How Does a Diagnosis of Disability Affect My Child’s Eligibility For Special Education?

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Many parents are aware of their child’s diagnosis (or the symptoms of the diagnosis), but perhaps have never formally received a diagnosis for their child from a physician. Why is a diagnosis important? A child must have a diagnosis that fits within 13 categories of disability in order for that child to be eligible for […]

Evaluating a Child for Disability: The Wrong Way and the Right Way

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Article on the wrong way and right way to evaluate a child for a disability is available on Special-Ism.com website at this URL: http://special-ism.com/evaluating-a-child-for-disability-the-wrong-way-and-the-right-way/  

Tales from the Front – Actual (Illegal) Statements Made by School Personnel

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I did a seminar recently. My seminar was on what to expect at an IEP/504 meeting. Here are some of the comments I heard from parents spoken to them by school districts: “We are at our quota of eligible disabled students already. We can’t have more.” “Evaluations must be done in the summer time.” “Your […]

The Law on Independent Educational Evaluations (IEEs)

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Evaluations of your disabled child are critical to your child’s success in school and life.  If done properly, they can provide insights into services, therapies and accommodations that your child needs to access a “free appropriate public education” or FAPE.  But if not done properly, it can prevent your child from ever getting a proper […]

Pass the IEP, please!

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You remember at the dinner table (perhaps most notably the Thanksgiving Dinner table) when you would ask someone to pass something along?  Maybe it was the stuffing bowl; maybe it was the cranberry sauce; maybe it was the dinner rolls; or maybe it was the fruit cake (OK, I know it wasn’t the fruit cake […]

Playing (and Winning) the School District’s Game of Chicken

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[Appeared previously on Special Education Advisor blog] Probably the most frustrating part of being the parent of a child with a different ability[1] is the response from the very organization you hoped you could trust the most to do right by your child – your school district.  After all, teachers and administrators are trained to […]