Deaf Parenting - An Individual Education Plan (IEP) To Effectively Meet Educational Needs

It is important for parents of deaf and other special needs children to understand what an Individual Education Plan is and how to ensure your child's education needs are being met in his or her IEP.

In this article, I will discuss:

What is an IEP

Deaf Parenting - An Individual Education Plan (IEP) To Effectively Meet Educational Needs

Give tips for having an effective IEP that meets your child's educational needs

An IEP is a document that details the special needs services for special needs students. The IEP includes any modifications that are required in the classroom and any additional special programs or services. In the USA an IEP is mandated by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA 2004). The IEP will address your child's educational needs, and contain specific, measurable short term and annual goals for each of those needs.

This written statement is developed by your child's teachers, and is reviewed and agreed to by your child's special needs education funding organization and you, the parents. The IEP describes the goals the team sets for your child during the school year, as well as any special support needed to help your child achieve his or her educational goals.

In our case with our deaf son, Larry, we lived in Marlboro, MA and Larry attended school at The Learning Center for Deaf Children in Framingham, MA. The town of Marlboro funded the cost of his education. So we dealt with the special needs education supervisor in Marlboro and Larry's teachers in Framingham.

The IEP meeting is usually attended by the child's classroom teacher, the child's department supervisor, the funding special needs education supervisor and the parents.

The IEP document can be very daunting lots of pages with a lot of official sounding documentation.

Here are tips based on our experience on ensuring your child has an effective IEP that meets his or her educational needs:

Tip#1: You as parents need to be proactive and take an active role in developing the goals for your child's IEP. You need to have regular interactions with your child's teachers and school supervisors to understand what your child is being taught, how your child is progressing and what your child will be taught next. This will help you in 2 ways: firstly you will be able to understand what is being stated in your child's IEP and you can make sure which educational needs will receive the most attention. Secondly your child's teacher will realize that you are interested in your child's education and they will make extra efforts on behalf of your child. I firmly believe that it is always good to set high expectations for the people working with your child.

Tip#2: Usually your child's special needs education funding organization will have meetings a few times a year to discuss their plans etc. Attend as many of these meetings as possible and develop a relationship with the supervisor for your child's special needs education. This relationship will allow you to discuss and make requests suited to your child's educational requirements.

Tip#3: We requested a copy of Larry's IEP 2 days before the IEP meeting so my wife and I could review the IEP. Your child's teacher is usually very busy developing IEPs so you need to give the teacher early notice that you need the IEP for review. Having a relationship with your child's teacher and the funding special education supervisor will really help here because you will already know what level of education your child is at and what is the next level of education and services to be addressed in the IEP.

Tip#4: You need to remember that you as parents can bring with you to the IEP meeting others involved with your child that you feel are important for the IEP team to hear, such as, your child's psychologist or tutor. I would recommend keeping surprises for the IEP team to a minimum and again your working relationship with your child's education team should help you resolve issues and have agreements on your child's educational needs before the IEP meeting.

Tip#5: Parents should remember that IEPs can be updated any time during the year. For Larry, he was very good at mathematics and we had the IEP amended during the school year to provide Mathematics tutoring during the summer for the next level of Mathematics. Since we had a good relationship with our town's special needs education supervisor, this was easily done and Larry had his Mathematics teacher as a tutor during the summer.

Tip#6: Here are a couple of things I wished we would have done differently. In middle school Larry was struggling with Reading and English. He had a literature class where the reading material was Shakespeare. We knew he was struggling with Reading and English and this class was frustrating him a lot. We should have had a discussion with this teacher and the Middle School supervisor and find a solution that met Larry's needs and have his IEP amended. In addition, we should have requested a tutor for Reading and English where the tutoring was done in American Sign Language

Deaf Parenting - An Individual Education Plan (IEP) To Effectively Meet Educational Needs
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Alex Stephen invites you get our Free story "Unimaginable Miracles- A Family's Journey with a Deaf Child". Please go to http://www.DeafParenting.com sign in and download the FREE PDF or AUDIO. Discover how our Deaf child grew up confident, independent and successful beyond our imagination! We appreciate your comments, and you are welcome to share "Your Story" on our blog. It could change someone's life! Thank You.

