IEP Meetings and your Children

Good day all! How many of you include your child in their IEP meeting? Most of us don't. Does your child know that they even have an IEP? The answer again is not many. Many of us parents are so busy with work and other activities that when the yearly IEP meeting is upon us, we hurriedly head to the school to attend what is for most a review meeting and then we quickly sign the IEP and head back to work, or home. We need to STOP and think about what we are doing. The IEP is not ours, it is our child's INDIVIDUAL Education Plan. This plan sets the tone for how our child will experience his or hers education. The key to a successful IEP is to include the child. Discuss with them what an IEP is, what their accommodations are and what they need to do to succeed. Empower them. Let them control the meetings as they get older. This will allow them to see themselves as a leader in their education! Please visit this wonderful website about empowering children to be their own advocates:

www.imdetermined.org