Gearing up for Back to School

By Kim Knight, DSAA Board Member + mom to Max

Tomorrow is the first day of 2nd grade and if you ask Max, he will give you a huge smile and say “2nd grade!”  While this sounds easy and typical even for our other son Ben, it hasn’t been so easy with Max.  I can’t even count the number of people that have been involved since Max was born to get to this point.  Each teacher and therapist plays a small or huge part in going to 2nd grade.  He is ready, and his teachers are prepared for him!

Having a child with an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) in a public school does require some homework on the parent side.  You can’t just send your child to school and assume they are doing what is best for your child. I know this is sad, but it is the truth. 

As a parent, here are a few things I do during the school year:

• Presume competence with teachers and staff. I expect them to presume competence with Max, so I try to return that as well.

• Set up a pre-meeting with a new teacher.  This year the teachers actually asked me for a meeting… I call that a huge win!!

• Create a one-pager for all new staff for both of my kids. Use this template to make your own (copy and save the file, then make edits to the saved copy).

• Encourage your new teachers NOT to read the IEP or Eval until after the 1st or 2nd week of school.  While to most this may sound odd, I believe it gives the team a chance to know and learn Max outside of our eyes and his previous teachers’ eyes.  The new teachers may see different strengths and weaknesses.

• Request a 9-week team meeting to ensure placement is still meeting his needs. I also request a spring meeting to discuss the upcoming year. These are in addition to the formal IEP meeting.

• VOLUNTEER!!!  In the school or the class… GET IN THE BUILDING and BUILD RELATIONSHIPS.

• Celebrate World Down Syndrome Day on March 21st. How? DSAA makes it easy with these resources.

• Thank the teachers for anything and everything!

• Thank the administrators for anything and everything!

• Most importantly, review data and progress reports for growth and/ or regression and ask questions.

We always ask that others presume competence for our kids, so start the year off right and presume competence for our teachers. I do believe they want what is best for all kids.  Get in the school and start building relationships with teachers, administration, and the therapists.

Want more resources for back to school? Visit our Education Resources for a comprehensive list.