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The Effects Of Single Parenting On Children

Times have really changed. Many old customs and traditions which were taught and practiced for several years are becoming obsolete now. The modern culture has changed and outgrown values and beliefs that were thought to be the core.

Even though moralists and conservative people are expressing disgust over the currently evolving belief and culture systems, the truth is, however, what has been unacceptable in the old world is now becoming fast and rapidly rising trends.

Some of the effects of single parenting have ranged from social to financial issues.

The Effects Of Single Parenting On Children

For decades and even centuries, one of the most concerning issues to conservative people is the issue of single parenting. Ancient social philosophies have often linked single parenting to adventurism and liberation of people.

The Catholic Church has always been the dominating mentor and guide of traditions, norms and living. The church is so adamant to advocate the sanctity of the sacrament of marriage of matrimony.

That is why the procreation outside wedlock is strictly considered a ground for excommunication. It is one of the greatest sins, according to the Catholic Church, to engage in pre-marital sex.

From the church's point of view, single parenthood can be considered as a punishment of some sorts, for those who disobey the teachings of the church. Obviously the fundamentalists think otherwise. So, is it?

Single parenting is already becoming a rapidly growing trend in the society. Studies show, that in the US alone, there are four single parents to every ten parents and there are two single parents for every 10 adults. Could you believe it?

The Child

Since the decision of single parenting is taken by the parent, one voice is often ignored and sometimes unheard of. It is that of the child's.

It has been found that single parenting has adverse mental, emotional and psychological effect on the child. This has been validated by psychologists and advocates from time to time.

The direct effect of being raised by a single parent is especially visible in child's thinking and mental mind set.

Although single parents must be commended for raising a child alone, he or she should not be blamed for any mental or psychological result of the situation to the child, as psychological assert.

Tests and observations have consistently concluded and found that single parenting makes children more aggressive and rebellious. Experts say the behavior could be the outcome of the angst and humiliation the child experiences while growing.

There are very obvious reasons to make the child feel abnormal, different and unaccepted. The traditional families have two parents, the mom and the dad, jointly raising kids with help and advice from each other. Whereas in single parenting, a single person decides what is best for the child and sometimes takes extreme measures to get it accomplished.

Neighborhood also plays an important role in the development of single parent raised children. Sometimes it treats them too cruelly, which can make things worse. Humiliation and awkward feeling of insecurity is dangerous if left untreated or undetected in the child. That child can take the burden for the rest of his or her life.

In some conditions, single parents and their children both may need professional help through counseling. Counselors can give reasonable advice to the child and the single parent to make sure every small issue and difficulty is ironed out.

Counseling from professionals can form or make up a support system that will make single parenting easier and more effective. Because single parenting is no ordinary parenting, the parent and the child must learn to accept the situation minus the negative feeling.

It's a difficult situation for any child to be raised with one parent, but surprisingly, not an impossible one anymore. Society has accepted the facts and has stopped looking at single parenting as an abnormal occurrence. There is a positive trend which is especially useful in reducing, if not nullifying, the adverse effects on single parents and their children.

The Effects Of Single Parenting On Children
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Get a free single parenting book that will help reveal and provide solutions to some of the problems faced by a single parent. Get this book now by going to: about single parenting. Also to read more articles and get further resources on single parenting visit good single parenting articles [http://www.singleparentcenter.net/singleparentingarticles.html].

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Parenting the Traumatized Child - Seven Tips

Unfortunately, there are many types of trauma children experience. In the Child Welfare Trauma Training Tool, 14 types of trauma are identified. The seven tips listed below have the five most common types of child trauma in mind: (1) physical abuse which occurs when a child suffers injury as a result of being hit, burned, kicked, or shaken; (2) neglect which occurs when a child's basic needs - food, clothing, shelter, medical care and education - are not being met; (3) sexual abuse occurs when an adult or older child engages a younger child in a sexual act and includes exposing a child to pornography, fondling, touching, sexual intercourse, and rape; (4) emotional abuse which includes verbal abuse; and (5) "systems induced trauma" which occurs as a result of a child being removed from their home for foster care placement. It is important for caregivers to be aware of the mere fact that a child has been removed from their home, placed in foster care, and separated from siblings and friends is traumatic.

