaging students with technology and art to improve their chances of earning a diploma.

We’re pleased to share this video blog from Friends of Quinn, an online community that offers resources and support for young adults with LD and the people who love them. This video features Connor, a young web development manager in Colorado who was diagnosed with dyslexia in elementary school. Connor, along with his parents, share how dyslexia affected his ability to read and write as a young child. Despite his challenges, Connor has always worked hard and learned how to cope with his learning disability eventually finding success as a young adult. Watch his inspiring story below.

The U.S. Department of Education has proposed regulations, published today, to transition away from the so-called "2 percent rule," thus emphasizing the Department’s commitment to holding all students to high standards that better prepare them for college and career. Under the existing regulations, States have been allowed to develop alternate assessments aligned to modified academic achievement standards (AA-MAAS) for some students with disabilities and use the results of those assessments for accountability purposes under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. In making accountability determinations, States currently may count as proficient scores for up to 2 percent of students in the grades assessed using the alternate assessments based on modified academic achievement standards.

A new clinic inside Orchard Elementary that promises to make health care more convenient for its students and families is now enrolling patients, the first of its kind to open in Billings and only the third in the state.

Click here to download the full brochure (PDF) Autism Trainings:   Discipline for the Elementary Age Child on the Spectrum, Monday, Aug 26 @ 4:30-7pm (Free - 2 OPI credits)  Preventing and Managing Challenging Behaviors,  Tuesday, Aug 27 @ 9-4pm ($35 with 6 OPI credits)  Building Friendship Skills and Friendships with Classmates, Wednesday, Aug 28 @ 9-4pm ($35 with 6 OPI credits)  Increasing the Odds for a Successful Transition to Middle School, Thursday, Aug 29 @ 9-4pm ($35 with 6 OPI credits) 

When: June 24, 2010 Where: Paxson Elementary 101 Evans Street Missoula, MT 59801 What: Come join us for our first weekly playgroup. The playground has nice new play equipment and is fenced (no gates though). This will be a great time for kids to get outside and move with friends. Siblings, family and friends are welcome! Contact MT CAAN at mtcaan@gmail.com with questions.

Welcome to Montana Digital Academy! MTDA provides innovative online coursework to Montana's K-12 students 24 hours a day 7 days a week. This fall, MTDA will offer 43 high school online courses ranging from core subject areas to world languages and unique electives taught by Montana-licensed teachers. Courses are delivered via the Internet and available to students throughout the state. In the future, coursework will be available for middle and elementary students. For the 2010-2011 school year, courses will be offered at no cost.

When/Where: October 4, 2010 Fifth Avenue Christian Church Havre, MT October 5, 2010 Hampton Inn Great Falls, MT Free Training For: Elementary and middle school teachers Special education teachers Therapists Administrators Reading teachers Paraprofessionals Parents. The purpose of this Level II professional development is to: Focus on specifics in instructional practices for mathematics; evaluating and enhancing mathematics curricula to meet the needs of learners; progress monitoring (National Council of Teachers of Math Big Ideas Probe). Advice for diagnostic throughout the school year using Curriculum Based Measurements and Mathematics Diagnostic Assessment. Differentiating math for students with diverse levels of mathematical competency by using data and key ideas for differentiated instruction. Action goals/plans for follow up using Video-Conference Sessions.

Teachers at one of Denver's poorest schools have discovered a key to improving student achievement that's as easy as stepping out the door. High-performing schools in affluent neighborhoods are usually buzzing with parents — moms and dads volunteering, chauffeuring or helping out in classrooms. But at schools in high-poverty neighborhoods, the opposite tends to occur — many of them have little to no parental engagement. Indeed, teachers rarely see a parent in the building unless a kid is in trouble. That's why Fairview Elementary teachers are going to the families. Every year, educators try to visit the homes of every child in the school — getting to know the families and discovering more about their students.

Click here to download the full brochure with registration form (PDF) When: February 2, 2010 Where: Fifth Avenue Christian Church Havre, MT What: Educators everywhere can agree that students need to master a core body of personal skills and competencies thereby positively impacting their school and community, actively engaging in their education. Participants will learn strategies for moving schools from operating in a 20th Century paradigm to creating a model that reflects our dynamic 21st Century, interconnected world. FREE TRAINING FOR: Elementary middle school and high school teachers special education teachers administrators paraprofessionals and parents.