It is also important for you to know that, as the caregiver, you are critical to your child's recovery.
The help your child needs is from you as a parent or caregiver. If you are presently parenting a traumatized child, here are seven tips to help you understand the child in your care. If your child's needs are more than you can handle, seek help from a mental health professional.

Tip #1: Know the signs of trauma and be observant. Children who have experienced abuse often have extreme and sudden changes in their behavior. If you are a foster or adoptive parent, you may not know how or if your child's behavior has changed, or if the behavior you see is normal for a child their age. Therefore, it is important to listen when your child talks and be observant of their behaviors when it appears that they are acting out. Take note of what has happened before, during and after negative behavior in an effort to determine the cause. If the negative behavior is extreme relative to the cause, or if it appears there was no apparent reason, the behavior could be a manifestation of trauma. Some of the behavioral signs of trauma are unprovoked anger (demonstrated by hitting, throwing objects, biting, fighting), unexplained fears, crying for no apparent reason; being overly anxious, easily upset, or easily startled. Traumatized children do not know the proper way to react to typical, everyday situations. They need to be taught. The best way to teach children is to model the right way of doing things.

Parenting the Traumatized Child - Seven Tips

Tip #2: Delay discipline. For every child there should rules and consequences for breaking the rules. However, because traumatized children are unaware of the proper way to act, delaying discipline may be the best way to help them. Children of trauma may behave at an age considerably younger than their biological age both emotionally and socially. These children may lack the social skills that another child their age has successfully mastered. Mastering social skills is significant to the healing
process. Take the time to understand why your child acts the way he or she does and where these behaviors come from before deciding on discipline.

As previously stated, in many instances it can be beneficial to model the behavior you desire your child to learn, talking to him or her as you show the child what you would like him or her to do, instead of disciplining. For instance, your child may need to be taught to share when he wants to play with his toys alone, or a child may take what he or she wants, without asking permission. A child not following directions is not necessarily defiance, but may indicate that the child is easily confused and unable to remember what was asked of him or her. As your child begins to master these skills, the rules and consequences can be enforced when problem behavior occurs.

Tip #3: Give your children choices and let them make the final decision. When children have been abused or neglected, there is a sense of helplessness. They soon learn that they have no control in these abusive situations and can become extremely anxious. Children need to have some sense of control in their lives. Giving them choices helps restore a child's sense of control, which also helps
rekindle their mental and emotional development. Your child will be happy because he or she feels a sense of control by choosing what they want to do.

Tip #4: Provide structure. Children of trauma often have problems with attachment. For children with attachment issues, change is difficult. This fact makes structure and routine important. Establishing a set time for waking up in the morning, going to bed at night and everything in between is imperative for these children. It is also of great importance to let them know ahead of time if this set schedule is about to change.

Tip #5: Create a healing environment. Children of abuse and neglect have a great need to feel safe, secure and cared for. Having a sense of being protected is crucial. Children who lack support after a traumatic event suffer more than those who have support from family members or friends. If they have been removed from their homes, that security is lost leaving them feeling lost and alone. These children need to know that someone cares about what happens to them. Hence, it is important for you as a caregiver to help your child feel safe. One way to help a child who has been sexually abused feel safe and secure is by creating a safety plan. Although this child may be a stranger in your home, it is important that you nurture, comfort, and appropriately love that child. As all children do, these children need to be loved unconditionally.

Tip #6: Be a good listener. If your child doesn't want to talk about what he/she has been through, don't force it. Let the child bring the subject up on his or her own. Often, though, children need to tell and simply to be heard. Depending on the age of the child, he or she may not even need you to respond. However, if your child does want to talk, be prepared to listen. Talking about trauma is part of the healing process. Let children express how they feel on their terms and in their own individual way. Listen, but don't judge. Believing their story is important. If you are a foster parent or adoptive parent it is best that you do not ask questions, as an investigation may be pending. Just listen. You may assure them, however, that what happened was not their fault and that you are there to support them.

Tip #7: Consider therapy. Children may not show signs of trauma immediately, but signs may manifest some time later. If children who have been traumatized remain untreated, their traumatized state can interfere with their development with long-lasting consequences. Traumatized children may have regressive behaviors such as bed-wetting when they have already been potty/toilet trained; or an older child acting or talking like a baby who has just learned to speak. Early intervention is important. Seek help from a professional not just for your child, but also for you so that you can respond adequately to your child's special needs and to avoid becoming overwhelmed.
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References

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (n.d.). Child Welfare Trauma Referral Tool. Retrieved April 21, 2007, from http://www.nctsnet.org.

Perry, Bruce D., M.D., Ph.D. (2001). [Electronic version]. Bonding and Attachment in Maltreated Children: Consequences of Emotional Neglect in Childhood. Child Trauma Academy, p. 9. Retrieved from http:/www.child trauma.org.

Parenting the Traumatized Child - Seven Tips
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Michelle Hurtt is founder of Heart Cry Parenting. She offers parenting education classes for parents and caregivers of traumatized children. Michelle is a writer and speaker on child abuse issues. For a free copy of a Family Safety Plan, visit [http://www.heartcryparenting.com] in the Articles and Books section.

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6 Parenting Tips on Special Education Law and Transportation

Are you the parent of a child with autism or a physical disability that needs transportation? Do you wonder what the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) states is the schools responsibility, to provide transportation for your child? This article will discuss what IDEA requires as far as transportation for your child with a disability. Also discussed are parenting tips that you can use, to help your child receive this important service.

Under IDEA transportation is considered a related service. A related service is transportation, developmental, corrective, and other services. . .as may be required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education. . .
What this means is that if your child requires transportation in order to benefit from their education, special education personnel are required to provide it.

Parenting Tips:

6 Parenting Tips on Special Education Law and Transportation

1. When advocating for your child, remember that; transportation not only means to and from school, but also in and around the school building, and any specialized equipment required by your child.

2. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act prevents discrimination on the basis of disability. The law reads: No qualified student shall on the basis of handicap, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or otherwise be subjected to discrimination under any . . .transportation. . .or activity.

For Example: Your child with a physical disability is not allowed to go on a field trip, because the class cannot get the wheelchair bus. This would be a section 504 complaint, because your child is being discriminated against, on the basis of their disability. I have dealt with this situation, and the school district usually quickly fixes the transportation problem, if you tell them that you may file a Section 504 complaint. Section 504 is covered by the Office of Civil Rights in Washington, though each state has at least one office.

3. If your child requires an assistant in the classroom then you may be able to get a bus assistant, if your child's disability requires it. The goal of transportation as a related service is to provide safe access to education. So if your child needs a bus assistant in order to get safely to school, school personnel are required to provide it.

4. If your school district is not providing needed transportation for your child, you can be reimbursed, for providing the transportation yourself. Make sure that your child's IEP, states that they need transportation as a related service, and that you will be reimbursed.

A district may also be required to reimburse parents where:

A. Transportation is needed to provide FAPE and the district fails to meet its obligation.
B. The district doesn't recognize the need for transportation.
C. The district makes inadequate provisions for transportation.

5. If your child's extracurricular activity is related to their IEP goals and objectives, then transportation must be given. For Example: If your child has autism and needs to work on social skills, they can gain that from extra curricular activities. In that case transportation needs to be given by your school district.

6. School districts are not allowed to shorten your child's school day due to transportation. Unfortunately it happens all the time, and you may have to stand up to special education personnel for the good of your child.

IDEA gives children with disabilities equal educational opportunity, which means a full school day. I have often said that if parents of children without disabilities found out there child was to leave school early for transportation, they would be outraged. But parents of special needs children are supposed to accept it. Do not accept it, stand up for your child.

This article has given you a lot of good information about transportation, that you can use to benefit your child's education.

6 Parenting Tips on Special Education Law and Transportation
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JoAnn Collins is the mother of two adults with disabilities, and has helped families navigate the special eduation system, as an advocate, for over 15 years. She is a presenter and author of the book "Disability Deception; Lies Disability Educators Tell and How Parents Can Beat Them at Their Own Game." The book has a lot of resources and information to help parents fight for an appropriate education for their child. For a free E newsletter entitled "The Special Education Spotlight" send an E mail to: JoAnn@disabilitydeception.com For more information on the book, testimonials about the book, and a link to more articles go to: http://www.disabilitydeception.com

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Behavior Modification Techniques - Insights and Suggestions For Their Use in Parenting

Behavior modification techniques have a long, and sometimes controversial, history.

Behavior modification techniques derive from psychological treatment approaches based on the tenents of operant conditioning proposed by B.F. Skinner. The theories of operant conditioning state that behavior can be shaped by reinforcement or lack of it. Skinner introduced operant conditioning to the general public in his 1938 book, The Behavior of Organisms.

As a treatment technique, behavior modification is used to address many problems in both adults and children. Behavior modification has been successfully used to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), phobias, generalized anxiety disorder, enuresis (bed-wetting), separation anxiety disorder, and others.

Behavior Modification Techniques - Insights and Suggestions For Their Use in Parenting

Behavior modification techniques rely on the conscious and planned application of various consequences for behavior to encourage children to replace undesirable behaviors with desirable ones.

Behavioral analysts have observed that all behaviors lead to three basic types of consequences:

* Punishment - a person receives something they do not want as a result of their behavior.
* Penalty - a person loses something they already have as the result of their behavior.
* Reinforcement - a person experiences something that encourages them to repeat a behavior. Reinforcers can be either negative or positive.

Two key tenets of behavior modification are that people choose most, if not all, of their behaviors and that they choose their behaviors based on what they expect to happen as a result of their behavior.

In effect, behavior modification techniques rely on externally applied consequences that are either pleasant or unpleasant in an effort to drive the choice away from undesirable behaviors and towards desirable behaviors.

For example, parents might "punish" a behavior by applying an unpleasant consequence to it in the hope that their child will avoid repeating that behavior in the future.

Likewise, parents might reward a behavior by giving the child something pleasant as a result of their behavior in the hope that their child will repeat the desirable behavior in the future.

Positive reinforcements, like rewards and recognition, can create high-level, willing cooperation. Punishment, penalty, and negative reinforcement tend to create bare-minimum, compliance type behavior.

These techniques have both proponents and critics. Proponents argue that behavior modification techniques teach children the direct correlation between their behavior and the consequences they receive. Critics argue that the techniques teach children to respond only to external stimuli, and that they fail to teach children to self-regulate their behavior.

In my experience as a parent, I have found that a blended approach to parenting works very well. Study and selectively apply behavior modification techniques when a child is younger and then gradually introduce less externally driven motivational strategies as the child grows in intellectual understanding and reasoning ability.

If you choose to use behavior modification techniques as a parent, I strongly recommend that you use a systematic approach so that you will consistently apply rewards, punishments, and penalties with little regard to your emotional or physical energy state at the time you apply the consequences.

Behavior Modification Techniques - Insights and Suggestions For Their Use in Parenting
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With his wife Sandra, Guy Harris co-created a positive parenting program called The Behavior Bucks System. Guy and Sandra Harris are both Human Behavioral Consultants and parents.

In The Behavior Bucks System, they share what they have learned from both research and practical experience. This system:
* Provides positive parenting tips,
* Applies positive parenting techniques,
* Implements sound behavior modification techniques,
* Addresses child behavior management and control, and
* Teaches how to change your kid's behavior.

The Behavior Bucks System provides a systematic method for addressing complex behavioral issues in a simple and straight forward way.
This system comes complete with everything you need to create a powerful positive parenting program in your home.

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